Date/Time
Date(s) - Mon 3rd Nov - Sat 8th Nov, 2025
All Day
Location
Moniack Mhor, Kiltarlity, Inverness-shire , IV4 7HT
Lilt an scrieve: coorse fur new an emerging Scots scrievers an bairds
Hiv ye aye kent that ye wantit tae scrieve in Scots? Dae ye hear muisic in aw its wirds an rhymes? This taucht retreat is for awbody wha’s ever wantit tae or wha’s a’ready warkin tae scrieve sangs, poems or stories in the Scots leid. Baird Hannah Rarity an makar Billy Letford will haud wan-tae-wan tutorials wi ye ower the week tae gie ye a haun creatin new wark in Scots. The lave o the time will be yours tae explore whit ye can dae wi the Scots leid, readin Scots buiks in Moniack Mhor’s leebraries, an communin wi ither coorse participants wha are scrievin in Scots an aw.
Ye’ll be jined mid-week by scriever Amanda Thomson wha’ll read fae her wark an blether tae aw by the fire.
Wha’s it fur?
Onybody new tae or a’ready scrievin sangs or poems or stories in Scots.
Can a git help tae come?
Aye! Creative Scotland are fundin twa places on this coorse for sang-scrievers an twa places for makars or scrievers a’ready warkin in Scots an wha are keen tae lear an develop mair skeels. This funding includes ony access support an traivel expenses anaw.
If ye want tae apply for wan o thir funded places, email us on awards@moniackmhor.org.uk an tell us why ye wid like tae jine this taucht retreat, an if ye are mair interestit in sang-scrievin, or scrievin poems or stories. Please gie us a swatch o ony wark ye’ve a’ready daen an aw, eg up to three poems or sangs, 500 wirds o prose etc.
Please send yer application sae suin as ye can, an by 7 August 2025 at the latest. We’ll lat ye ken aboot the ootcome o yer application by the stert o September or afore.
If ye’ve ony questions afore appleeing, email us on awards@moniackmhor.org.uk.
Tutors
Hannah Rarity is a leading figure in the Scottish folk scene, celebrated for her exceptional voice and dynamic musical presence. Since winning the prestigious BBC Young Traditional Musician of the Year award in 2018, she has collaborated with some of the most respected names in folk music, including Blazin’ Fiddles, Rura, Niteworks and Cherish the Ladies.
Her albums, ‘Neath the Gloaming Star (2018) and To Have You Near (2022), were both widely praised and shortlisted for Album of the Year at the BBC Alba Scots Trad Music Awards. In 2022, she was invited to serve as co-musical director for the Opening Concert of Celtic Connections: ”Neath The Gloamin’ Star’.
Known for her voice and, increasingly, her poignant self-penned songs, Hannah effortlessly blends folk, contemporary, and original material. A versatile performer, she is in high demand as a collaborator, session vocalist, tutor, and MC. Hannah honed her craft at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, receiving First Class BA (Hons) Scottish Music, specialising in Scots song, in 2016.
William Letford published his first collection of poetry while working as a roofer. Since then, his work has been adapted into film, projected onto buildings, carved into monuments, adapted for the stage, cast out over the radio, and performed by orchestras. He has helped restore a medieval village in mountains of northern Italy, taught English in Japan, and been invited to perform in Iraq, South Korea, Lebanon, Australia, Germany, India, Poland, and many more countries.
Guest Reader
Amanda Thomson is a Scottish artist and writer whose makes work about our connections to the natural environment and the ways in which we feel we belong. Her first book, A Scots Dictionary of Nature, is a compendium of found words about nature, found in old 19th Century Scots Language dictionaries. Belonging, Natural Histories of Place, Identity and Home was shortlisted for the Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing, 2023. Boundary Layers, her film-essay about nature’s reclamation of Ravenscraig, once Europe’s largest steelwork, was part of A Fragile Correspondence, Scotland’s exhibition in the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale. Her website is www.passingplace.com
Fees
The full fee for this course is £725. This includes your accommodation in a single room with shared bathroom, all meals, hot drinks and snacks from Monday afternoon until Saturday morning, and your tuition. For more information about the format and practicalities of our courses, tutored courses, and retreats, please visit our About the Residential Courses & Retreats page..
A limited number of en-suite rooms are available, which can be booked in advance for a £50 surcharge. We will also reserve an en-suite room for anyone who may need it due to a medical condition. This will be offered out as an upgrade nearer the course start date if it is not needed.
A limited number of Twin Room places are available at a discounted price of £675 per person. When booking a Twin Room place, please tell us in the comments box which gender you are and which gender(s) you are comfortable sharing a room with. This information will remain confidential.
A small single room with a skylight is available at a discounted price of £700. Please note this room does not have an ordinary window, only a small skylight.
A deposit is required to secure your place, which is non-refundable after a 14-day cooling-off period. The balance payment of £575 is due six weeks before the course begins. Refunds are not always available – please read our Terms & Conditions for full details about our cancellation policy. If you would like to pay the full amount in advance, please call our booking office on 01463 592 828 or email info@moniackmhor.org.uk.
Bursaries are always available, and you also have the option to pay in instalments. If you have any problems paying online, or wish to discuss paying in instalments or applying for financial help, or would simply like assistance, please contact us by emailing info@moniackmhor.org.uk or phoning us on 01463 592828.
Access
Please let us know in your booking form if you have any access requirements, for example a ground floor bedroom and / or access to a step-free accessible shower room. We also reserve one en-suite bedroom per course for anyone who may need this due to a medical condition. For more information about access to our courses, please visit our Access page.
Terms and Conditions
Please read our Terms & Conditions before booking.