Inspiring A Community of Book Lovers

The Real Mackay: Walter Scott’s Favourite Comedian, published in May 2024, is Helen Graham’s first novel and tells the fascinating story of her ancestor, Charles Mackay, a famous Scottish actor. Previously she has written a memoir, a poetry anthology, six volumes of family history books and published several articles and short stories. Helen has also worked as a knitwear designer and a filmmaker, renovated historic buildings, composed and recorded numerous songs, directed award-winning short films, co-founded a community film festival and raised a family. Brought up in Oxfordshire, she lives in Edinburgh. Her second novel is due for publication in 2026.

Returning by Popular Demand -Jess Smith has written about her life as a Traveller girl taking to the roads of Scotland with her parents and seven sisters. In 2002 her first book Jessie’s Journey was highly acclaimed and became no 1 in the Scottish Biographies, lifting her to “best-selling” author status. Five more books followed, with Jess enjoying recurring success and travelling the world sharing tales and cultural stories. In 2024 Jess was awarded a BEM for her contribution to the Traveller culture and decided not to write another book! Thanks to Covid and the silence of lockdown, her pen didn’t run dry. Button Bog is Jess’ 7th book and it is great to have her back at the 2025 Festival. You will hear her stories and know that she is speaking just to you.

Join Jason Ubych of Tain Museum and the Clan Ross Centre for a captivating talk on the history of Fearn Abbey, an institution as enduring as the Earls who founded it. From its early 13th-century origins under the warrior-patriarch Ferchar mac in tSacairt, to its turbulent role during the Reformation, Fearn was more than a place of prayer, it was a political instrument, a cultural beacon, and the beating heart of Ross family ambition. Set within the ruins of the Abbey itself, this illustrated talk brings to life the story of a once-mighty monastery: from royal charters and rebel alliances to local legends and lost relics. Discover why this sacred site still matters — not only to Clan Ross, but to anyone interested in the hidden histories of the Highlands. Following the talk there will be teas and baking provided by Nigg Friendship Group together with a musical interlude (no charge but donations welcome).

Jon Attenborough, a visually impaired football fan, embarked on an extraordinary journey with his guide dog, Sam, across Scotland, visiting all 42 Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) grounds. What began as a personal challenge soon turned into a historic adventure. Jon will share stories of their travels across the length and breadth of Scotland, navigating the challenges of accessibility, the unpredictability of live sports, and the warmth of Scotland’s football community. This inspiring and heart-warming story will resonate with football fans, dog lovers, and anyone who believes in the power of following one’s passion against all odds. Sadly, Sam will not be with Jon, as this much-loved friend and companion passed away earlier this year.

Michael Pedersen is a prize winning author and the Edinburgh Makar. His prose debut, Boy Friends, was published by Faber to rave reviews, and was a Sunday Times Critics Choice. His third collection The Cat Prince won the Books Are My Bag Readers Award for Best Poetry. Pedersen has been shortlisted for the Forward Prizes for Poetry and The Saltire Scottish National Book Awards and won a Robert Louis Stevenson Fellowship. Stephen Fry described Boy Friends as “Astonishingly compelling”, while Jackie Kay called it “a love letter to friendship”. His debut novel, Muckle Flugga, was published by Faber in May 2025. Michael will read his poetry and talk about his new work.

Cynthia Rogerson is a Californian Scottish writer living in the Highlands. Winner of the
V.S.Pritchett Prize, she has published a memoir, five novels and a collection of short stories.

I Love You Goodbye was translated into six languages, short-listed for Scottish Novel of the
Year and dramatized for BBC radio.

Wait for Me Jack was published in 2017 under Addison Jones and awarded 5 stars by The Seaboard Book Group. Her memoir titled Wah! was shortlisted for the Highland Book Prize in 2023. She has supervised on the Edinburgh University Creative Writing program and holds a Royal Literary Fund Fellowship.

