The Federation of Writers (Scotland) Scriever 2022.

I am honoured to have recently been appointed The Federation of Writers (Scotland) Scriever for 2022.

So, what is The Federation of Writers (Scotland)?

Here are their aims as listed on their website.

Bringing Writers Together

The Federation aims to support writers by making the whole process much easier to negotiate, from starting to write to publication. We can help you to find a writing group in your area, tell you where you can perform (if that is your wish) and help with the process of getting published.

We recognise that writing groups can be quite isolated and aim to offer them opportunities to meet by mounting seminars and workshops on key themes. The Federation provides a place for writers to sell collections and anthologies at our events, when appropriate.

We aim to:

Organise performance events

Develop a rolling calendar of writing events

Maintain a directory of writing groups

Issue a regular newsletter

Support people in the development of their writing

(source – www.federationofwritersscotland.com)

I have been a member of the Federation of Writers (Scotland) since almost day one.  I can remember the first AGM held about fifteen years ago in St Mungo’s Museum. At that time there was only a few dozen members. The president, Marc Sherland, handed out notes and asked us to write down what we wanted from this brand-new organisation.   What we came up with that day is still very much reflected in the Federation’s aims today and I am proud to have been part of that.

I was a relatively newbie writer at that time and I took advantage of all the performance opportunities that were held at the Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA) in Glasgow. I also attended the GoMA writing group on a Thursday night.

I joined the committee as Finance Convenor, then became part of New Voices Press and for three years helped launch three anthologies as well as three poetry collections.

In 2012 my first novel was published and I moved abroad, so had to take a step back from my Federation work, but I’ve always been there in the background, posting opportunities on their Facebook page and sending items into the newsletter.

The Scriever is an honorary role and past Scrievers have delivered workshops, run competitions, produced articles and interviewed notable writers and industry professionals. As the Federation’s 2022 Scriever I intend to immerse myself back into the organisation.  I have lots of ideas and some exciting items already planned.

If you are a writer in Scotland why not consider joining?  More details can be found here.