Dr Chiara Bullen

We need this in Scotland. It’s not even wishful or fanciful thinking: it’s financially astute. Our creative industries are absolutely vital

YA book covers: likability and sales Book covers have been an important aspect of book selling for the 20th and 21st centuries. In order to provide Young Adult (YA) authors with data about YA book covers, we asked: what makes a cover ...

Now published in the International Journal for the Practice and Theory of Creative Writing: our research on YA Book covers, showing that book covers may be as powerful a driver of sales as author fame
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

That's fantastic news, Lyndsey!! Congrats!! ♥️

I feel this, these days my brain simply cannot focus on the project it actually needs to!!

A cat tree that looks like a printing press.

A printing press that looks like a cat tree.

I’m sure this is just me, but cat trees look like printing presses?

🥹🥹🥹♥️

A selfie. I’m wearing a brown dress, a gold necklace with a green charm, and have shoulder length brown hair in its naturally curly/wavy state.

Another selfie. Shoulder length brown curly hair, a black halter neck top with a gold chain necklace and a green pendant.

New week new haircut 🙏

We expect to hit 55k signatures in support of our open letter this week, perhaps even today. Thank you to everyone who has signed or shared. Let’s keep this going:

notinourname.org.uk

For the evening crowd 👇

It's October, which I think is officially the best month to start reading Dark Crescent...omens, superstitions, hauntings, monsters, all from Scottish folklore - here's a wee sneak peak at what you'll find...👀🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🖤✨ linktr.ee/lyndseycroal @lunapress.bsky.social

Bàrdachd Aonghas Phàdraig Caimbeul Tha i mar bharaille de sgadan saillte: chan eil agad ach do chròg a stobadh ann, agus dòrlach a thoirt a-mach, reamhar is tiugh leis a’ bhuntàta. Stob an t-ìm na mheasg agus tha cuirm agad: Eliot is Donnachadh Bàn, le do làmhan rùisgte. Seachain forca is sgian: fàg sin aig na sgoilearan. Nuair a thig thu gu bonn a’ bharaille sgròb na craicinn ri chèile, dean ràth chnàimhean, lìon lannan ‘s tilg sin thairis dìreach mu àm reothairt. Ma ghlacas tu adag, thoir leat i: nuair tha an sgadan gann, nì easgann fraighte fhèin a’ chùis san acras.

Poetry Translator: Angus Peter Campbell It’s like a barrel of salt herring: you only have to stick your paw in, and lift a handful out, thick and juicy with the tatties. Pile the butter in the middle and you have a feast: Eliot and Duncan Bàn, eaten with your bare fingers. Don’t use a knife and fork: leave that to the scholars. When you reach the bottom of the barrel scrape the skins together, make a raft of bones, a net of fine filament, and fling it over the side just after the spring tide. If you catch a common haddock, take it anyway: in the absence of a fat herring even eels taste fine when deep-fried.

Tha i mar bharaille de sgadan saillte:
chan eil agad ach do chròg
a stobadh ann, agus dòrlach a thoirt a-mach,
reamhar is tiugh leis a’ bhuntàta…

—Aonghas Phàdraig Caimbeul, “Bàrdachd”
#NationalPoetryDay #poem #poetry #Gaelic
www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/bardachd/

An infographic slide that includes a quote. The quote is: 'Children and young people who use the school library have, on average, higher mental wellbeing scores' – not only that but pupils who don't use their school library are 'nearly twice as likely to have low mental wellbeing than they are to have high mental wellbeing'.

New research suggests that school libraries, aside from supporting and strengthening pupils' academic achievement, also play a vital role in supporting pupil wellbeing. ❤️📚

www.scottishbooktrust.com/articles/bey...

An email subject line that reads ‘20 years of a fever you can’t sweat out!’

Email subject lines I do NOT like. What do you mean 20 years?!??

A ginger and white cat sits on the back of a couch, covered in a yellow blanket with a white floral pattern. The wall behind the cat is a dusky dark green. The cat’s face has a smug aura!!

Woke up with a cold, so I’m working on the couch this morning. I have a supervisor sitting behind me, making sure I’m not slacking off….

Excellent, thank you!! I quite like diving into series technically the wrong way around (Six of crows before Grisha books, Silksong before Hollow Knight, etc) then picking up things retrospectively when finally entering something the ‘right’ way 😅

I’ve never read any Witcher books - do you think this would be a decent one to start with? (I know it’s new and standalone, but still!)

A close up of an assortment of alcohol (cans of beer, bottles of wine, Prosecco, etc) keeping cool in an ice bath 🛁

Ft. weekend drinks…

A baked pastry sheet topped with tomatoes, olives, anchovies and parmesan

A bowl of cullen skink topped with water cress in a blue bowl. Three slices of white sourdough bread are arranged next to it. There is a small bowl of wrapped butter blocks, a cup of tea in a blue cup and a glass of water behind it

A close up of eggs baked in tomatoes, chickpeas, spinach, harissa and chilli oil

A close up of a large Neapolitan pizza topped with mozzarella, tomatoes, green and red chillies and with a hot honey glaze. The crust is lightly charged, and another plate with a mozzarella pizza sits behind

This week’s weekend eats 🍽️ (credit to the v. talented @drcleoocy.bsky.social for the first one! 🍅 🧀)

I would scream too, that's like my worst fear !!!

Discovering computer as an adult makes you go crazy. Discovering computer as a baby makes you go crazy. In all of human history, there will only ever be one generation to discover computer at the correct age: 13

graphic with the book THE SALT ORACLE, & a heading saying '6 weeks to publication' against an oceanic backdrop taken from the book cover art (by Sam Gretton)

Graphic with the same background as previous, a heading 'pre-order giveaway', a bookplate with in world 'ex libris' stamp, and 4 character art oracle cards designed by @hibernalbeast.bsky.social showing ravens + tentacles (Judgement), the oracle, an orca causing havoc (Vengeance) and the book's main character, Auli (The Choice).

🌊IT'S PRE ORDER GIVEAWAY TIME!!🌊
It's 6 weeks til THE SALT ORACLE is unleashed!

To celebrate, anyone who sends proof of a pre order will be in with a chance of winning 1 of 10 sets of these gorgeous oracle cards & a signed bookplate!

geni.us/saltorac
@solarisbooks.bsky.social

The counter of the bookshop The Bookmonger. There are bottles of wine on shelves around the counter, and multiple copies of Margaret McDonald’s Glasgow Boys on top of it.

A crowd of people sit in the bookshop The Bookmonger, the author Margaret McDonald is in front of them

Had an excellent evening at The Bookmonger last night listening to Margaret McDonald talk all things Glasgow Boys, the Carnegie (!) and publishing in today’s industry ✍️

SJM, perhaps!

Well hello! The cover for First Mage On The Moon, has been revealed before its Launch Day on April 14th, 2026.

Pre-orders are live at all your usual emporiums for you awesome people angryrobotbooks.my.canva.site/first-mage-o...

Ahhh looks fantastic!!! So excited for this!!

I LOVE Lord of Misrule!!

This morning I stared wistfully at the pumpkin Lush products on their website, I feel like it's definitely time...

Nah, that seems about right!

Ooooh please post the results!

A word cloud in red and turquoise with love, thy, thee, will, shall, heart, and now being particularly prominent

Finished typing up the Brontë poems and made a word cloud for your viewing pleasure