writing – Page 6 – The NEN – North Edinburgh News

New poll shows Scottish writers ‘have broad appeal and a bright future’

With this year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival now well underway, a new poll suggests Scottish writers are proving as popular as ever …

Almost seven out of every ten (68%) Scottish adults claim to be buyers of new books by Scottish writers – and just under a third (28%) of Scottish adults purchase at least one new book by a Scottish writer every six months. These are some of the results of a new opinion poll commissioned by independent non-political charity the Saltire Society.

The poll results also indicate that contemporary Scottish writing has a broad appeal across different age groups. 18-24 year olds and those aged over 55 are the most likely to buy new books by Scottish writers, with 72% respectively in each age bracket claiming to ever do so. Adults aged between 45 and 54 are the least likely to buy new books by Scottish writers, with only 60% saying they ever do.

73% of women claim to be buyers of new books by Scottish writers compared to 63% of men. Conversely, only 23% of Scottish adults say they never buy new books by Scottish writers.

Glasgow has the highest proportion of people who say they buy new books by Scottish writers with 78% of the adult population claiming to do so. Meanwhile, those in the regular habit of buying new books by Scottish writers are most likely to be found in the South and West of Scotland. 8% and 9% of adults living in these areas respectively claim to buy new books by Scottish writers at least five times a year.

According to trade body Publishing Scotland, Scotland’s publishers typically account for an annual sales turnover of approximately £343m at invoice value, making the industry an important contributor to the Scottish economy.

Meanwhile, figures from the UK Publishing Association show there were 380 million new physical books sold in the UK last year with a total net invoiced value of £1.612 billion.

An omnibus survey of 2000 British adults conducted as part of an industry report[1] published by Book Marketing Limited in 2005 found that one third of the population never purchases books. Based on that finding, the new poll suggests new books by Scottish writers are achieving a high level of penetration amongst Scotland’s book-buying public.

The results of the poll have been released as nominations close for the 2014 Saltire Publisher of the Year Award. Organised annually by the Saltire Society, the Award is sponsored by Creative Scotland and offers the winning publisher a £4000 cash prize to assist further development of its business. The winner of the inaugural award in 2013 was Glasgow-based small independent publisher Saraband, who impressed the judging panel with their “shrewd and strategic business thinking in a shifting context” and “fresh thinking in their use of digital technology”.

The 2014 winner will be announced as part of the Saltire Literary Awards ceremony on the 11th November.

Saltire Society Executive Director Jim Tough said: “There’s a common misconception that Scottish writing is a minority interest and one that’s only likely to appeal to an older demographic. There is a growing concern also that the younger generation is turning its back on book buying in favour of modern screen-based entertainment.

“In fact, this poll shows Scottish writing and the purchase of new books by Scottish writers appeal to Scottish adults of all ages. The fact that such a high percentage of Scots claim to buy new books by Scottish writers, even if only occasionally, should be a real source of encouragement for the Scottish publishing industry.

“I think it’s also a real testament to the breadth of writing talent there is in Scotland, spanning all genres and including factual as well as fictional writing. By being creative and constantly seeking out new ways to attract a wider audience, Scottish publishers can help to ensure Scottish writing has a bright future for many years to come. That is exactly what the Saltire Publisher Award seeks to encourage and recognise.”

Circle’s storytellers ‘writely’ pleased with new book!

‘No-one really knew what it was. People walking past stopped and stared …’

Children and parents from Circle’s Haven project created their own book, ‘The Sandpit Volcano’, during Haven’s Storytelling Week project, which ran from 28 July – 2 August.

The Sandpit Volcano tells the tale of brave kangaroos, crabbit crustaceans and creepy castles with flags made from used underpants – delightful! Children who were involved in the creation of the story read it in public for the first time on Friday and it really is a fantastic tale!

The Haven Project group was assisted by Edinburgh-based author Mike Nicholson (pictured below with ten-month old ‘helper’ Caleb!), who writes children’s fiction. He has two novels published; mystery adventures packed with past secrets, colourful characters and fiendish plots! Based on his writing experience, Mike runs events for all ages in schools and at book festivals, often based on encouraging children to create their own story ideas. Mike worked with the Circle project on a similar project last year – a swashbuckling tale of pirates on the seven seas – and he was delighted to return for what it’s hoped may become an annual event.

It was an intensive week for all involved – from a day of ideas and discussions following a trip to Cramond, working with Mike to develop story ideas and then producing artwork and storyboards – but it was both interesting and fun for all involved.

