List of Scottish writers

List of Scottish writers is an incomplete alphabetical list of Scottish writers. This list includes writers of all genres, writing in English, Lowland Scots, Scottish Gaelic, Latin, French or any other language.

This is a subsidiary list to the List of Scots.

This literature-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

A

• Marion Adams-Acton (1846–1928), children's writer, playwright under name Jeanie Hering
• Thomas Aird (1802–1876), poet
• Alasdair MacMhaighstir Alasdair (c. 1695 – 1770), poet
• William Alexander, Earl of Stirling (c. 1570 – 1640), poet and dramatist
• Lin Anderson, crime writer
• Marion Angus (1866–1946), poet
• Margot Asquith (1864–1945), writer and wit
• Sir Robert Aytoun (1570–1638), poet
• William Edmonstoune Aytoun (1813–1865), poet, humourist and writer

B

• Lady Grizel Baillie (1665–1746), song-writer
• RM Ballantyne (1825–1894), juvenile fiction writer, The Coral Island
• Iain Banks (born 1954), a.k.a Iain M. Banks
• John Barbour (1316–1395), poet
• Sir James Matthew Barrie (1860–1937), novelist and dramatist, creator of Peter Pan
• Alan Bissett (born 1975), novelist
• William Black (1841–1898), novelist
• Robert Blair (1699–1746), poet
• James Boswell (1740–1795), biographer of Samuel Johnson and diarist
• Edward Boyd (1916–1989), screenwriter
• Theresa Breslin, author, primarily of young adult fiction
• James Bridie (real name Osborne Henry Mavor) (1888–1951), playwright, screenwriter and surgeon
• Christopher Brookmyre (born 1968), novelist of Comedy, politics and social issues.
• George Douglas Brown (1869–1902), novelist
• George Mackay Brown, Scottish poet, author and dramatist, whose work has a distinctly Orcadian character
• John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir (1875–1940), novelist (The Thirty-Nine Steps)
• James Burnett (1714–1799), judge and scholar of linguistic evolution, philosopher and deist
• Peter Burnett (born 1967)
• Rhoda Bulter (1929–1994), poet and novelist.
• Robert Burns (1759–1796), poet and lyricist - widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland.
• John Byrne (born 1940), dramatist

C

• Thomas Campbell (1777–1844)
• Angus Peter Campbell, Gaelic novelist, columnist, poet
• Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881), essayist and historian
• Harry Carmil (pen name of Leopold Horace Ognall) (1908–1979), crime novelist (born in Glasgow)
• Catherine Carswell (1879–1946)
• Glenn Chandler (born 1949)
• William Cleland (1661–1689)
• Alison Cockburn (1712–1794) poet and wit
• Sophie Cooke (born 1976)
• Joe Corrie (1894–1968)
• Samuel Rutherford Crockett (1860–1914), novelist
• A. J. Cronin (1896–1981)
• Helen Cruickshank (1886–1975)
• Andrew Crumey (born 1961)

D

• Ann Marie Di Mambro (born 1950), playwright and scriptwriter
• Lady Florence Dixie (1855–1905), feminist, travel writer, novelist
• Gavin Douglas
• O. Douglas (1877–1948), novelist
• Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of Sherlock Holmes detective novels
• Andrew Drummond, novelist, author of An Abridged History and A Hand-book of Volapük
• William Drummond of Hawthornden
• William Dunbar (c. 1460 – c. 1520), poet
• Jane Duncan
• Douglas Dunn (born 1942), poet
• Dorothy Dunnett (1923–2001), novelist
• Niall Duthie (born 1947), novelist

F

• Simon Farquhar
• Robert Fergusson
• Susan Edmonstone Ferrier
• John Fleming
• Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun (1653–1716), political writer
• Craig Ferguson Novelist Between the Bridge and the River, American on Purpose, and screenwriter
• Neil Forsyth

