news - Jenny Brown Associates

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Thank you so much Jenny Brown and Jenny Brown Associates Couldn’t do it without you xx

Shiny dark licorice mind candy’
– Margaret Atwood on Helen’s short fiction

We're pleased to announce that Polygon has acquired Helen McClory’s second novel, Bitterhall (UK & BCN) and will publish in Spring 2021. McClory has won acclaim internationally for her short fiction.

Bitterhall is a story of obsession told between three narrators. In a darkening season in a Northern city, Daniel, Órla and Tom narrate the intersections of their lives, from a grimy flatshare, to future-world 3D printers, the history of the book, and a stolen nineteenth-century diary written by a dashing gentleman who may not be entirely dead. A Hallowe’en party leads to a series of entanglements, variously a longed-for sexual encounter clouded by madness, a betrayal, and a reality-destroying moment of possession.

Edward Crossan, Editor at Polygon, said: ‘Helen McClory is an exceptionally talented and imaginative author with a unique voice. I am thrilled that we have bought her new novel. Helen’s writing is sharp, playful and inventive. Bitterhall is all of these things and more: gothic and luminous, set firmly in literary tradition but propelling it forward. Her name is a welcome addition to the list.’

McClory is the author of two story collections, a debut novel The Flesh of the Peach (Freight, 2017) and, most recently, The Goldblum Variations (404 Ink/Penguin USA). Based in Edinburgh, she is a part-time lecturer at the University of Glasgow and co-founder of writing retreat Write Toscana. McClory said, ‘Polygon have brought out some of Scotland’s best writing, including the works of George Mackay Brown and Muriel Spark, two of my heroes. It’s a delight and an honour to have this novel published by them in Edinburgh.’ ... See MoreSee Less

3 days ago

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Can't wait to sell this one in!!!!!

Very touched to receive a Christmas card just this morning from Alasdair Gray, addressed to our old office, and sent before his death. I’m so glad it caught up with me.
#alasdairgray ... See MoreSee Less

4 days ago

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I'd treasure that! A great admirer of his work and he was a great voice at Stirling Uni where I was introduced to his work. I remember the impact of 10 tall tales and true on a young, scouse, first year undergrad student was earth shattering!

That’s lovely ❤️

That's so touching.

2020 is Year of Scotland’s Coasts and Waters. Here are some reading recommendations, fiction and nonfiction, to help you explore Scotland’s seas, lochs and streams from your armchair, or, in the case of #TakingthePlunge, exhort you to get right into the water.
#yearofcoastsandwaters2020 ... See MoreSee Less

3 weeks ago

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Stacy Schwartz these look interesting.

Reminder to Scotland's emerging writers about next week's Tweet Pitch : seven days left to refine your pitch! ... See MoreSee Less

3 weeks ago

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I will send my pitch, once I work out how to do it 😂

Next year 😊

Jenny is this just for children's writers?

Tributes to writer and artist Alasdair Gray who has died aged 85 (taken from today's Bookseller)

Writer and artist Alasdair Gray has died aged 85 with the trade paying tribute to the "cultural trailblazer" and his "forward-looking vision".

His publisher Canongate said Gray passed away peacefully on Sunday (29th December) at the Queen Elizabeth hospital in his native Glasgow, in the presence of family.

The publisher passed on a message from his family which reads: "Early this morning we lost a deeply loved member of our family. Alasdair was an extraordinary person; very talented and, even more importantly, very humane. He was unique and irreplaceable and we will miss him greatly.

"We would like to thank Alasdair’s many friends for their love and support, especially in recent years. Together with the staff of the Queen Elizabeth hospital, Glasgow, who treated him and us with such care and sensitivity during his short illness.

"In keeping with his principles Alasdair wanted his body donated to medical science, so there will be no funeral."

Francis Bickmore, Gray’s editor and publishing director at Canongate, said: “What sad news this is that Alasdair Gray is gone. It seems hard to believe that Alasdair was mortal and might ever leave us. No one single figure has left such a varied legacy–or missed so many deadlines - as Alasdair Gray. At least through Gray’s phenomenal body of work he leaves a legacy that will outlive us all. His voice of solidarity and compassion for his fellow citizens, and his forward-looking vision is cause for great celebration and remembrance.“

His agent, Jenny Brown, of Jenny Brown Associates in Edinburgh, added: "We mourn Alasdair Gray’s passing, but his genius will live on for readers through his remarkable work. He was a cultural trailblazer: nobody has done more to spur on, and give confidence to, the next generation of Scottish writers.”

Canongate said: "A renowned polymath, Alasdair Gray was beloved equally for his writing and art. His début, Lanark, which Canongate published in 1981, is widely regarded as being one of the masterpieces of 20th-century fiction. It was followed by more than 30 further books, all of which he designed and illustrated, ranging from novels, short story collections, plays, volumes of poetry, works of non-fiction and translations–most recently, his interpretation of Dante's Divine Trilogy. His public murals are visible across Glasgow, with further examples of his work on display in galleries from the V&A to the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art."

Many other members of the books trade paid tribute to the author. Writer Ali Smith, writing in the Guardian, said of Gray: "He was an artist in every form. He was a renaissance man. His generosity and brilliance in person–felt by everyone who knew him even a little – were a source of astonishing and liberating warmth."

She said of how his work will live on: "His aesthetic mantra is profoundly communal: Work as if you live in the early days of a better nation. That’s his legacy, written on us all, and as ever with Gray, who was a magnificent talent, a modern-day William Blake, it’ll never be more timely, more necessary, more vital, more crucial and generous a gift, than it is right now and for the future."

The First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon tweeted of Canongate's announcement: "Such sad news. Alasdair Gray was one of Scotland’s literary giants, and a decent, principled human being. He’ll be remembered best for the masterpiece that is Lanark, but everything he wrote reflected his brilliance. Today, we mourn the loss of a genius, and think of his family."

Nick Barley, director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival told the BBC: "Scotland has been blessed with a host of great writers over the past 50 years, but if history remembers only one, it will likely be Alasdair Gray.

"He was a bright star in a luminous constellation of northern lights; a game-changer whose boundlessly innovative, cross-disciplinary thinking paved the way for so many others to succeed."

In November Alasdair Gray won the inaugural Saltire Society Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to Scottish literature. ... See MoreSee Less

3 weeks ago

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Gone but not forgotten. RIP to a man with principles who helped put Scotland on the literary map x

The sun rises on the first morning of 2020 in Wester Ross. Happy New Year everyone! ... See MoreSee Less

3 weeks ago

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Glorious! Happy New Year!

Happy New Year Jenny! That sky is wondrous!

Beeeautiful!😍 Happy New Decade, wondrous lady. Much love to you all. ❤️🎊🥂

Happy new decade Jenny! X

Happy New Year 🥳

Happy New Year, Jenny! Looks gorgeous x

Wow! Even better than Dunsapie!

Happy New Year 🌸

Happy New Year x

Looks like the Bealach Na Ba and Applecross.

Happy New Year Jenny x

Beautiful.

Fabulous pic - Happy New Year

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These silk packages are full of books, about to be delivered round the family. My second year of following Jolabokaflod, the Icelandic tradition of gifting books to be read on Christmas Eve. Love the prospect of curling up with a good book on 24 December, mug of cocoa (or something stronger) by my side. Happy Jolabokaflod, one and all x
#jolabokaflod #booksforchristmas ... See MoreSee Less

1 month ago

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