International Association for the Study of Scottish Literatures

New publications by our members: Lejla Mulalić has co-authored the volume 'A Country of Their Own: Writing Scotland as a Woman' (University of Sarajevo Press), which discusses Rona Munro, Liz Lochhead, Sharman Macdonald, Agnes Owens, and Kathleen Jamie. 🔓 Read in open access: tinyurl.com/4v2knp4y

Dear Doug, this is not an IASSL conference - we are merely circulating the call on behalf of the organisers. If you would like to send the suggestion to them, their addresses are included in the CfP.

CfP: 'Scotland and the In-Between,' the annual conference of the French Society for Scottish Studies, will be held at Université de de Lorraine, Nancy, 12-14 November 2026, co-organised by IASSL member Céline Sabiron. Papers may be delivered in French or English. Full CfP: tinyurl.com/5h8v293z

CfP: 2026 Postgraduate Symposium of the @studyscotlit.bsky.social, @glasgow.ac.uk, 8 May 2026. Submissions deadline: 15 March 2026. Hybrid attendance will be an option; PG travel bursaries will be available, courtesy of the Andrew Tannahill Fund. ucsl-scotland.com/2026-pg-symp...

New publications by our members: Maike Dinger's monograph 'Discourse, Voice, and the Politics of Participation in the Scottish Independence Referendum' has been published by @springernature.com. One chapter is dedicated to Scottish indyref literature. tinyurl.com/358bk4hx

Call for Papers: Centre for Scottish & Celtic Studies Postgraduate Symposium, 28 May 2026, @glasgow.ac.uk & online, 'People, Place and Movement'. Abstracts and enquiries: arts-cscs@glasgow.ac.uk, deadline: 2 March 2026. Proposals are welcome from postgraduates at any stage of their career.

The 14th International Walter Scott Conference | English and Scottish Literature | Literatures Languages and Culture A three-day conference with talks, panels and a plenary session exploring the work of Scottish writer Walter Scott within the theme of 'Politics, Place and Print Culture'.

Save the date for the next International Walter Scott Conference: 28-30 June 2027, @edinburgh-uni.bsky.social. Keynotes by Philip Connell and Porscha Fermanis & a special session marking the anniversary of Ian Duncan’s 'Scott’s Shadow: The Novel in Romantic Edinburgh' @princetonupress.bsky.social.

Unveiling Lady Scott | Cambridge University Press & Assessment

New publications by our members: Céline Sabiron's monograph 'Unveiling Lady Scott: Walter Scott, French Influence and Transcultural Connections' was recently published by @universitypress.cambridge.org.

New publications by our members: Carla Sassi's article 'Merciful Solidarity Across Space and Time: Affective Communities in Contemporary Scottish Fiction' (2014–2024) was published in 'English Studies' (2025). tinyurl.com/2ph5fsdj

Jetstone Books expand the portfolio of Scottish titles, producing new editions of works by Lewis Grassic Gibbon and John MacDougall Hay. William Malcolm’s Grassic Gibbon biography 'History of a Revoluter', also by Jetstone, was shortlisted for Saltire Research Book of the Year. tinyurl.com/ykvmssbm

Annual Volume 54 (2024) Edited by Steven Cramer and John Corbett Paperback, 346 pages Association for Scottish Literature, September 2025 Price £19.95 ISBN: 9781906841652 Order from our bookshop These five plays address…

New publications by our members: 'Setting the Stage: New Wave Scottish Drama from the 1970s and 1980s' (ASL, 2025), edited by Steven Cramer and John Corbett. The volume includes plays by Peter Arnott, Ian Brown, Jo Clifford, Sue Glover, and Rona Munro.

The recordings of CIVIS seminars on contemporary Scottish Literature, organised by Marie Hedon, Corey Gibson, and Kirsten Stirling, are now available as a recordings: 'Poetry and Public Life in Scotland'; 'Poor Things Revisited'; 'IndyRef and Scottish Literature'. lerma.univ-amu.fr/contemporary...

The Carrying Stream is a new podcast for Scottish words and ideas, hosted by IASSL EC member Paul Malgrati. The first episode, now available on Spotify and Apple Podcast, features poet and Gaelic translator Taylor Strickland; Scots writer and activist Billy Kay; and Burns scholar Moira Hansen.

Research Grant John Galt Society Research Grant The John Galt Society welcomes applications for a grant (of up to ₤1000) to defrayexpenses incurred in connection with research into the works, life or influence of…

The John Galt Society welcomes applications for a grant (of up to ₤1000) to defray expenses incurred in connection with research concerning John Galt. Two types of research projects—archival and digital—are eligible. The deadline for applications is 31 January 2026.

The Cadence of a Song | Birlinn Ltd - Independent Scottish Publisher - buy books online The first biography of one of the twentieth century’s foremost champions of Hebridean culture. The American-born folklorist and musician Margaret Fay Shaw’s passion for the Hebrides led her to the isl...

New publications by our members: Fiona J Mackenzie's biography 'The Cadence of a Song: The Life of Margaret Fay Shaw' (Birlinn, 2025) explores the legacy and life of the American born folklorist, musician, and photographer who played a major part in preserving Hebridean music and traditions.