G

• Colin Galbraith author, poet
• Iain Gale
• Janice Galloway (born 1956), author of 'The Trick Is to Keep Breathing'
• William Brown Galloway (1811–1903), teacher, scholar, theologian, writer of several books on science & the Bible, a few available as e-books on Google Books.
• John Galt
• Robert Garioch
• Pat Gerber (1934–2006), writer
• Lewis Grassic Gibbon
• Magi Gibson, (born 1953) poet, writer, author of 'Wild Women of a Certain Age'
• William Glen (1789–1826), poet
• Janey Godley (born 1961), comedian
• Robert Bontine Cunninghame Graham
• W. S. Graham, neo-romantic poet
• Kenneth Grahame (1859–1932)
• Elizabeth Grant (1797–1868), diarist
• Katie M Grant
• Alasdair Gray (born 1934), writer and artist
• Alex Gray (born 1950)
• Alexander Gray (1882–1968), academic, propagandist, poet and translator
• Muriel Gray (born 1959), author, broadcaster and businesswoman
• Andrew Greig (born 1951), novelist, poet and writer on mountaineering
• David Greig (born 1969), playwright
• Neil M Gunn (1891–1973), novelist and essayist
• Allan Guthrie, crime writer and literary agent

H

• Hamilton Alastair (born 1958), writer, journalist, photographer
• Jeanie Hering (1846–1928), children's writer, playwright
• James Hogg (1770–1835), poet, novelist and short story writer.
• Stuart Hood (born 1915), novelist and translator
• A. J. Hughes (born 1971), novelist.

J,K

• Violet Jacob
• Robert Alan Jamieson
• Quintin Jardine
• Morag Joss
• Ada F Kay
• Jackie Kay
• Robert Keith (1681–1757), Episcopal Bishop and historian
• James Kelman
• James Kennaway (1928–1968)
• A. L. Kennedy
• Philip Kerr, author of both adult fiction and non-fiction, most notably the Bernie Gunther series
• Jessie Kesson
• Alanna Knight, crime writer
• Frank Kuppner (born 1951)

L

• Andrew Lang (1844–1912)
• Sir Thomas Dick Lauder (1784–1848), writer
• David Lindsay (1878–1945)
• Sir David Lindsay (c. 1490 – c. 1555)
• Douglas Lindsay (born 1964)
• Eric Linklater
• John Gibson Lockhart
• William Laughton Lorimer (1885–1967), translated the New Testament from Greek to Scots

Mac/Mc

• Lord Macaulay, (1800–1859), essayist, historian and poet
• Sharon McPherson (born 1965), writer and book publisher
• Stuart MacBride, crime writer
• Alexander McCall Smith
• Fionn MacColla
• Norman MacCaig, poet
• J. McCullough, golf author
• Val McDermid, (1955- present), crime fiction - Tartan Noir
• Hugh MacDiarmid (1892–1978), poet
• George Macdonald (1824–1905), poet and novelist
• William Topaz McGonagall, poet, novelist
• Alasdair Alpin MacGregor (1899–1970), writer, photographer and poet
• Kenneth McGuigan, Marxist theory, history
• William McIlvanney, crime writer
• Helen Clark MacInnes (1907–1985), suspense novelist
• Duncan McIntyre, Gaelic poet, a.k.a Duncan Ban McIntyre
• Martainn Mac an t-Saoir, Gaelic novelist
• John William Mackail, classical scholar and writer
• Kenneth McKay literary thriller writer
• Chris McKenna,novelist and short story writer
• Piers Mackesy (born 1924), military historian
• Sorley MacLean (1911–1996), Scottish Gaelic poet
• Ken MacLeod
• Iain Finlay Macleod, Gaelic novelist
• Henry Mackenzie
• Ian Maclaren
• Alistair MacLean
• Robert McLellan
• Kevin MacNeil
• James Macpherson (1736–1796), poet and presenter of the "Ossian" poems
• Candia McWilliam, novelist

