Behind the Bookshelves
With Helen Graham
 
THE BOOKSHELVES OF SCOTLAND 
JUL 21, 2026
  
Author, Helen Graham shared her bookshelves with us over on Instagram this weekend. I caught up with her recently to ask her the usual questions.

Hi Helen. Thank you so much for joining us on Bookshelves of Scotland. I’ve been really looking forward to speaking to you since I read your second book, The Real Mackay’s Grandaughter. So, let’s get to it!

Favourite city:-

When I say Edinburgh is my favourite city I really mean it, and not just because I live here! Apart from all the other amazing benefits (steeped in history, walkable distances to everywhere on amazing cycle paths, proximity to the sea, amazing restaurants, museums, galleries, the world’s biggest cultural festival etc etc), it’s also like living in a book festival all year round. There are so many great bookshops here, most of which regularly host author events, so we’re really spoilt for choice. You can see there’s not much room left on my bookshelves, and the top two rows are mostly signed copies, too!

I grew up in rural Oxfordshire, we raised our three children in a market town in Gloucestershire, then we lived in the small Highland town of Kingussie for many years where we thought we’d finally settled. However, when our elderly mothers began to need a lot more visits and some hands-on help 12 years ago, we decided to join them in Edinburgh and I surprised myself by becoming a city girl quite quickly.

The other thing I particularly love about Edinburgh is that I often feel like I’m walking around inside my books. So far all of them have been set in the Edinburgh of about 200 years ago and based on true events, so I sometimes feel quite moved walking in the footsteps of these characters, standing outside the places they lived and worked. What a privilege!

What piece of art would you like on your wall for one night?

I’d like to borrow Daniel Macnee’s 1854 portrait of my 5 xgreat uncle, Charles Mackay, which I’ve used for the cover of my novel The Real Mackay. I’d love to hang him over the fireplace next to his godson’s portrait (Lauchlan Mackay, my 3 x great grandfather whose portrait I am privileged to own). Then I’d take a photo of the two portraits to recreate a scene I’ve described in an imagined letter in the novel:

Dear Uncle Charles,

I thought you should know I have just purchased the excellent portrait of you painted by Mr. Daniel Macnee R.S.A. and exhibited at the Royal Academy to great acclaim throughout this summer.

It is now hanging in pride of place in my drawing room, and very fine it looks too! Indeed, it has inspired me to sit for a portrait myself so we can glower at one another from either side of the fireplace!

I look forward to seeing you again ’ere long, Uncle,

Your nephew, godson, friend and most loyal admirer,

Lauchlan Mackay.

Sadly, Lauchlan Mackay went bankrupt and eventually had to sell the painting, otherwise it would still be in my family rather than hidden away in the National Portrait Gallery’s storage facility!

Favourite singer / band?

Impossible question!

I love all kinds of music, and these days my go-to listening during the day is classical music on Radio 3 or relaxing jazz – nothing with singing, as I always feel the need to stop working and listen to the lyrics.

I’ve always loved singer-songwriters who write meaningful, poetic lyrics. I listened to Joan Baez, Carly Simon and James Taylor all the time when I was young and taught myself to sing lots of their songs with my guitar. I’m really looking forward to seeing James Taylor this summer at Edinburgh castle to celebrate our golden wedding anniversary with music that has been part of the sound track of our lives for over five decades.

Annie Lennox was an absolute favourite when our kids were growing up, and I still listen to her powerfully soulful songs. Then KT Tunstall burst on the scene in the new millenium when our kids had all left home. I’ll never forget the electric performance on Jools Holland in 2004 that launched her career. I used to play her first album all the time and it always made me dance! Not long after that I discovered Karine Polwart and Paulo Nutini and loved the poetry of their lyrics as much as their inspiring music.

Having said all that, I was a total head-banging Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and Rolling Stones fan as a teenager, too, and I still love their music!

But I’ll never forget the first time I heard Rachel Sermanni sing. It was at a Battle of the Bands event in Aviemore and I think she was about twelve years old. I was bowled over by her ethereal voice, her dreamy, wacky lyrics, her quirky stage presence. I had a feeling then and there that she could make it as a singer if she set her mind to it. And she certainly has! So, I think I’ll choose her as my favourite.

What’s your favourite bookshop?

There are so many great bookshops in Scotland it’s impossible to pick one. As a child at school in Oxford I used to love going to Blackwells, wandering among all the books and getting lost in the warren of rooms of the old building. So,when I discovered there was a Blackwells in Edinburgh I was immediately drawn to it and I often go there for a browse or to enjoy author events.

But I also really love small and beautifully curated bookshops like Night Owl in East Linton and The Reading Room in Melrose. Then there are bookshops with stunning cakes, foremost among them the marvellous Reading Lasses in Wigtown where the cakes are heavenly and all the books are written by women.

