Maggie Craig's Blog: Maggie Craig Scottish Writer, page 5

World Book Day 2019

Here’s me dressed up as the Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland, photo taken by Kim Ayres for the Wigtown Book Festival a few years back.

Maggie Craig as the Mad Hatter, photo by Kim Ayres.

My favourite book of all time is The Flight of the Heron by DK Broster, the romantic adventure par excellence of the Jacobite Rising of 1745.

The Flight of the Heron by DK Broster

I’m currently reading The Girl You Left Behind by Jojo Moyes, having just finished Still Me by the same author. Great reads.

Still Me by Jojo Moyes

The Battle of George Square – Bloody Friday 1919 in Glasgow

31st January 2019 marks the centenary of what became known as the Battle of George Square, also known as Bloody Friday. At least 60,000 people on strike from their work crammed into George Square in central Glasgow, in front of the City Chambers. The huge gathering was the culmination of a campaign to reduce the working week from 54 to 40 hours in a bid to share out the work in Clydeside’s shipyards, forges and factories among the existing workforce and men coming home from the First World War. The government in London and the authorities in Glasgow didn’t believe that and panicked, fearing a Bolshevik revolution was planned. Winston Churchill, then secretary of state for war, dispatched soldiers, tanks and machine guns north. These turned more into a show of force than anything else and there were no tanks in George Square. However, there were police with batons and when they charged a section of the crowd, quite a number responded, with running battles breaking out. Nobody was killed but over fifty people were injured, official figures say thirty-four strikers and nineteen policemen. I wrote about the Battle of George Square in my book When the Clyde Ran Red: A Social History of Red Clydeside.

Click here to read an excerpt from the book.

The cover shows a section of the famous photograph taken in George Square on that day one hundred years ago.

When the Clyde Ran Red

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Currently Hibernating

Over the winter there aren’t very many writing events going on. After a busy autumn giving talks, I’m staying close to home and getting on with the writing.

Book Week Scotland 2018

 

Along with many of my fellow wordsmiths, I was criss-crossing Scotland last week (19th to 25th November) to celebrate Book Week Scotland 2018, run by the Scottish Book Trust. The theme this year was ‘Rebel’.  My first event was at the Brander Library in Huntly in Aberdeenshire, a lovely wood-panelled Victorian building, where the librarians had set out a very nice display of some of my books.

Huntly Library Display of Some of Maggie Craig’s books.

Then I travelled south to the Forth Valley Sensory Centre in Camelon, Falkirk, to speak to a visually-impaired reading group. This group holds monthly sessions for anyone who enjoys audio books, whether they are visually impaired or not. The picture below shows Vikki Ring (on the right) and Lynne James (on the left) of Falkirk Libraries, with Rosie the guide dog settling herself down for a snooze. Lynne is the person to get in touch with for anyone interested in joining the audio book group, although it’s so popular there’s currently a waiting list.

It was a dreich and rainy morning when I visited the Sensory Centre but I stepped into a bright and colourful modern building and found a very warm welcome.

 

Forth Valley Sensory Centre, Camelon, Falkirk.

My next trip was to the Mitchell Library in Glasgow, my favourite building in the whole wide world and a box of delights in terms of the information there is in there. I wish they would build scholars’ studio flats so I could stay there for a week or two when I’m researching!

Mitchell Library

Following on from me talking about When the Clyde Ran Red: A Social History of Red Clydeside, we had a lively discussion that soon moved on to modern politics.

When the Clyde Ran Red

Finally, I spoke at another gorgeous building to the Friends of Duff House about one of my heroines, Henrietta Tayler.

Duff House in Banff

This wasn’t officially part of Book Week Scotland but it was the last of my personal very busy series of talks this year. Again, it was a very wet day but there was a good turnout and the welcome was warm. Henrietta Tayler was a a member of the Duff family and a remarkable woman. Here’s the cover of my short biography of her.

 

Cover design by Cathy Helms of Avalon Graphics.

 

I was asked during BWS what I thought Book Week Scotland was all about. I answered that it’s about books and thinking. Having thought about it, I’d expand on that to say it’s about books, reading, thinking and meeting interesting people, who all have their own stories to tell.  It was all great fun and very good for the little grey cells.

