Authors events planned for Tuesday

This Tuesday the Society of Authors islands group will holding a series of events in Orkney.

The society, who have been described as the authors trade union, will host a social event at Betty’s Reading Room, Tingwall, in the morning, with tea and coffee, and maybe even a few writing exercises!

In the afternoon society member Linda Gask’s will launch her new book Out of Her Mind: How We Are Failing Women’s Mental Health and What Must Change at a public event at the Blide Trust at 5pm, where refreshments will be available.

The day will then culminate with an evening event including short readings from recently published works of local authors at Kirkwall library from 6pm.

Readers will include Marsali Taylor’s, reading from her 2024 release Death at a Shetland Festival, Miriam Landor reading from her forthcoming memoir and Gill Tennant reading from a new edition of her story story collection, Mellow Cello.

Shetland based murder-mystery author, and society member, Marsali Taylor said she was looking forward to a “lovely informal day with my fellow writers.”

She explained that writing, especially in the isles, can be a solitary pursuit and the day was to allow writers to get together and discuss writing.

“Obviously you don’t want to give away your latest plot, but a fellow writer can understand when you say things like ‘I can’t get my character to do what I want then to’ or even just moan about a sore back from sitting at a computer all day,” she said.

“We would be delighted to have local writers join us,” Marsali said adding the events were for “Anybody who wants to come along and enjoy writing.”