M

• Lord Macaulay (1800–1859), essayist, historian and poet
• Laura Marney, novelist
• Sir John Malcolm (1769–1833), historian
• Graham Masterton (born 1946)
• Gavin Maxwell
• Peter May (writer)
• Mark Millar, comic book writer
• Hugh Miller(1802–1856), geologist
• Denise Mina (born 1966), Crime writer
• Edwin Morgan (born 1920), Scottish poet
• Grant Morrison, comic book writer
• Edwin Muir (1887–1959), novelist and poet
• Charles Murray (1864–1941), poet

O

• Andrew O'Hagan (born 1968), novelist and essayist
• Carolina Oliphant, Lady Nairne, 18th century composer and songwriter
• Laurence Oliphant (1829–1888), author and Scottish MP
• Margaret Oliphant, novelist
• Thomas Oliphant composer, songwriter, author and artist

P

• Janet Paisley
• Aileen Paterson, creator of Maisie from Morningside
• William Paul

R

• Allan Ramsay
• Caro Ramsay, osteopath and crime writer
• Ian Rankin, creator of Inspector Rebus crime novels
• PJG Ransom, author, railway and canal history
• Marilyn Reid (born Dundee Scotland 1954), author, wrote plays under the name Marilyn Cameron
• Dilys Rose
• Christopher Rush (born 1944) writer and teacher of literature

S

• Alexander Scott (c. 1520 – c. 1583), poet
• Alexander Scott (1920–1989), poet
• Manda Scott, veterinary surgeon and crime writer
• Andrew Murray Scott (born 1955), novelist[1]
• Michael Scott (1789–1835), author
• Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832), novelist and poet
• William Sharp (1855–1905), poet and biographer
• Nan Shepherd
• Sara Sheridan (born 1968), novelist
• Neal Sillars (born 1968), novelist, living in Spain and writing modern Scottish and literary fiction[2]
• Samuel Smiles (1812–1904)
• Adam Smith (1723–1790)
• Ali Smith (born 1962)
• Iain Crichton Smith
• Sydney Goodsir Smith
• Tobias Smollett (1721–1771), novelist
• William Soutar
• Dame Muriel Spark (1918–2006), novelist (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie)
• D. E. Stevenson (1892–1973), novelist
• Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894), novelist, poet and travel writer
• Ena Lamont Stewart, playwright
• Mary Stewart
• William Stewart, (c. 1478 – 1548)
• Annie Shepherd Swan
• Chancery Stone (born 1956), novelist (Danny)

T

• Robert Tannahill (1774–1810), poet
• Alasdair and Hettie Tayler, historians
• Stephanie Taylor (born 1975), author (The Device, The Devil and Me)
• Josephine Tey (1896–1952), mystery writer
• Eleanor Thom (born 1979), novelist, author of "The Tin-Kin"
• May Miles Thomas (born 1959), screenwriter
• Derick Thomson (born 1921), poet and publisher, also known as Ruaraidh MacThòmais
• James Thomson (The Seasons) (1700–1748)
• James Thomson (B.V.) (1834–1882), poet
• Jeff Torrington (1935–2008), novelist
• Thomas Toughill, non-fiction author
• Nigel Tranter (1909–2000), wrote over 100 books covering non-fiction (history, architecture, Scotland), children's books, and novels (historical, contemporary adventure and westerns)
• Alexander Trocchi (1925–1984), novelist and cultural activist
• Alexander Fraser Tytler (1747–1813), lawyer and writer
• Patrick Fraser Tytler (1791–1849), historian

U,V,W

• Sir Thomas Urquhart (1611–1660), writer and translator
• Simon Varwell (born 1978), travel and humour writer
• Patrick Vickery (born 1959)
• Alan Warner (born 1964)
• William Watson (1931–2005)
• Molly Weir (1910–2004)
• Tom Weir (1914–2006)
• Irvine Welsh (born 1961), novelist (Trainspotting)
• Louise Welsh, crime writer
• Brian Whittingham (born 1950) (writer)
• John Wilson (Christopher North)

See also

• List of Scottish novelists
• Scottish literature
• Lists of writers