Pitch It! Hannah Lavery in conversation with Jim Monaghan

How can friendship be a radical act for art and activism? What does it mean to write about those we care about, and to remember the personal bonds?

Govanhill Book Festival founder and director Jim Monaghan and poet and playwright Hannah Lavery have built a close friendship through writing over the years. In memory of musician Beldina Odenyo, who was a close mutual friend, this event will open up an intimate discussion exploring the importance of friendship and supporting fellow writers.

As part of Book Week Scotland, Join us for genuine and heartfelt stories about how friendship sparks creativity, as well as the unique challenges of writing about friends and incorporating personal memories into their work.

Hannah Lavery is a poet and playwright from Edinburgh. Her debut poetry collection Blood Salt Spring (Polygon) was nominated for a Saltire Prize in 2022, her second collection Unwritten Woman was published by Polygon in August 2024. Hannah is the former Makar (poet laureate) for the City of Edinburgh, co-host of feminist arts podcast QuineCast and was an Associate Artist at National Theatre Scotland (NTS) her plays for NTS The Drift and Lament for Sheku Bayoh and The Protest have toured extensively. Hannah lives, breathes and dreams on the beaches and cliffs of Scotland’s East Coast, with her dreaming often taking her back to the streets and closes of Edinburgh.