New Writer Awards announced
Two writers from Argyll and Lochaber are among the 13 recipients of the Scottish Book Trust's New Writers Award, which is supported by Creative Scotland.
Since 2009, Scottish Book Trust, the national charity transforming lives through reading and writing, has supported more than 100 creative individuals through the New Writers Awards.
Mary Ann Kennedy, who now lives in Lochaber, has been selected for one of the awards along with Andreas Wolff.
Well known as an award-winning musician, Mary Ann Kennedy was born and brought up a Gaelic speaker in Glasgow.
Her writing began with song, encouraged by friends and mentors such as Aonghas MacNeacail and Donald Meek. An inspirational year as musician-in-residence at the Gaelic college, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, gave rise to two highly acclaimed albums, including An Dàn, a collection of original contemporary songs, her own lyrics among them.
She co-edited a family biography and compendium for Acair Books in 2012, which won the Gaelic Book of the Year at the Royal National Mòd, and the Arts and Culture prize at the inaugural National Gaelic Awards. In 2018, she wrote the score and original songs for Deeds Not Words, a Rural Nations theatre production celebrating the story of women's suffrage in the Western Isles.
Her current projects include an ongoing Gaelicinspired exploration in words and music of the River Clyde from source to sea, and of her hometown of Glasgow.
Originally from Berlin, Andreas Wolff fell in love with the Scottish islands, especially the Hebrides and their Gaelic culture, when he visited as a teenager. Andreas settled in Scotland 16 years ago and studied a BA (Hons) in Gaelic at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig on the Isle of Skye and now works as a video journalist for BBC ALBA in Argyll, in Scotland and in Europe.
During his award, Andreas wants to explore long form travel and other narrative non-fiction writing in Gaelic, building on the factual story telling skills he acquired as a journalist.
The New Writers Awards provide a selection of talented writers with financial support to enable them to concentrate on developing their work, as well as professional guidance to help them move towards publication.
Former awardees include Helen Sedgwick, whose first crime novel When The Dead Come Calling (Point Blank Books) was released earlier this January; Morag Law, whose short fiction collection Cuibhle an Fhortain (Wheel of Fortune – Luath Press) was published in December 2019; and Kirstin Innes, whose novel Scabby Queen (4th Estate) will be published in April 2020.
Each recipient will receive £2,000 and support tailored to their needs, including mentoring from writers and industry professionals, training opportunities, and the platform to showcase their work to publishers and agents. The awards also include the offer of a week-long writing retreat at Moniack Mhor to provide time, space and freedom to create new work.
The Gaelic Books Council provides two additional places on the programme, which support two Gaelic New Writers awardees each year. The Gaelic Books Council also selects these writers.
Support for an additional place is also generously provided by The Callan Gordon Award, which was set up by his family to celebrate the life of Callan Gordon, a young Scottish writer.
Alan Bett, literature officer at Creative Scotland, said: 'This programme from Scottish Book Trust feeds the literature sector annually with new and exciting voices from Scotland. As in previous years, we are sure that these 13 names will soon feature on book spines and festival programmes. The New Writers Awards go beyond providing writers with mentoring and time to develop their craft, and cover the many practical elements that are essential for a career as a contemporary writer. Many congratulations to all those selected.'