Looking for more in Author Directory?

Karine Polwart

All of the information on this page has been provided by the author. If you need an author to have specialist skills, experience or knowledge beyond their creative work, please ask for more information about this ahead of booking them for an event. Please note that authors do not have to have a PVG to be listed.
Other contact method: Website: karinepolwart.com/contact
Local authority: Midlothian
Languages: English, Scots
Karine Polwart's headshot

Birds and brambles, moors and myths, compassion and resilience are just some of the images and ideas that infuse Karine’s work as an award-winning folk musician and songwriter, as well as an author, storyteller and theatre-maker. She is an engaging live performer, and an accomplished workshop leader, who’s able to weave together story, song, sound,  discussion and physical engagement.  

In collaboration with illustrator Kate Leiper, Karine has written two folklore-inspired picture books. A Wee Bird Was Watching explores themes of migration, resilience and protection, whilst The Queen of the Birds celebrates the power of small creatures and the virtues of collaboration when things go awry (both on Birlinn Books). Karine and Kate can also provide workshops/events as a creative team (NB. This will require two Live Literature sessions so both creators can be paid). 

As a songwriter and musician, Karine is a member of Spell Songs, which brings musical life to the acclaimed nature-inspired books The Lost Words and The Lost Spells by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris. She is a contributor to Antlers of Water,

Karine is a former Children’s Rights worker for Scottish Women’s Aid and an erstwhile facilitator of Philosophical Inquiry in school and community settings. She can offer family-friendly events, cross-artform creative workshops, event chairing and mentoring for emergent writer-performers.

(Photo credit: Sandy Butler)

Local authorities can visit

Aberdeen City; Aberdeenshire; Angus; Argyll and Bute; Clackmannanshire; Dumfries and Galloway; Dundee; East Ayrshire; East Dunbartonshire; East Lothian; East Renfrewshire; Edinburgh City; Falkirk; Fife; Glasgow City; Highland; Inverclyde; Midlothian; Moray; Na h-Eileanan Siar (Western Isles); North Ayrshire; North Lanarkshire; Orkney Islands; Perth and Kinross; Renfrewshire; Scottish Borders; Shetland; South Ayrshire; South Lanarkshire; Stirling; West Dunbartonshire; West Lothian

Events can deliver

Chairing events; Mentoring; Panel event; Performance; Residency; Talk; Workshop

Audience can work with

Adult learners; Outdoor learning; Young people in the community (e.g. Youth clubs, Guides, Scouts)

Topics of work

Activism & protest; Environment & climate; Fairy tales, folklore & mythology; Human rights; Nature; Performance training; Picture books

Age groups published for

Children; Adults

Age groups can work with

6-8; 9-11

Audience size

0-10; 11-30; 31-100; 100-500; 500+