Bookshops provide so much more than books and coffee though, so many independent bookshops are central to the wellbeing of small communities, providing a warm welcome and a listening ear, personalised recommendations of books, all sorts of social events and workshops and just bringing people together in a great environment around the love of books.

Top of the list I think has to be the amazing Golden Hare Bookshop in Stockbridge. Not only did they take a risk on me as a new author and host the launch of my first novel, but they’re also about to host the Edinburgh launch of my second!

And what section do you head for first?

Historical fiction. Partly to see who among my many talented writer friends has a book there, but also in search of new and inspiring treasures to dip into or to have a wee read of something I’ve been thinking of buying. I do read some contemporary fiction, and occasionally a non-fiction book, but historical fiction based on true events has become my favourite genre in the past few years, which is probably why I write it.

What is your favourite book?

That’s another impossible question!

I’ve read Wild Swans by Jung Chang three times over several decades and been blown away by it every time, so I think I’m going to choose that. ​​​​​Other booksI’ve read more than once and really love are The Physic Garden by Catherine Czerawska, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, The Secret Life of Bees by Alicia Keays – I could go on.

What book do you wish you’d written?

Do I wish I’d written Hamnet? Probably not, as I find the thought of all the excitement Maggie O’Farrell has experienced recently rather terrifying! Good for her, though, what an incredible achievement!

A couple of years ago I read a book called The Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn. Not only did I love it, I thought it was perfect. How wonderful to be able to write like that.

What are you reading right now?

I’m catching up with myself a bit because I’ve finally started reading Philip Paris’s The Last Witch of Scotland which was Waterstones book of the year in 2024. I was prompted to buy it because the wonderful author Shona MacLean (The Cromarty Library Circle) has kindly given me a cover quote for my second novel. In it she says ‘Perfect for fans of Philip Paris.’ High praise indeed. So I bought it recently at an author event where I introduced myself to Philip, told him what Shona had said and gave him a copy of my book The Real Mackay for good measure.

What was the best book you read last year?

How on earth to choose?

I read some brilliant historical fiction last year. One of the best books was Dance of The World by Anna Holmes.Then there were The Orchid Hunter’s Daughter by Jane Anderson, The Cromarty Library Circle by Shona MacLean, The Show Woman by Emma Cowing, Remember the Rowan by Kirsten MacQuarrie, The Absent Heart by Ali Bacon and The Wise Witch of Orkney, Anna Caig’s debut novel.

All these authors have such an authenticity in their world-building as well creating marvellous characters and telling really riveting stories.

However, I’m going to choose a book that not many people have heard about as my best: The Watchmaker’s Wife by Janis Mackay. This, too, is incredibly authentic with powerfully drawn characters and a story that kept me hooked until the final sentence. Janis is an Edinburgh based story-teller, drama teacher, writing mentor, childrens’ author and more. She published her first adult novel last year, On a Northern Shore, but when I met her and discovered that she’d previously self-published a novel about her extraordinary grandmother I bought it at once and was really moved by it. I hope she republishes it to a wider market soon, it really is a treasure!

What pudding / dessert on the menu can you never say no to?

Pannacotta always makes me happy because it reminds me of a crazy dinner party in Italy at two in the morning with a load of filmmakers after we’d all had our short films screened and done our Q and As. We were at the Slow Food Film Festival with our partners, the food was delicious and on the house and we were all buzzing! One of the filmmakers, a Swedish girl called Katerina, had made a short documentary about people pushing cream pies into the faces of politicians and billionaires who needed shaming, as a form of political protest. She’d got some great footage! When the pannacotta was served my husband couldn’t resist walking nonchalantly down the long table with his pudding behind his back, then standing behind Katerina, holding the pudding up, and asking everyone with his cheeky grin and raised eyebrows if he should ‘pie’ her! She looked a bit confused when everyone started cheering him on, then she turned round and came within an inch of the pannacotta – but he couldn’t quite bring himself to do it, it was too delicious to waste!

What’s your comfort tv series or film?

Without a doubt, if in need of comfort tv, I always say – ‘let’s have an ASTRID!’ I really enjoy the English version of this series called Patience, too, but there’s something about the French series, the rhythm of the story-telling, half-understanding the French and glancing at subtitles, I find it strangely soothing. Also, it’s about seeing patterns in confusing circumstances, solving puzzles, understanding what is happening by thinking outside the box, all of which I try to do when I’m writing my novels about true events. I have an autistic granddaughter who is gorgeous and high-functioning and not like Astrid at all, but over the years she’s had her moments and I’ve learnt so much through trying to see the world through her eyes.