Her 8th book, 100,000 Birthdays, is published in autumn 2025. www.cynthiarogerson.org
From the cosmic sneeze that birthed the universe to the microscopic marvel that was Kevin,
100,000 Birthdays is a dazzling exploration of the improbable, chaotic, and wondrous
journey of life itself. Through wit, whimsy and the grand sweep of science, Rogerson traces
the absurd yet miraculous lineage that leads to us all. Alongside musings on asteroids,
carbon’s quiet supremacy and the serendipity of tortoiseshell glasses rediscovered, she invites readers to reflect on life’s strangeness, brevity, and unexpected beauty.
This book celebrates every fragile, fleeting heartbeat in the grand tapestry of existence. Part
memoir, part philosophical musing, and part ode to the universe, 100,000 Birthdays will leave
you marvelling at the interconnectedness of all things—and profoundly grateful to Kevin. For
fans of Bill Bryson, Carl Sagan, Elizabeth Strout and anyone who has ever wondered how on
earth they got here.
100,000 Birthdays is a major feat of the imagination – a unique and a thought-provoking
read - S.G.MacLean (The Bookseller of Inverness, Waterstone’s Book of the Year)
A wonderful book, highly original, often profound, very funny and written with so much heart
- Doug Johnstone (The Space Between Us - dramatized on BBC)
Joyful, exuberant, outrageously audacious, Cynthia Rogerson’s genre-busting new work is a
beautiful exercise in wonder. This is a book that ponders the wild improbability of any human
existence. Not quite a memoir, not quite a novel, almost but not quite science and spanning
whole eons of existence in a series of well-crafted chapters, 100,000 Birthdays will make
your head spin. It will also make you laugh, which is a rare joy these days.
- Stephen May (Life! Death! Prizes! - Costa shortlisted)

Donald S Murray’s inspiration for the novel As The Women Lay Dreaming came from conversations he heard as a child in his home district of Ness on the Isle of Lewis. One story was of the Iolaire disaster which came to be known as the “crowning sorrow of the war”. HMY Iolaire hit rocks and sank near Stornoway on 1st January 1919 resulting in the deaths of over 200 men returning home from the First World War. They were just 20 yards from the shore and safety. This beautiful, poignant yet powerful novel, set across two decades, tells how this single event impacted communities and individuals for the rest of their lives. As The Women Lay Dreaming (Saraband) won the Paul Torday Memorial Prize. In a Veil of Mist and The Salt and the Flame were chosen as the Times Historical Book of the Month. Donald S Murray’s poetry has received national awards, including the Callum MacDonald Memorial Award and his Gaelic play Sequamur has been adopted as a school drama text for Higher English throughout Scotland.

The workshop will discuss the joys and pitfalls of running a theatre production company, funding, co writing and moving from scripts to novels. He will touch on the issues of self-published books and the demands of producing Audible books.  Dave Smith is a local playwright living in Tain. Dave has been involved in theatre and touring shows around the Highlands since 1986, when he started working with the theatre group Clown Jewels. He has been creating plays since his first commission in 2000 and recently has been converting some of his theatre material into novels.

Illustrated by her films and artwork, Amanda will talk about her work writing about the Scottish Highlands and how wonderful things can be found in unexpected places. Language and old Scots words reveal fascinating histories and connections to the natural environment that have been lost, and how they might help us to reconnect in fascinating ways. Amanda Thomson is an artist and writer who makes work about our connections to the natural environment and how we belong. Belonging: Natural Histories of Place, Identity and Home was shortlisted for the Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing, 2023. Recently, Boundary Layers, a short film about nature’s reclamation of Ravenscraig, the former site of Europe’s largest steelworks, was part of A Fragile Correspondence, Scotland’s exhibition in the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale. Belonging is a book about how we are held in thrall to the elements of our past.

When Kenneth Steven was commissioned to put together a book of essays on modern day pilgrimages in wild places, he took his title from Neil Gunn: Atoms of Delight. Kenneth will talk about his book and read from it, and also discuss a newer work celebrating the true story of a Swedish Sami reindeer herder inspired to create the herd now established in the Cairngorms. Kenneth grew up in Perthshire, but his mother’s people hailed from Wester and Easter Ross, resulting in many holidays in the north and a passion for everything relating to the wild world. Best known as a Scottish poet, publishing many collections, more recently he has written non-fiction, fiction and works for children and there have been several series of essays for BBC Radio. He and his wife Kristina live on the Isle of Seil south of Oban.

