Pedersen named University of Edinburgh’s latest Writer in Residence

Award-winning poet and author Michael Pedersen has been appointed as the newest Writer in Residence at the University of Edinburgh.

The Edinburgh-born author joins a line-up of writers who have previously held the role including author and poet Jenni Fagan, poet and playwright Liz Lochhead, Scottish Gaelic poet Sorley Maclean and poet and teacher Norman MacCaig.

Pedersen’s debut non-fiction book, Boy Friends (Faber & Faber, 2022), was inspired by his friendship with Scott Hutchison, the lead singer from the Scottish band Frightened Rabbit, who died in 2018.

Pedersen, who is also a Robert Louis Stevenson Fellowship recipient, will release his third collection of poetry, The Cat Prince & Other Poems, this summer with Corsair, the imprint of Little, Brown. The latest volume follows on from Oyster (Polygon), his 2017 collection which was illustrated by Scott Hutchison.

The Writer in Residence role, which starts in September 2023, will include a range of activities to enhance creative writing for students both across the University and those specifically studying for an MSc in Creative Writing.

Developing workshops with visiting authors from the UK and abroad will also feature, as well as contributing to the university’s annual creative conference and poetry competitions. Pedersen said: “I’m outright elated to find myself as the next Writer in Residence at the University of Edinburgh – a role I’ve long swooned over. I’m brimful of ideas, bursting with bookish ambition and keen to get conjuring with students and faculty alike. On top of that, I’m hoping to bring some of the UK’s (& beyond) finest writers and literary minds into the University’s mix. To the lustre ahead.”

Suzanne Trill, head of English and Scottish Literature at the University of Edinburgh, said: “We are delighted a writer of the calibre of Michael Pedersen is joining us. This is a brilliant appointment for our students, and we are hugely looking forward to the energy and verve Michael will bring to our creative writing culture both within English and Scottish Literature and across the University.” The University established the post of Writer in Residence in 1975, the first incumbent being the renowned Gaelic poet, and graduate of the University, Sorley Maclean.