An hour of spoken words from local and visiting writers and poets at the top of their game, with a wee tipple thrown in to accompany the entertainment. Everything from poetry to prose, with a theme of our beautiful coastal environment, but it has been known for guests to occasionally stray from the brief. And do expect laughter!
Compered by Allan McMillan and opened by Dr. Brian W. Lavery, fresh from his own event, Headscarf revolutionaries, we hope that Words by the Sea will help keep the long held tradition of communal storytelling alive.
Paul Cowan
Paul grew up in Falkirk and was a welder to trade, and it took him around the country and abroad, sometimes working offshore. He has been writing for nearly twenty years, drawing inspiration from his own life experiences. His short stories and poems have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies. Alongside two other writers, he co-authored Glass Work Humans, a collection of short stories and poetry.
Scott Walker
Scott is an artist living in Balloch, but lived in Glasgow until 2019. He worked in homelessness for 28 years whilst also making my name as an artist. He has been writing poetry for the last few years and is a regular contributor at the Balloch House Open Mic Night.
Fiona McFadzean
Fiona began writing while still at school. She has been published in anthologies, women’s magazines, and specialist journals. Currently she is researching and writing a non-fiction book, plus a cosy crime novel. Fiona performs her own work as well as showcasing Burns and other poets with The Burns Bachelors club performers. She is a very active member of a number of writing a performing groups.
Tracy Harvey
Tracy is an Ayrshire poet who has been writing poems and short stories in Scots and English for over ten years, mostly published in Lallans scots language journal. Best known for “Leanne an Betty throu the Waa” and “it’s no potato it’s tattie”, she performs her poems both solo and also with “The Burns Bachelor Performers”, to raise money to preserve the Bachelors Club in Tarbolton. Tracy played Jean Armour in Davie Hunter’s play Burns’ women, the song and the stories.
Carolyn O’Hara
Carolyn is an English tutor from Prestwick who took up writing in 2010, and since then has had pieces published in several genres, including a social history book, about Ayr in 1898, and is now working on another one. She gets a special buzz from performing at spoken word events.
Greta Yorke
Prestwick children’s author Greta, who hosted one of our children’s events, also writes poetry and stories for adults. She has had poetry published and won poetry competitions, and has 8 children’s books published.
Greta is a a member of the all-women writers’ group Litereight, and regularly has stories and poetry published in their anthologies.
Mark Lavery
A Scots-Canadian, Mark’s father is Brian W Lavery’s cousin, so it’s great to have them appearing together. Now living in East Kilbride, he came back from Canada to do Scots law degree. He He’s been shortlisted in a Scottish competition recently and was included in anthology of poetry.
Allan McMillan
A veteran of Words by the Sea, Allan was born in the mining town of Cumnock, Ayrshire in 1959, Allan attended Glasgow School of Art and became a teacher. He was a principal Teacher of Art for 21 years. Working mainly in pen & ink, pastel and oils, Allan’s style ranges from the naturalistic to the semi-abstract. He has produced four Poetry and Drawing Publications as William Allan McMillan. His art is being shown in this year’s Art Exhibition.
Dr. Brian W. Lavery
Brian was born in Glasgow’s East End. He spent more than thirty years in journalism before doing a degree in English Lit & creative writing at Hull, and a PhD. He held top-level posts on several national and international newspapers, and was news editor of two regional papers and he edited three weekly papers.
Brian’s books include The Headscarf Revolutionaries (2015) and The Luckiest Thirteen (2017) both about the hardships and tragedy that surrounded the Hull Arctic fishing Fleet in the late 1960s and the bravery of the women who decided enough was enough, and his poetry and short fiction have been published over the years by a number of publishers.