Glasgow Women’s Library today (Tuesday the 7th of March) launched Open The Door – a new literary festival that aims to bring women to the fore. The event, which will be held on the 13th of May at the Glasgow Women’s Library, will feature writers such as Val McDermid, Maggie O’Farrell, Kirsty Logan, Leila Aboulela, and Lesley McDowell.
According to their announcement, there will be events throughout the afternoon and evening with an emphasis on accessibility and reimagining the formal speaker-audience setting of traditional literary festivals.
In the words of Glasgow Women’s Library launch announcement:
“Never before has Scotland’s literary scene been as energised and bold as it is today, and a large part of that is thanks to the brilliance of contemporary women writers like Val McDermid, Denise Mina, Leila Aboulela, Kathleen Jamie, Rona Munro, Jenni Fagan, Maggie O’Farrell, Lucy Ellmann, AL Kennedy, Janice Galloway, Kerry Hudson, Kirsty Logan, to name but a few.
“It seems only right to celebrate this achievement of women writers with a festival of their own. To showcase what women writers have to offer that is unique. To converse with them in a setting that is both inspiring and welcoming.
“Scotland’s literary heritage has been passed from father to son, from Burns to Hogg and Stevenson, to Kelman and Gray. In this new age dominated by so much excellence in women’s writing, when women are being published internationally, to great acclaim and to great popularity, we want to celebrate a new canon.
“For even though women are being published more than ever, their presence on prize lists is still dwarfed by men. Their work is reviewed less often in the pages of literary magazines. And so we want to take this opportunity to correct the balance of the present as well as the past.
“In that spirit, the festival is named for the writer, Catherine Carswell, and her ground- breaking 1920 novel. Because in spite of women writers’ achievements, there are still doors to be opened.”
Saturday 13th May, 1-4pm (£10), 6-8pm (£10). Tickets go on sale mid-March and will be available from Glasgow Women’s Library’s website.
