Based in Edinburgh, we are a small but mighty charity delivering one of the world’s largest and most respected literary events. Now in our fifth decade, we’ve grown to host around 600 authors and over 600 events during our Festival each August. Welcoming homegrown talent alongside speakers and booklovers from across the globe, we’re proud to be part of Edinburgh’s literary heritage and to have earned a special place in book lovers’ hearts.
As if that isn’t enough, we also run a year round programme of community projects and creative events aimed at tackling the literary crisis and spreading the power of words and ideas across Scotland.
We celebrate the power of words, examine pressing issues, shift perspectives, and create joyful experiences for those of all ages. Our programme sparks essential conversations about the world around us, our place in it, and how we can improve it, together. Making these discussions accessible to anyone is at the heart of everything we do, in August and beyond.
Our work with communities
Paper Trails is our ambitious, multi-year project, in partnership with Edinburgh Libraries and the Streetreads Library, celebrating and supporting the work that these vibrant cultural hubs do in the local community.
Libraries are so much more than just lending services. They are safe spaces and play a vital role in making literature accessible, combatting social isolation, tackling the UK’s literacy crisis, and supporting community life. With such a close alignment to our own aims at the Book Festival, working together makes sense!
Over the next five years, we’re partnering with five library services across the city, listening to librarians’ expert knowledge and meeting with local people to gain insight into the wants and needs of their communities, then working together to co-design bold and bespoke creative experiences for each of them. Think poetry residences, creative writing workshops, in-conversation author events, zine-making classes, and more – whatever each community tells us they’d like to see. Throughout the project, we’re working with a wide range of groups, including young people, older adults, and those facing homelessness, harnessing the power of words to build connections, strengthen social ties, and support personal growth.
Story Nation
Happening all year round, Story Nation sees us work with amazing community partners, both in Edinburgh and further afield, connecting authors and artists with people in hospitals, prisons, and community spaces for older adults experiencing isolation.
Our work with young people
Our work with young people ranges from our open-access young writing group – Citizen Collective – to residencies and referral-based projects with partners including NHS Lothian’s Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) and Spartans Community Foundation.
