SCOTTISH Book Trust has launched this year’s Your Stories campaign, and is appealing for members of the public to share real-life stories around the theme of “future”.

Submissions can be made in English, Scots or Gaelic in any form – a story, poem, comic strip, play or letter – of up to 1000 words.

A selection of stories will be included in a free book that will be given out during Book Week Scotland in November.

People from across the country are being encouraged to join in and submit their own work – even if they have never written before.

Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust, said: “2020 is a landmark year, and future is the perfect theme to reflect the ongoing social and cultural change happening right now. We want to hear your story: even if you’ve never written about yourself before.

“Hopes, fears, dreams – Scottish Book Trust welcomes them all.”

For those who are unsure on how to start on their stories, free digital workshops will be running, offering inspiration from some of Scotland’s most exciting writers, including Not the Booker Prize awardee Kirstin Innes, New Writer Awardee and Robert Louis Stevenson fellow Malachy Tallack, Saltire Award nominated author Alison Irvine, and Next Chapter Awardee Samina Chaudry.

The writers will explore different prompts and methods for story writing, and will all contribute their own stories about future for the book.

Poet and performer Marjorie Lotfi Gill will also provide writing prompts every Tuesday to help tackle the theme.

Poet and writer Tam Clark will provide his own take on future in Scots, while author Cairistiona Stone and poet Griogar MacThomais will create stories under the campaign’s partnership with the Gaelic Books Council.

Each digital workshop has limited space, and so sign-up is essential.

Future is open for submissions until Friday, June 5.

Submissions can either be made online, or via post to: Future, FAO Gordon Connelly, Scottish Book Trust, Sandeman House, Trunk’s Close, 55 High Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1SR.

Scotland is in lockdown. Shops are closing and newspaper sales are falling fast. It’s no exaggeration to say that the future of The National is at stake. Please consider supporting us through this with a digital subscription from just £2 for 2 months by following this link: http://www.thenational.scot/subscribe. Thanks – and stay safe.