Nalini Paul is a writer based in Doune, Scotland.
Hello, and thanks for visiting my site. I hope you enjoy the poems here. Many of what you will read and/or hear have been inspired by Scottish landscapes. I was born in India, grew up in Vancouver, and have been living in Scotland for most of my adult life. As a keen walker and lover of the outdoors, my writing often touches on themes of migration, memory and landscapes. I have collaborated with artists, musicians and dancers and written for stage and film.
My first poetry collection, Skirlags (Red Squirrel Press) was shortlisted for the Callum Macdonald Award in 2010. One of my most memorable and life-changing experiences was spending a year in Orkney, working as the George Mackay Brown Writing Fellow (2009-10). A limited-edition artist book of my poem about the Norse explorer, Hrafn Floki, was purchased by the National Gallery of Modern Art for their Special Books collection. It was thanks to Orkney storyteller, Tom Muir, that this poem came to fruition; based on a story he told me one day in Tankerness.
Since the Orkney days, I have collaborated with artists across a range of art forms (see the Publications and Projects page for details); and continue to maintain strong connections to Orkney. I love living in the countryside--a recent move, from 'The Dear Green Place' (Glasgow's West End); to an even greener place. Already, the writing is flowing again, and I will keep you posted on future projects and publications.
To earn my crust, I lecture at The Glasgow School of Art (Design History and Theory). My research interests include memory, landscapes, language and transformation, which I began exploring while in Orkney.