NURTURING WRITERS & WRITING
BURSARY SUPPORT
Young Writers
RESIDENCIES & AWARDS
OUR BEGINNINGS
Moniack Mhor is Scotland’s National Writing Centre. Based in the beautiful Scottish Highlands, we run courses in a range of genres tutored by some of the finest authors in the UK and beyond. With workshops and one to one tutorials, our courses provide an atmosphere to fully immerse yourself in your writing. The centre also offers writing retreats providing time and space, free from distractions, where you will find yourself part of a nurturing writing community. Other support offered by Moniack Mhor includes awards, bursaries, professional residencies to develop works in progress and a programme for young writers.
ONLINE: FANTASY FICTION
How do you weave the multiple and dynamic strands of voice, character and world through your story without weighing down the tale? In this Moniack in a Month online course led by Hannah Kaner, you’ll explore the foundations of world-building, and then delve into ideas and techniques that bring detail and depth to compelling characters and narratives as living parts of those worlds. Each of the four interactive workshops include writing exercises or activity.
WRITING WORKSHOP
Join Margaux Vialleron, our 2026 Jessie Kesson Fellow, at Abriachan Forest for a creative writing workshop. We will listen to the surrounding nature first, then write. Margaux will take you through some free-writing exercises inspired by the environment, in a relaxed and inclusive setting.
CRIME WRITING
This course, with Michael J Malone and Caro Ramsay, offers an opportunity to craft compelling crime fiction. An immersive course to take you from blank page to polishing the final draft with entertaining workshops on the nuts and bolts for creating chilling villains, twisty plots and perfect prose.
FIRST STAGES SONGWRITING
Join Kathryn and Michele, acclaimed singer songwriters and producers in a session that focusses on co-writing. Come along to this nurturing online workshop and discover the power of collaboration in songs. We’ll make use of breakout spaces and group working to generate seeds of ideas for new work. This friendly session would suit anyone who is new to making songs or who might already be writing but would like to learn approaches to working with a fellow writer. No experience or instrument needed!
HIGHLAND BOOK PRIZE
The longlist for the Highland Book Prize 2025 has been announced by the Highland Society of London and Moniack Mhor, Scotland’s Creative Writing Centre.
POETRY TRANSLATION
Join Scotland's Makar, Peter Mackay, in this online masterclass that explores poetry that lives in-between languages, whether tip-toeing along the edges of those languages or jumping deep into etymological poems. You don’t have to be fluent in more than one language; but it will help if you love to mess around in the nooks and crannies of dictionaries.