“ Somehow she’d always known that she would end like this. In a small square room, in a small square f lat. In a small square box, perhaps. Cardboard, with a sticker on the outside. And a name . . .” A detective story without a detective: Join author, Mary Paulson-Ellis as she discusses her bestselling novel, The Other Mrs Walker and delves into the world of those who die with no next of kin. Featuring Heir Hunters, mortuary technicians, crime-scene cleaners and many more, this exploration of the stories and stuff of the dead dips in and out of contemporary Edinburgh and the past to ask questions about what we leave behind, what we don’t, what gets lost and what gets found. Mary Paulson-Ellis lives in Edinburgh where she writes across the genres of crime, historical and literary fiction. Her debut, The Other Mrs Walker was a Times bestseller and Waterstones Scottish Book of the Year. Mary’s work has been long-listed for the McIlvanney Prize for best Scottish crime novel, a Historical Writers Association Gold Crown and broadcast on BBC Radio 4. In 2023 she was named Dr Gavin Wallace Fellow by Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature for a new book about her home city. The series continues with The Inheritance of Solomon Farthing and Emily Noble’s Disgrace.

Join children’s author and storyteller Ellie Buchanan in a family-friendly fun packed children’s event in Tain’s beautiful Rose Garden. Ellie will be reading from her children’s book Outside the Beechwood, and will be including adventure stories that inspired the book to entertain and interest children and adults alike. She will also be selling signed copies of her book at the event. This is Ellie’s first published book, but lots more are in the pipeline! Ellie is an outdoor guide and author living in the North West Highlands and most of her work has been centred around children, inspiring a love for adventure and the outdoors from an early age, and she hopes to do the same with her writing.

A killer stalks the streets of Leeds. Every man is a suspect. Every woman is at risk. But in a house on Cleopatra Street, women are fighting back. Join Ajay Close to hear about the real people and events behind her award-winning novel, What Doesn’t Kill Us. Based on the Yorkshire Ripper murders and the resulting surge in feminist activism in the sexist 1970s, this gripping tale of murder, resistance, unexpected friendships and divided loyalties reveals just how much the world has changed since then – and how much it hasn’t. Ajay Close is a novelist and dramatist. Her pacy, page-turning novels are often political, dealing with family and relationships under pressure. Her debut, Official and Doubtful, was longlisted for the Orange Prize. A Petrol Scented Spring, about the Scottish suffragettes, was longlisted for the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction. Her latest, What Doesn’t Kill Us, was named Fiction Book of the Year in Scotland’s National Book Awards. ‘This book is a must-read’ – Maxine Peake. Raised in Yorkshire, Ajay has lived in Scotland since the 1980s.

A Scottish Gathering of Stories, Recipes and Songs from the Hebrides. Join international best-selling author Coinneach MacLeod, The Hebridean Baker, as he shares family recipes, folklore and songs that bring the Hebrides to life. With tales of island adventures and the joy of Scottish baking, this event is a celebration of tradition, laughter and storytelling. Dubbed “The Hebrides’ greatest export since Harris Tweed”, Coinneach’s cookbooks and travel adventures have captivated millions. Don’t miss this deliciously entertaining event, where Scotland’s rich cultural tapestry is served with a side of warmth and wit. Coinneach MacLeod was born and raised on the island of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Inspired by family recipes and Scottish flavours his four books have made him Scotland’s best-selling cookbook author. Each book brings a broader narrative of tradition, folklore, and culture, and is a celebration of tradition, innovation and the joy of sharing comforting, delicious food. “Very Scottish, very sexy, very Outlander” Elle Magazine.

