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NEW BOOKS MARK THE END OF A CHAPTER Writer Kevin MacNeil, who is nearing the end of his three-year tenure as The Highland Councils Iain Crichton Smith Writing Fellow, has brought out two new books paying tribute to the literary hero. Kevin presented The Red Door and The Black Halo to The Highland Councils Gaelic Working Group during their meeting last week. These books bring together for the first time all the short stories Iain Crichton Smith wrote before his untimely death in 1998. They include over 45 stories never before published in book form, plus others that have been out of print for many years.
Kevin said: "I was a huge fan of Iains writing before I took up this wonderful post named in his honour. I am sorry to be leaving the job, but I have had three memorable and highly productive years. These books mark a fitting end to my tenure as writer in residence. Working on these rather epic books has been hard work, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. These books contain a great diversity of stories tales of love and war and humour. They make it possible to judge Iains contribution to the short story form for the first time." Councillor Allan Beaton, Chairman of The Highland Councils Gaelic Working Group said: "The work of the Fellowship has generated a great deal of interest in writing, both in Gaelic and English, in communities across the Highlands. We are very proud of what is being achieved and wish to continue this work through the next recipient of the Fellowship." Kevin has had a busy time as Iain Crichton Smith
Fellow. The last three years have seen him editing and writing a number of
books, appraising manuscripts, teaching, writing workshops, and doing
readings of his poetry from Inverness to Italy.
He said: "The highlights for me have been seeing new writers across the
Highlands develop their writing skills and getting their work published.
Reading to 10,000 poetry fans in Colombia was also an unforgettable
experience."Kevin was the first person from Britain to win the prestigious
Tivoli Europa Giovani International Poetry Prize for his book Love and Zen
in the Outer Hebrides. His poems have been translated into 12 languages.He
added: "Having my Gaelic and English work sung in Italian one moonlit July
night in an amphitheatre built by the Emperor Hadrian was amazing, too. I
have many, many wonderful memories of my time as Iain Crichton Smith
Fellow. I wish my successor all the best and hope that he or she will
enjoy it as much as I Kevin MacNeil is currently writing a novel and editing a number of
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