Citizen Winter Warmer

We are delighted to announce that this December the Book Festival will host a special day of online events as part of our ongoing Citizen project. Taking place on Saturday 12 December, the Citizen Winter Warmer offers a day full of FREE fun and creative activities for all the family – with DrawAlongs, workshops, poetry and live music, as well as a stellar line-up of guests including Maggie O’Farrell, Alan Bissett, Leyla Josephine, Nadine Aisha Jassat, Tinderbox Collective and many more. All events are free to view and can be watched via our Facebook and YouTube channels (@edbookfest).

The Book Festival’s Citizen programme works with groups in North Edinburgh and Musselburgh exploring their views on community and citizenship, and throughout the day we’ll also be sharing the creative work of local people who have been working with our Writers in Residence, thinking about what community and citizenship mean in 2020. The day will be split into three sections, and the full line-up of events can be found below. All events in the Citizen Winter Warmer are free to view through the Edinburgh International Book Festival’s YouTube channel or via Facebook (@edbookfest) – links to where you can view the events will be available soon.

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Our morning events – starting at 10.30am and suitable for families with younger children (aged 5+) – will include interactive 15-minute DrawAlongs with super-talented illustrators Eilidh Muldoon and Katie Chappell, sensational storytelling from Macastory, and a joy-filled poetry workshop by our Citizen Schools Writer in Residence, Leyla Josephine. We round up the morning with Women’s Fiction Prize winner Maggie O’Farrell performing a short reading from her brand new picture book Where Snow Angels Go.

10.30am | DrawAlong with Eilidh Muldoon! (5yrs+)
11.00am | Four Seasons – Storytelling with Macastory (3yrs+)
11.30am | Self Portrait Poems with Leyla Josephine (7yrs+)
12 noon | Drawings Diaries with Katie Chappell (5yrs+)
12.30pm | Where Snow Angels Go – A Reading by Maggie O’Farrell (5yrs+)

From 2.30pm, a programme for families with older children (aged 11+) kicks off with a workshop led by the incredible artists from the Edinburgh Zine Library, and some spirit-rousing music from the Tinderbox Collective (enjoyable for all ages). Acclaimed Scottish-Caribbean poet Courtney Stoddart will also perform some of her protest poetry, and Citizen Community Writer in Residence Eleanor Thom leads a workshop helping participants to explore their local area with their very own memory map.

2.30pm | Pass the Zine with Edinburgh Zine Library (11yrs+)
3.00pm | Music from the Tinderbox Collective (all ages)
3.30pm | Poems for Today with Courtney Stoddart (14yrs+)
4.00pm | Route of Memories with Eleanor Thom (11yrs+)

Early evening activities from 6pm are suitable for young adults and adults and will include a reading from The Incredible Adam Spark by Alan Bissett, work from the Citizen Collective and the Citizen Writers’ Group and close with a warm and soothing reading by Nadine Aisha Jassat of Daughter of Stories.

6.00pm | The Incredible Adam Spark – A Reading by Alan Bissett (YA and adults)
6.30pm | The Citizen Collective Stories and Ideas (YA and adults)
7.00pm | Citizen Writers’ Group – Sharing (adults)
7.30pm | Daughter of Stories – A Reading by Nadine Aisha Jassat (YA and adults)

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The Citizen Winter Warmer is part of Edinburgh International Book Festival On the Road – a programme of events, festivals and residences taking place around Scotland throughout the year, supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery and funded through the PLACE Programme, a partnership between the Scottish Government – through Creative Scotland – the City of Edinburgh Council and the Edinburgh Festivals.