 

 

 

Remembering One of the Many

 

George McCurrach was the dominie or schoolmaster at a small village school in Aberdeenshire. He had risen from humble beginnings to eventually study at Aberdeen University. Enlisting in the Gordon Highlanders, he was then commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the Highland Light Infantry. His wife Elizabeth, also a school teacher, took over his job after he left. Two weeks after he arrived in France, on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, George was killed. His body was never identified but he is remembered on the memorial at Thiepval, one of those “known unto God”.  His widow Elizabeth never remarried, dying in Aberdeen in 1950 at the age of 65.

George McCurrach, 1881-1916 Courtesy of Aberdeen University’s Roll of Honour

Book Week Scotland 2018

 

I’ll be speaking at three events during this year’s Book Week Scotland, on 2018’s theme of ‘Rebel’ and how I’ve explored this in my writing, past, current and future. I have an exciting new project underway.

Firstly, I’ll be at Huntly Library in Aberdeenshire on Tuesday 20th November at 6.30 pm. More information here. 

Then I’ll be at the Forth Valley Sensory Centre in Falkirk on Friday 23rd November from 10.30 am – 12.00 noon. More information here.

Finally, I’ll be talking at the Mitchell Library in Glasgow on Saturday 24th November from 2-3 pm, in the Moir Dyer Room. More information here.

Aux barricades, citoyens et citoyennes! Exclusively with words this time. The pen is mightier than the sword.

 

Liberty leading the storming of the barricades by Delacroix.

 

The New Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women

I’m very proud to be one of many contributors to The New Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women, just published by Edinburgh University Press. It’s a book every Scottish library should hold and make available.  Over 1,000 women find their place in this book and, as the cover copy says, the Dictionary “provides a striking narrative of how women’s actions and influence have always helped to shape Scotland’s identity.”

 

The New Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women.

 

Ness Bookfest

 

Another chance to spend time in lovely Inverness for me when I’ll be speaking at the inaugural Ness Bookfest about my historical novels at Inverness Museum and Art Gallery on Friday 5th October from 10-11 am.  All tickets at the festival are free but bookable. More details here.

Scottish Historical Fiction Festival, Grantown on Spey, Saturday 8th September 2018.

 

“It’s nae the Tudors!”

So says The Bookmark in Grantown on Spey of their day-long historical fiction festival which will be held at the Pagoda, Grantown on Spey.  Maggie will be speaking about her books in the afternoon session, starting from 2.15, alongside a line-up of fellow Scottish writers of historical fiction.

Tickets and further information from The Bookmark. (01479 873433)

 

 

 

Dance to the Storm Update

Robert Catto always strides into my kitchen as though he owns the place. As usual, I try to divert his attention, offering him claret or brandy in the evening, black coffee during the day. My tactics never work. Nothing gets past this man.

‘Coffee,’ he growls. ‘And, if you please, your word count for Dance to the Storm.’

‘Nearly there,’ I say brightly.

‘Bloody hell, woman, you’ve been saying that for ages.’

‘Life gets in the way,’ I protest.

‘Excuses, excuses. Any gingerbread?’

I set a piece down in front of him, stand back and study his clothes. He’s taken to wearing modern dress on his visits to the 21st century. Today it’s jeans and a black t-shirt.

‘You like those clothes, don’t you?’

‘Practical,’ he says. ‘Easy to pull on. Although I’m annoyed that you took away my Keep Calm and Carry On t-shirt.’

‘A bit overdone, that one.’

‘Still a good message.’ He finishes his gingerbread and runs a hand down his neat ponytail. ‘Been thinking I might get my hair cut short. That would be more practical too.’

‘Don’t you dare,’ I mutter. ‘The readers love your flowing chestnut locks.’

He fixes me with one of his glowers. ‘Think you’ll stop me if I decide to do it?’

‘Listen pal,’ I say, giving him the hands-on-hips fishwife stance. ‘I made you. I can unmake you.’

‘But you want Kirsty and me to win through, don’t you?’ His eyes soften when he says her name.

‘Good grief. That’s almost a winning smile.’

‘So when will Dance to the Storm be finished?’

‘Very soon. I have the final few scenes to write and then the manuscript has to go through editing, copy-editing, proof-reading, typesetting and printing.’

‘So how will the readers know when the book’s ready?’

‘Well, they could sign up for my newsletter…’

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