Scotland has produced its fair share of literary greats over the years
JK Rowling
Born: July 31, 1965
FINISHED the first Harry Potter book, which she predominantly wrote in an Edinburgh café, in 1995. Eventually, there were seven books in the series which spawned Hollywood films and sold more than 500million copies.
Robert Burns
Born: January 25, 1759 Died: July 21, 1796
BURNS was known for several works. Scots Wha Hae, a patriotic song. Auld Lang Lye, a traditional folksong. To A Mouse, Tam O Shanter and A Man’s a Man for A’ That.
Sir Walter Scott
Born: August 15, 1771
Died: September 21, 1832 FAMED for works such Ivanhoe, Rob Roy, Waverley, Old Mortality, The Heart of Mid-lothian and The Bride of Lammermoor, and the narrative poems The Lady of the Lake and Marmion.
Robert Louis Stevenson
Born: November 13, 1850 Died: December 3, 1894 STEVENSON’S renowned works were Treasure Island, Kidnapped, A Child’s Garden of Verses, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and My Hyde.
Arthur Conan Doyle
Born: May 22, 1859
Died: July 7, 1930
Best known for his creation of Sherlock Homes, but his first successful publications were A Study of Scarlet in 1887 and The Lost World in 1912.
J M Barrie
Born: May 9, 1860
Died: June 19 1937
Barrie is mostly known for the great success of Peter Pan and the character first appeared in The Little White Bird. The most successful work of Barrie “Peter Pan or The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up”.
Carol Ann Duffy
Born: December 23, 1955
Duffy started writing at the age of 15, when her poems were first published. She was the first woman, first Scottish poet, and first LGBT poet to have held position as Britain’s Poet Laureate, in 2009.