The Edinburgh literary hotspots that appear in 'myth-busting' new book
This read is ideal for those who want to follow in the footsteps of acclaimed authors
It’s lucky that bookworms have legs, so they can enjoy more than one hobby.
Those who also love to combine reading with walking might like to pick up a copy of The Book Lover’s Guide to Edinburgh, by freelance historian and tour guide, Kate Stephenson.
It features five detailed walking trails, so you can follow in the footsteps of the city’s finest, including Robert Burns, Walter Scott and Diana Gabaldon, as well as a section that’s dedicated to the best bookshops, museums and literary festivals.
We asked the author to tell us more.
Why did you decide to write the book?
I’m a big fan of Edinburgh, social history and reading so this subject felt like the perfect combination of the three. There also seemed to be a gap in the market for a guidebook of this kind which drew together a history of the many authors and books that have been inspired by this fabulous city.
What's your background?
Coming from a background in academia, I’m now a freelance historian, working with museums and heritage sites in and around Edinburgh to do research or to produce interpretation and educational resources. I also work as a tour guide in the city, particularly with visitors from North America. This means I work across all sorts of different historical periods and subjects, although I do have some niche specialisms.
I started my academic career as a clothing historian, writing my PhD on the history of school uniform. This looked at the way that social and educational change affected the appearance of school children. In 2021 this research was published as A Cultural History of School Uniform, so The Book Lover’s Guide to Edinburgh will be my second book.
In a slightly rogue move, most of the lecturing and research I currently undertake is on Scottish sex history, particularly the history of condoms, and no, I’m not a hundred percent sure how this happened either.
Who will the new book most appeal to?
I’ve written the book with visitors to the city in mind, but I hope that those moving to the city for the first time, as well as locals, might find something new and interesting in it as well.
Are there any spots that locals don’t know about?
I think that depends on the local. While many of the spots will be well known to people who live in the city, I think some of the more unusual literary history may be new to them. This could be what Robert Louis Stevenson got arrested for while attending the University, how James Boswell recovered from a hangover in his property on James’ Court or what started a riot at the Canongate Theatre in 1749.
Any new authors featured?
I’ve obviously included big literary and historical names such as Burns, Stevenson and Scott, (as well as some of my favourites such as William McGonagall and James Tytler), but I’ve also tried to mention living authors with Edinburgh links. These include Diana Gabaldon, Susanna Kearsley, Ian Rankin, Irvine Welsh and Alexander McCall Smith among others.
Are there any myths you bust, like where JK Rowling wrote her books?
I think she’s busted most of those herself and certainly many of the stories you hear about the places she drew inspiration from and her writing experiences in the city don’t seem to have a lot of basis in fact. My favourite myth-busting story, however, concerns Charles Dickens and a man named Ebenezer Scroggie. I don’t want to spoil it, so you’ll just have to read the book.
How long did it take to write and what did the research involve?
I wrote the book over about a six-month period, drawing on a range of author-specific publications as well as a few original sources. It was also an excellent excuse to curl up on the sofa and indulge in reading some of the books that I was writing about, but hadn’t actually read before.
Any new discoveries for you?
Of course. I think my favourite parts were researching and writing about the, often controversial, theatre history of Edinburgh, from David Lyndsay’s A Satire of the Three Estates being performed on Calton Hill in 1554 to Sarah Siddons acting at the Theatre Royal on Shakespeare Square (now Waterloo Place) in the late 18th century.
I’m still making new discoveries and there are a few people I have subsequently come across that should have perhaps been included in the book, maybe they’ll make it into the next edition? One of these was Jules Verne. As a big Verne fan, I was delighted to find he had spent time in Edinburgh.
Favourite routes? Did you try all of them in the book?
I absolutely walked them all! Edinburgh is such a lovely city to walk (even in the rain) and I can never get tired of the unexpected views that suddenly open up as you stroll around. This process did, however, involve spending an inordinate amount in Greyfriars Kirkyard as it is a focus for an enormous amount of Edinburgh’s literary history, from its links to Scott and Stevenson, to less discussed authors such as Henry Mackenzie and Allan Ramsay.
My favourite route is probably the one focused on Sir Walter Scott, simply because his life was so fascinatingly odd. Additionally, he had such a significant and lasting impact on the modern tourism industry in Scotland, that writing about him with tourists in mind feels like a full circle moment.
What do you think makes a good walking tour?
A good walking tour needs to be well researched and historically accurate and I always like to learn something a bit weird. A guide with a sense of humour also helps and there should be at least one decent coffee shop along the route.
What's the next book?
I finished writing a second book for Pen & Sword in November on the history of greyhounds as part of their White Owl series on the history of dog breeds. I’m going to take the rest of this year off from writing, as two books in two years has been quite intense, but I’d like to regroup in 2027 and write a book on another one of my niche interests, the social history and modern practices of the re-enactment community.
The Book Lover's Guide to Edinburgh by Kate Stephenson, £15.99, White Owl Books
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