CREATIVE Scotland and the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust are delighted to announce that the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Book Awards 2013 will be held at the Lennoxlove Book Festival, Haddington on 02 November 2013.
The Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Book Awards aim to recognise and reward the literary talent of authors from or resident in Scotland, or those whose book is of particular Scottish interest.
Judges, Clare English, BBC Radio presenter; David McCormack, assistant manager of Waterstones Fort Kinnaird; Peggy Hughes, programme director at Dundee Literary Festival; Kirsty Logan, books editor at The List; and Aly Barr, development officer at Creative Scotland are reading their way through 117 titles, submitted by publishers from across the UK.
Judges will decide Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, and First Book finalists, to be announced in September.
The four finalists will each receive £5,000. The authors will then go on to compete for the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Book of the Year accolade and the chance to win a further £25,000 – a total prize of £30,000, which is recognised as Scotland’s largest literary prize and one of the largest in the UK.
Book-lovers and readers will have a say in which title is selected as the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Book of the Year 2013 in a public vote that begins in October 2013.
Aly Barr, development officer at Creative Scotland and judge, said: “Like the Lennoxlove Book Festival, this year’s entries have been an iconic, striking and beautiful garden of delights. The judging panel are facing what is, arguably, their toughest choice for many years. In particular, and very encouragingly, the first book category will be fiercely contested.”
Judges are now reading through 117 books published in 2012. On being part of the judging panel Clare English, said:
“It’s going to be a particularly hard task to choose books from each category. Even established authors whose work I thought I knew have surprised me. The first book contenders are incredibly impressive – there are definitely some names to look out for in the years to come. Scotland has an abundance of literary talent if this list is anything to go by!”
While fellow judge, Peggy Hughes, said: “I’m thrilled to be a judge this year for the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Book Awards, and have so enjoyed the range and quality of books, and the conversations and arguments with my fellow judges. It’s been a real treat to voyage through 2012 in books, and I’m bracing myself for some very difficult decisions in the coming weeks.”
The Lennoxlove Book Festival runs from 02-04 November and has played host to authors such as J K Rowling and Michael Morpurgo. On hosting the Book Awards, Lennoxlove Book Festival director, Alistair Moffat, said:
“Book awards are like book festivals; striking celebrations of writing, of the power of the imagination, the doggedness of research, the use of language and the bravery of completing a first book. The Lennoxlove Book Festival looks forward to welcoming the celebrants and the celebrations as well as those who make the awards possible, the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust and Creative Scotland.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
• The four category finalists will be announced in September with the overall Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Book of the Year being announced on 02 November at the Lennoxlove Book Festival. www.lennoxlovebookfestival.com
• Creative Scotland is the national development body for the arts, screen and creative industries. The Scottish Book Awards have been celebrating Scotland’s exceptional writing talent for over 40 years. Previous winners of the prestigious Award include talented authors such as Janice Galloway for her memoir All Made Up (2012); Jackie Kay for her autobiography Red Dust Road (2011); Donald Worster for his biography A Passion for Nature: The Life of John Muir (2010); James Kelman for his novel Kieron Smith, Boy (2009); and Edwin Morgan for his poetry collection A Book of Lives (2008). www.creativescotland.com
• Judges’ biographies:
• Clare English has been one of BBC Radio Scotland’s principal presenters of arts and culture shows since 2003.
• David McCormack is the assistant manager of Waterstones, Fort Kinnaird with a special interest in Scottish literature. He is the Booksellers’ Ambassador for the Scottish Book Awards, raising awareness of great Scottish authors and books among booksellers and the public.
• Peggy Hughes is currently programme director at Dundee Literary Festival and has previously worked in high profile communication roles at both the Scottish Poetry Library and Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature. As well as directing the annual West Port Book Festival, she is also a book reviewer for Scotland on Sunday and prolific blogger and Tweeter.
• Kirsty Logan is the books editor for The List, holds an MLitt (Distinction) in Creative Writing from Glasgow University, and won the 2013 Scott Prize for fiction. Her book, The Rental Heart & Other Fairytales, will be published in February 2014.
• Aly Barr has many years’ experience in literature and publishing, and is currently a development officer at Creative Scotland.
• Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust is one of the oldest and largest investment trusts listed on the London Stock Exchange. Since its launch as The Straits Mortgage and Trust Company Limited in 1909 the trust has been managed by Baillie Gifford, the Edinburgh based investment manager. Baillie Gifford is one of the UK’s leading independently owned investment management firms with £84bn* of funds under management and has been managing investment trusts since 1909.
Scottish Mortgage invests on a global basis and looks to reward its investors by searching out strong companies which offer above average returns to their shareholders. Scottish Mortgage is proud to sponsor the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Book Awards and you can find out more information about Scottish Mortgage on Baillie Gifford’s website at www.bailliegifford.com. Baillie Gifford is a major sponsor of various literary festivals throughout the UK, including Cheltenham Literature Festival and the Edinburgh International Book Festival. More details of this sponsorship can be found at www.bgtrustonline.com. Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust PLC is listed on the stock market. As a result, the value of the shares can be affected by changing stock market conditions and by currency exchange rates. The value of an investment and any income from it can fall as well as rise, and investors may not get back the amount they invested.
* as at 31 March 2013
Media Contact
Sophie Bambrough
Media Relations & PR Officer
Tel: 0131 523 0015
M: 07747606146
E: sophie.bambrough@creativescotland.com.
MEDIA RELEASE posted by Creative Scotland. You too can post media releases (aka press releases) on allmediascotland.com. For more information, email here.
Contact: Sophie Bambrough
Phone: 07747606146
Email: sophie.bambrough@creativescotland.com
Website: http://www.creativescotland.org.uk/
