I can put this on my CV now, having had a
great weekend there where I was involved in not one but two readings.
Firstly, as part of
LitLong’s event in Greenhouse 2 on George Street on Saturday. I read my story
from the collection ‘Umbrella’s of Edinburgh’. I was there with the lovely and ever effervescent Finolla Scott, and Jane Anderson whose Edinburgh story is just
brilliant, and Marianne MacRae whose poetry is just so fine and so beautiful. Reading was
great fun – we were each given a ten minute slot. I kept my introduction to a
minimum so that I could read the whole story… and that turned out to be a good
decision – loved reading the whole piece and it was well received.
That was Saturday; on Sunday I was back at
the book festival reading at StoryShop in the Spiegeltent. This was another ten
minute thing, but this time it was just me. I squeezed in a wee intro before
reading to set the scene and to let the audience tune in to my voice. The event was well attended, though 20 minutes before we went live
there was no one at all in the Spiegeltent and I was a little concerned. It filled up
in the last five minutes. The reading went very well and the audience was as
quiet and attentive as could be hoped for… held is what they were, and then loud in their applause – thank
you to them. Had fun reading and was told afterwards that as well as the live
audience, about 150 had tuned in on Periscope to hear the recording and a
further 10 immediately replayed the recording after hearing it the first time.
Really love reading to an audience. And
what better place to do this than at The Edinburgh International Book Festival.
So glad to have been given these opportunities.