The Scottish Catholic Studies ArtsLab (SCAL) was recently launched at @glasgow.ac.uk, with the aim to explore the contribution of Catholics and Catholicism to Scottish cultural and intellectual life. One of the directors of the Lab is IASSL member Craig Lamont. Find out more: tinyurl.com/3uwj3uhj

Season's Greetings from the International Association for the Study of Scottish Literatures ❄️ Beannachdan na Ràithe bho Chomann Eadar-Nàiseanta airson Sgrùdadh Litreachas na h-Alba ✨

William Crozier: 'Edinburgh in Snow' (about 1928), National Galleries of Scotland, tinyurl.com/mryzywuk

The latest issue of the IASSL newsletter has been dispatched to all members and is also available online: have a read for updates about awards, publications, grants, events, calls for papers, and more. 📩 📫 tinyurl.com/tvf3rna4

New survey by the @glasgowburns.bsky.social - how do you celebrate Burns Night? Feel free to respond and share!

YouTube video by IASSL Finlay J Macdonald at 100 | Fionnlagh Iain MacDhòmhnaill aig 100

The recording of the IASSL webinar 'Finlay J Macdonald at 100 | Fionnlagh Iain MacDhòmhnaill aig 100', with talks by Mhairi Brennan (Aston University), Rob Dunbar (University of Edinburgh), and Petra Johana Poncarová (Charles University, Prague), is now available on YouTube.

Transatlantic Tales and Essays Transatlantic Tales and Essays

New publications by our members: John Galt's 'Transatlantic Tales and Essays', edited by Angela Esterhammer, published by @edinburghup.bsky.social. The first complete scholarly edition of Galt’s short fiction and essays on transatlantic themes, including previously unpublished texts.

Scottish Literary Studies Book Prize The Scottish Literary Studies Book Prize is awarded biennially to an outstanding work of scholarship in the field of Scottish literary studies. Founded in 2025, the prize is open to book-length wor…

Great news from colleagues at the Universities Committee for Scottish Literature: the newly launched Scottish Literary Studies Book Prize is going to be awarded biennially to an outstanding work of scholarship in the field of Scottish literary studies.
Nominations are open for the 2026 prize. 🏆📚

“She Strode into the Room like a Challenge”: Revisioning Nineteenth... Introduction Arctic exploration in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries was widely regarded as a particularly manly pursuit and has been predominantly narrated as the efforts of white Europ...

Recent publications by our members: Ingibjörg Ágústsdóttir @haskoliislands.bsky.social, '"She Strode into the Room like a Challenge": Revisioning Nineteenth-Century Arctic Exploration in Stef Penney’s Under a Pole Star (2016),' Études Écossaises 24 (2025). Available in open access.

Tickets are now available for the annual conference of the Centre for Robert Burns Studies, University of Glasgow, to be held on 17 January 2026. The programme features contributions by IASSL members Pauline Mackay, Cleo O'Callaghan Yeoman, Paul Malgrati, Struan McCorriscken, and John Watson.

Leith Davis receives Lifetime Achievement Award from Eighteenth-Century Scottish Studies Society Professor Leith Davis has been recognized with a prestigious award for her outstanding contributions to 18th-century Scottish Studies over the course of her career.

Warm congratulations to IASSL member @drleith.bsky.social (Simon Fraser University Research Centre for Scottish Studies) on receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Eighteenth-Century Scottish Studies Society.

YouTube video by IASSL 10 Minutes with... Dr William Malcolm (Mitchell Literary Estate)

New interview in our series: IASSL convenor Marie Hedon chats with Bill Malcolm, Joint Administrator of the Mitchell Literary Estate and author of the 'History of a Revoluter: The Life of James Leslie Mitchell/Lewis Grassic Gibbon' (2025), shortlisted for the Saltire Best Research Book of the Year.

Finlay J Macdonald at 100 | Fionnlagh Iain MacDhòmhnaill aig 100 Tuesday 25 November 2025, 7 pm UK time, ZOOM. This year marks the centenary of the birth of Fionnlagh Iain MacDhòmhnaill | Finlay J. Macdonald (1925–1987). The webinar explores his rich legacy as a…

Tonight (Tue 25 November) at 7 pm UK time: 'Finlay J Macdonald at 100 | Fionnlagh Iain MacDhòmhnaill aig 100', an online seminar exploring Macdonald's legacy as a filmmaker, writer, journalist, editor, and a leading figure in Gaelic initiatives. Bidh fàilte bhlàth romhaibh uile / All welcome!

Ross Roy Prize – 2025 Winner Announced The Ross Roy Prize is awarded annually to the best PhD thesis submitted on a subject relating to Scottish literature. Judged by a panel of expert scholars, the Prize commemorates the outstanding co…

Congratulations to Dr Suping Li, winner of the 2025 Ross Roy Prize, for her dissertation ‘”If I have wander’d in those paths”: The reception of Robert Burns in China’, defended at @uofglasgow.bsky.social. It examines the full spectrum of Burns’ Chinese reception in translation, criticism and music.

12 days left to submit/nominate articles and chapters to the 2025 Jack Medal! The call closes on 30 November. The prize is awarded for new research on subjects related to Reception or Diaspora in Scottish Literatures (including Scots, English, Gaelic, and Latin). scotlit-iassl.org/awards/the-j...

Call for Papers: 5th World Congress of Scottish Literatures: Scotland Along the New Silk Road (17-20 June 2027) The Fifth World Congress of Scottish Literatures will be held at Nanjing Normal University in Nanjing, China, on 17-20 June 2027. Being China’s first city designated as a “UNESCO City of Literature…

Call for Papers: 5th World Congress of Scottish Literatures: Scotland Along the New Silk Road (17-20 June 2027, Nanjing Normal University, China). Deadline for submissions: 30 November 2026.