Poem of the Week: ‘A New Child: ECL’ by George Mackay Brown
13 Apr '21
Today marks 25 years since George Mackay Brown died on 13th April 1996 in Stromness, Orkney. But 2021 also sees the centenary of his birth. Polygon...
Alexander McCall Smith
Marking Earth Hour with Alexander McCall Smith
29 Mar '21
To mark Earth Hour 2021, Alexander McCall Smith wrote a poem, ‘Only One Home’, about Climate Change for environmental charity WWF...
Spring Comes, Even This Year
19 Mar '21
This weekend we mark the Spring Equinox and International Day of Happiness on Saturday (20 March), and World Poetry Day on Sunday (21 March). It...
2021 Previews: Alexander McCall Smith
16 Feb '21
What’s coming from the master storyteller this year? Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world’s most prolific authors and his books are in...
A Valentine’s Day Gift from Alexander McCall Smith
12 Feb '21
Alexander McCall Smith woke up one morning – about a week ago – with a new poem fixed firmly in his mind. It had revealed itself to the...
Burns Night? It’s Looking a Little Different This Year…
25 Jan '21
A Poem for Burns Night by Alexander McCall Smith Give us your hand – here’s ours: All Scotland, though a little quieter now, Is a bit happier in...
A New Chapter at the National Library of Scotland – with Alexander McCall Smith
22 Jan '21
In Edinburgh, we are incredibly fortunate to have the deep-shelved stacks of the National Library of Scotland – filled with rare manuscripts and...
Alexander McCall Smith to receive 2020 Edinburgh Award
22 Dec '20
Internationally-admired Edinburgh-based author Alexander McCall Smith CBE has been chosen as this year’s recipient of the...
Poem of the Week: Winter by Alexander McCall Smith
15 Dec '20
We are now just a week away from the shortest day of the year, so it seems particularly appropriate to share the poem ‘Winter’ from...
Harper’s Bazaar Welcomes Fine Writing
07 Dec '20
Three months ago, prestigious monthly magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, invited four of their favourite writers to contribute a short, uplifting story...
New Writing from… Alexander McCall Smith
30 Nov '20
The following extract is taken from a new collection of short stories and graphic tales, Tiny Tales, from one of the world’s most popular...
Ten Years to a Tapestry
26 Nov '20
Ten years to celebrate Scotland. Ten years to bring a dream to fruition. Ten years to reach the new starting point for something incredibly...