Peter MacQueen, also known as The Highland Hutter, talks about sustainable living off-grid and his book, The Art of Hutting. Join Peter as he enlightens us on all things hutting — from foraging, fire-making and solar panels, to building a cabin, slowing down and enjoying the little things in life. Born and raised in Oban, Peter has a passion for living off grid, resulting in him presenting his BBC Alba TV show, Bothag Phàdruig, from his own hut on the Argyllshire coast. A proud West Coaster and fluent Gaelic speaker, Peter is passionate about Scotland’s culture. As an author and presenter on BBC Alba, he has explored gardening and cabin culture, captivating audiences. Living on a croft in Oban with his partner, Coinneach MacLeod, Peter shares his life with a variety of animals and native Scottish dog breeds. He showcases the beauty of Scotland making him a true ambassador for the country and its traditions.

Documents relating to a murder trial in 1869 are discovered in the Inverness Archive. They include the hand-written diary confession of a young man awaiting trial in Inverness. Roderick (Roddy) Macrae writes of his upbringing in the remote, isolated village of Culduie, near Applecross on the West Coast of Ross shire. In the crofting community there are few opportunities and making a living from the poor barren land is an endless battle. In the diary, Roddy confesses to committing a triple murder, one of the dead being his own father. What could have driven a seventeen-year-old lad to commit such horrific crimes? His Bloody Project is written with such skill you will quickly forget you are reading a work of fiction. Graeme Macrae Burnet will be in conversation with Peter Newman about his extensive body of work which includes His Bloody Project, his 2025 publication, A Case of Matricide, and his upcoming novella set on Benbecula which will be part of the Darklands series. Graham Macrae Burnet His Bloody Project was shortlisted for the 2016 Booker prize and won the Saltire Prize for Fiction and another novel, Case Study, was longlisted for the 2022 Booker Prize. Burnet’s work has been translated into over twenty languages and he has appeared at festivals all over the world.

Website: graememacraeburnet.com

Writer, crofter, grandmother and geographer Annie came to the Highlands over 45 years ago, before moving to the crofting township of South Erradale near Gairloch. She began to blog about life on Red River Croft and write essays on nature and the environment for various journals, anthologies and web sites. Annie will introduce her book Windswept: Life, Nature and Deep Time in the Scottish Highlands and offer a brief explanation of its structure which is in the form of a lunisolar calendar, before looking at the geography of Wester Ross, including a short history of crofting. Having measured landscape changes over a year, Annie will outline those changes both on the croft and across the wider area and discuss the importance of crofting to nature, wildlife and biodiversity in the Highlands. Windswept was shortlisted for the Richard Jefferies Prize (2023) and longlisted for Scotland’s Saltire Award for non-fiction (2024).

Philip Paris’s new historical fiction A Fire in Their Hearts tells the extraordinary story of the 17th Century Covenanters through the eyes of childhood sweethearts Violet and Samuel. Caught up in a civil war that tears Scotland apart, the couple are hunted, held prisoner and finally banished to a Barbados sugar plantation as forced labour.

Inspired by true events, Philip’s talk will shine a light into a dark corner of Scottish history that resonates strongly today. Philip’s The Last Witch of Scotland was Waterstones’ Scottish Book of the Year 2024 and his contemporary novel, Men Cry Alone, broke new ground in the subject of domestic abuse against men, winning the Scottish Association of Writers Barbara Hammond trophy in 2019 while his non-fiction Orkney’s Italian Chapel: The True Story of an Icon, is a leading work on the history of the famous WW2 building.

Award-winning author Barbara Henderson’s historical fiction is widely studied in Scottish schools and has won two Young Quills Awards from the Historical Association.

Her latest children’s eco-adventure is called I Don’t Do Mountains. Barbara splits her time between writing and teaching Drama

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Inverness singer-songwriter, musician, author and teacher Liza Mulholland collaborates with artists on projects and plays with bands Dorec-a-belle and Wounded Moose.

As a co-founding member of Edge of the World Cabaret, her original music features in films, including Scottish Women’s Aid.

Author of the Gorgeous George series, Stuart Reid is one of the UK’s busiest children’s authors, going to over 3,000 schools and festivals across the world. 

His book reading sessions were described by a teacher as “The best... by a long mile. Billy Connolly for kids!”​