One mum said: “It really was good fun and we’re all looking forward to seeing the book when it’s printed – oh, and the bairns enjoyed it all too!”

North Edinburgh Arts Angela Austin worked on the artwork with the group. “This was a great group to work with – everyone was really enthusiastic and there was lots of energy and ideas”, she said. “Lots of people are really good at art and being creative without realizing the talent they have, and I think this project has shown that”.

The artwork is now off to the printers and it’s hoped the Circle storytellers will see the The Sandpit Volcano in book form within the next 2-3 weeks.

Read all about it – top author praises Craigie ‘illustrauthors’!

A group of Craigroyston Community High School students have been working with top author John Fardell over the autumn term. With John’s guidance the S2’s have produced their own story books, and the Edinburgh-based writer was full of praise for the students’ efforts when he attended his final session last week.

John spent his last session with the class looking at the students’ books – and he was delighted with what he read. He told students: “There is an incredible variety here – there are some amazing ideas and wonderful stories. I really do hope that you will keep writing.”

John was initially invited to Craigroyston by the school librarian Desmond Spiers, who explained: “The group of 16 pupils have literacy problems and during S1 they were targeted for extra support using a Literacy Programme called ‘SRA’, which is a reading support programme. Rather than having the work done with the pupils as a ‘stand-alone’ programme we wanted to embed and extend their work and progress with something outside the normal remit of the curriculum.

In 2006 and 2007 we had a very successful project with the author Keith Gray working in school for a year as our ‘Writer in Residence’ and we decided we would like to do something similar with this group of pupils when they entered S2 in August – this time we would have a writer in for a term. John Fardell was recommended to us by colleagues in other schools – he is both a writer and illustrator, having published a range of picture books and fiction books for older children and he has also contributed regularly to the adult comic Viz.”

Desmond continued: “John worked with the pupils for five sessions over the Autumn Term, talking to the pupils about how he gets his ideas for stories, how he goes about constructing a plot and then writing a story. He’s explained how pictures tell a story, along with lots of hints and tips for the pupils. He has also brought in and shown the pupils examples of work in progress from the first rough ideas and drafts to the finished book.

“John’s visits have been funded by the ‘Live Literature’ programme at Scottish Book Trust, who pay half of the costs with the school paying the remainder. This project has also been encouraged and supported by Education Advisors in Support for Learning, English and Literacy.”

In between John’s visits the pupils worked in class writing their own short stories which were then bound into books, and their creations were presented to the author at John’s final session on 8 November.

Every single book received positive comments and there was helpful feedback for each writer – among the comments:

‘Nice simple uncomplicated style’

‘Great use of white space – makes the pictures stand out’

‘Great work – go for what you find interesting’

‘Very striking – fine story and excellent design’

‘Wild, psychedelic colours and a really, really good fantasy story’

‘Lovely ideas on themes of friendship – wonderful illustrations’

‘Great first sentence for a story and mixes text and pictures really well’

‘Very original, with some fantastic cartoon baddies. A good fun, exciting story’

‘Nicely laid out – excellent mix of excitement and humour’

‘Very dark, bleak opening but you can start a story like that. Great atmosphere’

‘Nice use of wild lettering and curly writing, sort of Pop Art collage. Unique style’

‘Really good use of illustration, unique and personal’

‘Nice style with fluffy thought bubbles – I really like the diary format’

‘A collection of poetry with a contents page – some lovely contrasts here’.

In short, John was impressed!

Summing up, he told the students: “It’s great that these 17 books are all so wonderfully different. They are all very individual and that makes them unique and exciting books. I know you have all worked really, really hard and you should be very proud of what you have achieved. Keep your drawer full of rough ideas – you have shown a real talent, fantastic”.

John clearly possesses an infectious enthusiasm for books and 13-year-old Keiran Blackie was particularly inspired by working with the author. “John was brilliant to work with – he gave us lots of helpful tips and ideas and he was also very funny sometimes! My book is called The Best Accident and the idea for it came while I was watching the Paralympics on television. It took me around seven weeks from start to finish – I enjoyed writing it and I do like the way it looks now it’s finished. I’ve tried to write before but this is the first time I’ve really succeeded, and it has given me confidence – I think I will hopefully do another one.”

Teachers Margaret Beveridge and Eric Freund did the majority of the classwork with the pupils, and both were full of praise for John. They said: “He helped reinforce lessons already undertaken with the students, fired their imagination and left a body of work that we can build upon and extend over the coming months. We hope we can repeat this excellent project again next year.”