Doric creative sought for Scots Scriever role

Applications are now open for the Aberdeenshire Scriever residency hosted by the National Library of Scotland. This year, the Library is giving one Aberdeenshire-based writer the opportunity to develop creative work in Doric. The 2022 Aberdeenshire Scriever will celebrate the richness of Scots, specifically Doric as it’s known locally, acknowledging Aberdeenshire as a stronghold for the Scots language.

The successful resident will be committed to raising the profile, understanding and appreciation of creative work in Doric by producing original work.

Frieda Morison, Chair of the Doric Board said:

“I am delighted that the 2022 Scriever residency will be rooted in the North East of Scotland. The area has a treasure trove of written work and creative endeavour stretching over centuries.  

“Promoting northeast Scots, or Doric as it’s known locally, through original creative work, will allow our language to reach a wider audience and help preserve our rich cultural heritage”   

The primary aim of this 12–month residency is the creation of exciting original work in Scots, specifically Doric. While some community engagement will be encouraged, the Scriever will be expected to prioritise and set aside a significant amount of time during the residency for the development of new written work. This will include time for exploration of and engagement with the rich and extensive Scots collections at the National Library of Scotland. The residency is open to all creative disciplines for written work, e.g. drama, poetry, songwriting and non-fiction.

Funded by the National Lottery through Creative Scotland, the postholder will receive a monthly fee of £1250 for the fixed-term residency of 12 months.

Alison Miller, the current postholder and Orkney Scriever said:

“Me experience as Scriever wae NLS and Orkney Library & Archive (OLA) haes been varied and marvellous. Hid's gaed a terrific boost tae the promotion o Orcadian, encouraged new voices tae come through, and bolstered the confidence o fokk spaekan and writan Orkney language. For me aown development, A'm been prompted tae write more poetry than I haed been daean and tae join me voice tae the ithers that aer emergean.”

Alan Bett, Head of Literature and Publishing at Creative Scotland said:

“After the success of The Scriever’s previous spotlight on Orkney and Orcadian, we’re excited to focus this year’s residency on Doric and the Northeast. The residency will offer an important opportunity for a writer to develop new creative work in the language, and also develop a public engagement programme to further raise its profile and reach new people through Scots language writing. We’re looking forward to a strong list of applicants.”  

The application deadline is Monday 8 August 2022. Full details are on the National Library’s careers website. For more detailed information about the residency, visit the National Library of Scotland website > Home | National Library of Scotland (nls.uk)