Two years after their first in person event was planned (and then cancelled due the pandemic), Book Salon by Women in Journalism Scotland was held at Outwith Books in Govanhill. Journalist Anna Burnside interviewed Louise Welsh about her latest novel, The Second Cut

Anna Burnside interviews Louise Welsh at Outwith Books

By Hanieh Khakpour | Photo by Jennifer Jones

The award-winning author, Louise Welsh, was the special guest for the first in-person version of Book Salon, an event series run by Women In Journalism Scotland and hosted by journalist Anna Burnside. The evening event was held in the cosy independent bookshop, Outwith Books on Albert Road. It was the first in-person event for Women in Journalism Scotland since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Louise read an extract from her darkly funny latest book, The Second Cut, published by Canongate. In it, we return to find Rilke, auctioneer, sleuth and protagonist of Louise’s debut novel, The Cutting Room, twenty years on.

The theme of The Second Cut can be seen as a historical narrative covering a twenty-year period of social change in Glasgow. Anna acknowledges this, adding: “It's one of the things Louise set out to do – opening the book with a gay wedding was a big statement about how the temperature has changed for the LGBT+ community. The cast of characters lets her play with identity politics in quite a gentle way. ‘I identify as a tranny’ is one of my favourite lines in the book”.

Anna says she loved The Cutting Room and interviewed Louise when it first came out: “After years of male books by the likes of Jim Kelman and Irvine Welsh, it felt very fresh from having a strong female voice setting a story in a Glasgow that I recognised”.

Louise’s has had a varied career, which besides her novels, has seen her also turn her hand to writing short stories, plays, an opera, and teaching at the University of Glasgow. “I think her three pandemic novels are particularly strong and I also loved the Tamburlaine one,” says Anna. “She is incredibly erudite and well-read but writes with a light touch and resists the temptation to show off – would that all authors do this. Also, her books are funny, which is always good. No one goes to the grave wishing they had laughed less.”

Anna is currently pondering who should be the next big-name writer for a Book Salon event: "I would like to do more live events, but want to find ways of making sure they are accessible to all our members. During the pandemic, it was great to do online book events with women from all over Scotland dialling in, and I don't want to lose that. But it's hard to beat the thrill of all being together in a room, hearing an author reading from their own book, getting to ask them a question then chatting or taking a selfie with them".

Formed in 2016, Women in Journalism Scotland is a network for women working across print, broadcast and online journalism and communications. They have held high profile events and raised awareness around the shocking levels of sexual harassment faced by women journalists. They aim to balance industry leadership activities, such as the campaign to get more women into sports journalism, with professional development, socialising, and networking. They run a mentoring scheme for early and mid-career women journalists. But, as Anna highlights: "With so many of us working remotely, it's also essential to get out and have fun, be exposed to new ideas and meet other women in the industry".

For more events happening at Outwith Books, keep an eye on their Facebook page. And find out more about Women in Journalism Scotland on their website.