blether
(ble-thir) dialect, chiefly scot.
~n. 1. one who babbles on and on.
~v. 2. to engage in conversation.
~n. 3. genius theme for Book Week Scotland 2019!
We're gathering some of our favourite bookish pals for a panel on Scotland's evolving LGBTQ literary landscape!
Today we have books with gay protagonists, by non-binary writers, from queer presses on our shelves and on display in our windows. In this same city there was a time when readers bought James Baldwin in brown paper bags slipped under bar counters. What, and who shaped this transition? Where do we go from here?
We'll be talking about the stories - in print and performance - that we love, that we hate, that shaped us, that pushed boundaries or are best forgotten. We'll be talking about Lesbian YA fiction, performing coming out poems on the BBC, publishing new and exciting voices for a new generation and MORE!
Our panelists include Bob Orr & Sigrid Nielsen, founders of Lavender Menace - Scotland's first LGBT bookshop; poet & performer Gray Crosbie, who has appeared in We Were Always Here by 404 Ink,Queering the Map of Glasgow and F, M or Other: Quarrels with the Gender Binary . Gray's spoken word poetry has been featured on BBC Social and they are a regular on the poetry/spoken-word scene in Edinburgh and Glasgow and James T. Harding - As well as editing and designing Stewed Rhubarb and freelance publishing projects, James is the editor of the C&B News and teaches creative writing for Edinburgh City Council.
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The event is part of Book Week Scotland 2019, the theme of which is "Blether" - In the spirit of that theme there will be ample opportunity to chat and meet new people curious about LGBTQ writing! The evening was made possible by the generous support of the Scottish Book Trust, to whom we are incredibly thankful!
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Remember you can buy your tickets in the shop & save yourself the eventbrite booking fee :P
The bookshop is wheelchair accessible, events are seated and speakers use microphones throughout their events. We have further details about accessibility HERE, or feel free to get in touch, we're happy to help however we can!
The Bookshop operates a Safe Space Policy which all guests and speakers are asked to respect - you can read it here.
As ever we have 15 free tickets available for this event- though they must be booked in advance! These are intended to make the evening accessible to those who are unwaged/ on benefits/ might not otherwise be able to attend - If you can afford a £3 ticket please book one as this supports the bookshop and allows us to save free places for those who can't, thanks!
