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Ross MacKay

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Contact: rosscollinsmackay@gmail.com
Local authority: Fife
Languages: English, Scots
Author type: Performance Poet, Playwright, Poet, Writer
Ross MacKay's headshot

Ross MacKay is an author, poet and playwright from Fife. He has won numerous accolades for his work including a William Soutar Award for Poetry and a Tom McGrath Maverick Award. He has been commissioned to write poems for schools, libraries and to open festivals.

Ross debut picture book, Daddy’s Bad Day, has been created to help parents explain their mental health struggles to young children. The story draws on the writer’s lived experience and research conducted with some of Scotland’s leading parent charities.

His debut children’s novel, Will and The Whisp, explores issues around anxiety for readers aged 11+.

Ross has extensive experience providing creative writing workshops, readings and performances for participants in communities around Scotland.

Ross previously worked in theatre as the artistic director of Tortoise in a Nutshell. His productions toured all over the world. His shows have received numerous prestigious awards including a Scotsman Fringe First for New Writing and a Critic’s Pick from The New York Times.

Websites featuring the author

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

Mentoring; Panel event; Performance; Professional development, CLPL or CPD; Reading; Residency; Talk; Workshop

Audience can work with

Care-experienced people; Carers; Outdoor learning; People experiencing mental health problems; Reluctant readers; Vulnerable young people (under 18); Young people in the community (e.g. Youth clubs, Guides, Scouts); Young people with additional support needs (under 18) (ASN/SEN)

Topics of work

Activism & protest; Adolescence; Adventure; Care experience; Childhood; Class & society; Comedy, humour & funny books; Contemporary fiction; Death, grief & bereavement; Editing & editing your own work; Event production; Fairy tales, folklore & mythology; Family; Fantasy; First experiences for younger readers; Friendship; Health including mental health & wellbeing; Historical fiction; Loneliness & isolation; Mystery & thriller; Performance training; Picture books; Politics; Publishing & getting published; Rhyming books for younger readers; Rural communities

Age groups published for

Children; Teens; Adults

Age groups can work with

0-2; 3-5; 6-8; 9-11; 12-14; 15-18; 18+

Audience size

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