Neil Mackay is a multi-award winning investigative journalist, newspaper executive, non-fiction author, radio broadcaster, film-maker and novelist. He has won around two dozen national and international awards for his newspaper journalism, while his last film, an investigation into the rise of the far right in Europe and America, was nominated for a BAFTA. His book, The War on Truth, which investigated the roots of the invasion of Iraq, was published in the UK and USA. He has also written two novels – All the Little Guns Went Bang Bang Bang – set in Antrim, Nothern Ireland in the early 1980s – and The Wolf Trial, a historical epic set in 16th century Germany, and inspired by the true story of a man whose crimes were so great he was thought to be a werewolf. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

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Neil Mackay, journalist & author

Sarah Smith is a writer who has lived in the West End of Glasgow since she came to the University of Glasgow to study English in the 1980s. She has had a wide range of jobs: student support officer at a university; co-ordinator of an advocacy project for disabled people; a tutor in community education; a family history researcher; and a tutor for school pupils sitting SQA exams.Sarah’s work, short stories and poetry, has appeared in journals and anthologies including, New Writing Scotland, Flashback Fiction, Gilded Dirt and From Glasgow to Saturn. In 2018 she completed an MLitt (Distinction) in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow and went on to gain a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award in 2019.Sarah is on the brink of publishing a historical crime novel, Hear No Evil, which is set in early nineteenth-century Glasgow and Edinburgh and is inspired by the real-life case of the first Deaf person to be tried in a Scottish court. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Sarah Smith, writer

Polly Clark is an award-winning novelist and poet who has published four collections of poetry and two novels. Her first novel, Larchfield, is based on the short period the poet WH Auden spent as a teacher in Helensburgh, and the novel garnered much praise from, among others, Richard Ford, Lous de Bernieres and Margaret Atwood.Her second novel, Tiger, was published in 2019, and tells the story of a dynasty of Siberian tigers and the people who live alongside them. It was shortlisted for the Saltire Scottish Fiction Book of the year Award, while the paperback edition is released in November 2020. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Polly Clark, writer

Jonathan Whitelaw is an author, journalist and broadcaster. After working on the frontline of Scottish politics, he moved into journalism. Subjects he has covered have varied from breaking news, the arts, culture and sport to fashion, music and even radioactive waste - with everything in between. He's also a regular reviewer and talking head on shows for the BBC.HellCorp and The Man in the Dark, from Urbane Publications, are his second and third novels following his critically acclaimed debut, Morbid Relations. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jonathan Whitelaw, writer

Ed Needham is the editor and publisher of Strong Words, a great new magazine about great new books.He was previously the editor of the million-selling FHM magazine back in the 1990s, and then moved to New York to launch and edit that title before becoming managing editor of Rolling Stone magazine, and editor-in-chief of US Maxim, then the biggest-selling men’s magazine in the world.You can check out the excellent Strong Words magazine and subscribe on their website www.strong-words.co.uk  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ed Needham, magazine publisher

Jane Hamilton is an award-winning crime reporter, with over 20 years' experience. Before that, she was a full-time teenage mum-of-two, and a part-time student, while she also worked as a model, barmaid, a TV extra and a newspaper sub-editor. Her first proper journalism job was at the Edinburgh Evening News, having first volunteered at her local free paper. She has worked on all of the national newspapers over the years, and for the past six years she has worked for the Daily Record. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jane Hamilton, crime reporter

Cathy Rentzenbrink is the author of The Last Act of Love and A Manual for Heartache and most recently Dear Reader: The Comfort and Joy of Books, which is published by Picador and came out in September 2020.She speaks and writes regularly on life, death, love, literature, literacy and mental health, and is often to be found doing bookish events at festivals, in shops and libraries, and in prisons. In previous lives Cathy worked for The Bookseller, The Reading Agency, Quick Reads, Waterstones and The Bell & Crown Inn. Despite her books being shortlisted for various prizes, the only thing Cathy has ever won is the Snaith and District Ladies Darts Championship when she was 17. She is now sadly out of practice. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Cathy Rentzenbrink, writer

Alison Irvine is a writer whose debut novel, This Road Is Red, was shortlisted for the Saltire First Book of the Year Award. Her latest novel, Cat Step, will be published in November 2020 by Dead Ink Books.She also works collaboratively as part of Recollective, with photographer, Chris Leslie, and artist, Mitch Miller, and their project, Nothing Is Lost, recorded the impact of the 2014 Commonwealth Games on residents in Glasgow's East End. Among other projects is Barrowlands Ballads - telling the untold stories on the iconic venue in Glasgow's Gallowgate. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Alison Irvine, writer

