As an advocacy group working to engage, validate and connect writers of colour living in and from Scotland, it is important that SBWN understands and learns from the perceptions and experiences of people of colour working within Scotland’s literary sector. Since its inception in 2018, and with the help of several volunteers and partner organisations, SBWN has facilitated necessary conversations around inclusive publishing and promoted diverse voices within Scotland’s literary sector.
The results from our 2020 survey helped to inform strategic decisions in our programming, such as:
- Expanding the committee team to better represent the diversity of people of colour living in and from Scotland.
- Creating more opportunities to publish work (ongoing blog series, Writers of Colour Audio Anthology, advising Bella Caledonia’s Many Voices programme).
- Establishing the Scottish Black Writers Group (launched during Black History Month 2020).
- Launching Metaphors for a Black Future (curated by Martha Adonai Williams).
The insights shared in our 2020 survey continue to actively inform our work and we are confident that the results captured in this year’s survey will be just as influential and important. While a large aim of the survey is to capture the experience of having our identities racialised within the literary sector, we also hope that it will give our community the chance to input on our 2021 programming and beyond.
This survey is designed to take approximately 15-minutes to complete, but the results we gather will have a longer-term effect both during our 2021 ‘Stay Connected’ programme as well as informing the conversations we have with partner organisations. While ‘writer’ is in our name, we understand that we represent more than just writers. That is why we rely on you, the poet, novelist, arts practitioner, editor, book seller, literary agent, book lover and journalist to help us.
Complete the 2021 SBWN survey ➡
http://bit.ly/SBWNsurvey2021
- Share your experiences
- Input into SBWN programming
- Enter a prize draw to win a £20 book token!
If you are a person of colour with a connection to Scotland’s literary sector, then we ask you to complete this survey and share your perceptions and experiences. If you do not identify as a person of colour, then we ask that you shared this survey widely. Understanding the diversity of Scotland’s literary landscape is essential for advocating for real change. We hope you can help us be part of that change.
