As supervisors, Scott Hames and Kathleen Jamie guided this book through funding, the academy, and into the world. As editors, James Harding guided the plot, Alison Miller guided the language, and Don Paterson guided the whole to publication. Salma Begum, Nicholas Blake, Laura Carr, Alice Dewing, Kieran Sangha and the whole team at Picador helped make this book much more than I’d imagined.

Gill Smee and Chris Giles gave unwavering support from the start. Conversations with Mary Blance, Leslie Burgher, Davy Cooper, Karen Esson, Bruce Eunson, Simon Hall, Donna Heddle, Laureen Johnson, Ragnhild Ljosland, Morag McInnes, Duncan McLean, Alison Miller, Nancy Scott and Roseanne Watt shaped my approach to language. Freddie Alexander, Ricky Brown, Dave Coates, Alec Finlay, Cat Fitzpatrick, Alex Fleetwood, James Harding, Elenor Holme, Robert Kiely, Evan Matyas, Karin Mckendrick, Jack McLachlan, Linden K McMahon, Christina Neuwirth, Nat Raha, Charlie Roy, Jen Stout and Alice Tarbuck read, listened, supported, encouraged and gave good notes.

Thank you to all of these people and the many more who shaped this book. And thank you again.

This beuk is dediecatid tae Darcy Leigh, freend an collaborator, pairtner an first raeder, comrade an fellow wirker, strength an joy, inspiraetion an critic, wi gratitude an love ithoot end.

About the Author

HARRY JOSEPHINE GILES is a writer and performer from Orkney, living in Edinburgh. Their collection Tonguit was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection, and The Games for the Edwin Morgan Poetry Award and Saltire Prize for Best Collection. Working across poetry, theatre and games, they were the 2009 BBC Scotland slam champion, and have performed globally from New York’s Bowery Poetry to Romania’s Teszt and the New Zealand Writers Festival.

By the Same Author

Also by Harry Josephine Giles

Tonguit

The Games

Copyright

First published in the UK 2021 by Picador

This electronic edition published 2021 by Picador

an imprint of Pan Macmillan

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EU representative: Macmillan Publishers Ireland Ltd, 1st Floor

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Associated companies throughout the world

ISBN 978-1-5290-6661-6

Copyright © Harry Josephine Giles 2021

Cover Images © Shutterstock

The right of Harry Josephine Giles to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Pan Macmillan does not have any control over, or any responsibility for, any author or third-party websites referred to in or on this book.

You may not copy, store, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.