Sadly, we’ve watched all six series now though, so it’s back to The Repair Shop for that comfort fix, watching experts fix broken and neglected things with the utmost patience and skill!

What’s your book about?

Here’s the back cover blurb:

Edinburgh 1858. Lottie has lived in a magical world of stories under the shelter of her beloved grandfather, a famous comic actor, for as long as she can remember - but now he’s dead and she’s stranded in a houseful of cousins, her strict Victorian uncle only noticing her when she steps out of line. Using her imagination, she begins to navigate the real world on her own terms, lurching from one idea to the next, taking risks and keeping secrets, determined no one will stop her pursuing her theatrical dreams. Eloping with an aspiring actor at seventeen, Lottie realises too late she has handed control of her life to her charming unpredictable husband who quickly discards the plans they made together and forms a very different kind of travelling theatre company. A game of wits ensues, each vying for control in a world of comedy, illusions, and sleight of hand as they tour the length and breadth of the country till tragedy strikes and the future is suddenly impossible to imagine.

What inspired you to write it?

When my editor helped me decide where to end my first book, The Real Mackay, I knew she was right in saying I should delete the last few chapters which explored how his family members coped after he’d died. The main voice was ten-year Lottie, his granddaughter, an orphan he was guardian for. I had discovered quite a bit about her life by then, with the help of my extraordinary genealogist relatives, and I really wanted to tell her story. The only way I could persuade myself to cut those chapters off the end of the book was to promise myself I’d write another book all about Lottie – one that stands alone, like she had to do, but that also leans into the first one just as she leant into the memory of her beloved grandfather.

Are you a plotter?

Because I write stories based on real people and true events, the first thing I have to do is gather as much information as I can to try and establish a rough idea of the arc of the story, the main characters and their timelines. During this phase I spend a good deal of time pounding the cycle paths on my daily walks, trying to distil the essence of the main characters and figure out why they did the things they did, what it all means. Then I plunge into writing, take my own advice (see my answer to a question below!) and just get the story out, however stilted and clumsy, so I’ve got something to work with.

I think of the next phase as very much like editing the documentary films I used to make. Having gathered my footage and interviews and put all the good bits into a rough order I used to start watching it through, cutting and adding and crafting as I went, asking myself what I wanted to see or hear next. Sometimes I had to go and get more footage, arrange for some scripted voice-over, or cut out a scene I really loved that wasn’t necessary for the story. This is how I work on my second drafts.

I continuously research as I write, too, and I often discover things that are so unexpected they make me see a whole new pattern and understand a different side to the person I’m writing about that makes me question the motivation I’ve imagined for them and sometimes the whole story itself. So, there’s a lot of re-writing involved, and a lot of letting things go of things that I love but that don’t move the story along. I try to stick to the facts, too, it’s important to me to give the people I’m writing about the respect of not playing about with their lives. Sometimes I have to introduce a fictional side-character, or change the date someone moved house, but other than that I either try to make sense of all the awkward information I find, and if I can’t I just leave it out.

Of course, when I’m ready to send that second draft to a few early readers I brace myself and prepare for anothercomplete rewrite. If something’s not working for them, there’s always a good reason. Then, when I’ve incorporated all the changes I feel are right for the book I send the third version to an editor for a manuscript assessment and prepare myself to re-write at least chunks of it again.

So, I think I’m probably an open-minded plotter who is happy to be a pantser when something surprising but convincing comes along!.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received?

Just get the story out – however messy and imperfect – then your book will exist in the world!

I can’t remember where I first came across this, but it’s great advice, and I’ve passed it on to several other debut writers. It’s so easy to procrastinate or doubt yourself or fiddle with a few paragraphs trying to get them perfect rather than just wading in till you’re out of your depth and the momentum sweeps you into the unknown!

What writing advice do you offer?

Apart from passing on the above, I would say don’t be shy of letting writer friends you trust read your work and give you honest feedback. The same goes for an editor. You will either be assigned one if you’re lucky enough to be signed to a publishing company, or it’s well worth investing in a freelance one if you’re not. It really is essential to be open to people’s response to your work, rather than being defensive - or too shy to share it. Every comment comes with a grain of truth in it, so it’s worth considering everything carefully, but when it comes to whether or not to take advice, always remember it’s your book, not theirs, so go with your instincts and follow your heart.

I know you’ve only just got this one up and running but what are you going to write about next?

My third book is a novella and I’m about to send it off to my editor. Hopefully it’ll be published in the new year in time for a big a bi-centenary it’s linked with. It’s also set in Edinburgh’s theatrical world, this time in the Regency period. I’m super excited about this one, but I can’t say much about it yet, except it might be be adapted into a play, too!  

Yay. Thank you so much for sharing all that, Helen. Can’t wait to read your next book.

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