Doug Johnstone is a writer, musician and journalist based in Edinburgh. His twelfth novel, The Big Chill, was published by Orenda Books in August 2020. His previous novel, A Dark Matter, was longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year. His other books include Breakers and The Jump, Gone Again and Hit & Run.Doug has been Writer in Residence with William Purves Funeral Directors. He is also a Royal Literary Fund Consultant Fellow, and was RLF Fellow at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh 2014-2016. Doug was also Writer in Residence at the University of Strathclyde 2010-2012 and before that worked as a lecturer in creative writing there. He’s had short stories appear in various publications and anthologies, and since 1999 he has worked as a freelance arts journalist, primarily covering music and literature. Doug has a degree in physics, a PhD in nuclear physics and a diploma in journalism.Doug is one of the co-founders of the Scotland Writers Football Club, for whom he also puts in a shift in midfield as player-manager. He is also a singer, musician and songwriter, with three solo EPs and five albums in various bands to his name. He plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers, a crime writing supergroup featuring Val McDermid, Mark Billingham, Chris Brookmyre, Stuart Neville and Luca Veste. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Doug Johnstone, writer

Zoe Strachan is a writer and academic who teaches creative writing at the University of Glasgow while she also has a PhD in Scottish literature.She is the award-winning author of three novels – Negative Space, Spin Cycle and Ever Fallen In Love – and while novels are her first love, she writes across various genres including short stories, essays, plays and libretti for opera.Zoe has also worked, and continues to work collaboratively on numerous arts projects including, back in 2014, she created a new anthology of LGBT writing from Scotland called Out There, the first of its kind in over a decade.And amongst various things that Zoe is currently involved in, she is one of the judges of the 2020 Dublin International Literary Award, which is the world’s most valuable annual prize for a single work of fiction in English. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Zoe Strachan, writer and academic

Douglas Stuart is a writer whose debut novel, Shuggie Bain, has been longlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize. Born and brought up in Glasgow, Douglas went on to study at the Royal College of Art in London before moving to New York where he now lives and works. His novel, Shuggie Bain, came out in February 2020 in the United States and in August in the UK, and has received widespread acclaim from readers and critics alike. As well as the Booker Prize nomination, Douglas' book has also been shortlisted for the prestigious Kirkus Prize in the United States. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Douglas Stuart, writer

Kirstin Innes is a novelist and journalist, whose latest novel, Scabby Queen, came out in July 2020 and has already garnered plenty of well-deserved praise from readers and critics alike. Kirstin works as a journalist and freelance arts PR when not writing, and for a number of publications, including The List, The Scotsman, The Herald, The Independent, and The Pool, and also worked for a number of excellent organisations. She has also performed at various spoken word nights and festivals, while she founded, programmed and presented the literary cabaret night, Words Per Minute, which ran between 2010-14.The following year, Kirstin’s first novel, Fishnet, was published to great acclaim and it won the Guardian Not the Booker Prize that year. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Kirstin Innes, novelist

Danny Scott is the digital marketing manager for the Scottish Book Trust, which aims to encourage reading and writing, particularly among young people. Danny is also an author in his own right, and has written a six-book series for children, the Scotland Stars FC series, which tells the story of the main character, Callum, through his love of playing football. The books also tackle a whole range of important subjects for children.And in terms of his own love of football, when he’s not promoting books or writing them, Danny can be found playing in goals for the Scottish Writers team.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Danny Scott, Scottish Book Trust

Alan Bissett is a playwright, a novelist, a performer and a bletherer. He has published four novels – Boy Racers, The Incredible Adam Spark, Death of a Ladies’ Man and Pack Men, while his work has also appeared in numerous anthologies.He has also written many plays, while The Moira Monologues, a one-woman show that Alan wrote and performed himself, has received widespread critical acclaim, and delighted audiences throughout Scotland and beyond, as has the sequel – More Moira Monologues. Alan has also written for TV, including River City, while he was also previously involved in academia.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Alan Bissett, writer and performer

Rodge Glass is a novelist, biographer and an academic. He has published three novels, a collection of short stories and a graphic novel, as well as a highly-acclaimed and award-winning biography of the great Scottish writer, Alasdair Gray.Describing himself as ‘a bit of a Strathclyde University addict’, Dr Rodge Glass, to give him his academic title, is returning to the university for his fourth time – having previously been a student, a writer in residence and also a part-time lecturer. His new role will be as a senior lecturer in creative writing, with his main specialism in fiction, and also creative non-fiction. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Rodge Glass, writer & academic

A podcast celebrating the wonderful world of books. In every episode, writer and journalist, Paul Cuddihy, takes his guests on the literary journey of their lives. They will choose their favourite book from childhood; their teenage/student (formative) years; a book they'd recommend to anyone; a book they couldn't be paid to read again, and the book they're currently reading.

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