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Michael Pedersen (born 16 June 1984) is a Scottish poet, author and spoken word performer. Alongside his writing, he co-founded the Edinburgh arts collective Neu! Reekie! which existed from 2010 to 2022. He is the current Edinburgh Makar and writer-in-residence at The University of Edinburgh.

Career

Pedersen started writing in Scots for his Portobello, Edinburgh high school magazine. He trained as a solicitor at Durham University and lived in London for several years before returning to Scotland and turning to writing and publishing full-time. Pedersen published two chapbooks before compiling his first full poetry collection, Play with Me, in 2013.

In 2010, Pedersen co-founded with poet Kevin Williamson the Edinburgh collective Neu! Reekie!. Through it they produced some 200 showcases for poetry, music and arts, and published writings and poetry compilations. Pedersen continued to be heavily involved with Neu! Reekie! until its winding down in 2022.

Pedersen won the John Mather Trust Rising Star of Literature grant in 2014 and was awarded the Robert Louis Stevenson fellowship in 2015, which allows for a residency at Hôtel Chevillon International Arts Centre at Grez-sur-Loing, France.

Pedersen had developed a close friendship with musician and illustrator Scott Hutchison. In 2017 he released his second poetry collection, Oyster, accompanied by illustrations from Hutchison. The publication led to joint performances of poetry and music across the UK and in South Africa. 2017 also saw the establishment of the Cold Turkey evenings around the festive season in December, which include performances from Pedersen, Hollie McNish, Withered Hand and special guests. That year's show featured Hutchison.

The pair's performances continued into 2018, but the tour was cut short by Hutchison's death by suicide in May 2018, shortly before the two were due to make an appearance at the Ullapool Book Festival. Pederson, McNish and Withered Hand performed at the 2019 festival as a memorial to Hutchison. Pedersen also performed at the Edinburgh International Book Festival leading a night titled "Good Grief!", where he and other performers discussed grief and healing.

In mid-2018, Pedersen took up a writing residency at the Bill Drummond-owned Curfew Tower in Cushendall, Northern Ireland, where he began working on new material. It ended up the base for his next work, the prose book Boy Friends.

2022 saw the release of Boy Friends, an autobiographical work of prose dealing with male friendships, much of it regarding the kinship with Hutchison and dealing with his loss. The book received wide publicity and acclaim.

In 2023, Pedersen released a new collection of poems, The Cat Prince & Other Poems, some of whom were written during the extensive work on Boy Friends. The poem "The Cat Prince" was shortlisted for the 2023 Forward Prize for Best Single Poem (Performed), and the book won Best Poetry at the Books Are My Bag Readers' Awards, run by the Booksellers Association.

In 2023 Pedersen was also announced as a two-year writer-in-residence at the University of Edinburgh.

In July 2024, Pedersen was announced as the new Edinburgh Makar, taking over the role from Hannah Lavery.

Pedersen is set to release his debut novel, Muckle Flugga, in May 2025.

Personal life

Pedersen grew up in Portobello, Edinburgh and has an older sister. His partner is poet Hollie McNish.

Publications

• Play with Me (poetry, 2013, Polygon)
• Oyster (poetry, 2017, Polygon, with Scott Hutchison)
• Boy Friends (prose, 2022, Faber)
• The Cat Prince & Other Poems (poetry, 2023, Corsair)
• Muckle Flugga (novel, upcoming - 2025, Faber)

References

1. "Prize-winning Scottish poet and author Michael Pedersen is the new Edinburgh Makar". The City of Edinburgh Council. 8 August 2024.
2. ^ "In Conversation with Michael Pedersen". Forward Arts Foundation. 16 July 2024.
3. ^ Rushton, Ryan (1 October 2013). "What's He Playing At? Michael Pedersen Explains Himself". The Skinny.
4. ^ Sawers, Claire (19 July 2022). "Michael Pedersen: 'You can roleplay with grief'". The List.
5. Cruickshank, Gavin (25 August 2015). "Play with Me Review". Dundee University Review of the Arts.
6. Pedersen, Michael (15 August 2023). "Michael Pedersen – How I Did It 'The Cat Prince'". Poetry School.
7. Gaffney, Andy (9 December 2024). "Promenade - Season 3 Episode 2 - Michael" (Podcast). The Shift. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
8. Mulley, Claire (7 August 2017). "Michael Pedersen & Scott Hutchison on Oyster". The Skinny.
9. MacKenzie, Hector (21 March 2019). "Eclectic line-up in store for bookworms as Ullapool festival reveals programme". Ross-Shire Journal.
10. "Michael Pedersen presents Good Grief! - Media - EIBF". Edinburgh International Book Festival. 29 August 2021.
11. Knowles, Madeleine (10 October 2022). "Friendship and Loss: A Conversation with Michael Pederson". nb. Magazine.
12. Inglis, Becca (2 July 2022). "Platonic Ideals: Michael Pedersen On Boy Friends & Missing Scott Hutchison". The Quietus.
13. ^ Perri, Shannon (31 October 2022). "The Rumpus Talks with Michael Pedersen About the Beauty of Male Friendship". The Rumpus.
14. "Boy Friends: An Interview with Michael Pedersen". BooksfromScotland. July 2022.
15. Barekat, Houman (30 June 2022). "Boy Friends by Michael Pedersen review – in the company of men". The Guardian.
16. "NOT GIVEN, BUT GIFTED: 4 poems from The Cat Prince by Michael Pedersen". Glasgow Review of Books. 6 August 2023.
17. Creamer, Ella (30 June 2023). "Forward prizes for poetry add new award for performed poems". The Guardian.
18. Pedersen, Michael (13 December 2024). "Michael Pedersen on a 'dramatic' semester as Edinburgh University's writer in residence". The Scotsman.
19. Ferguson, Brian (31 July 2024). "Michael Pedersen 'elated and electrified' after being lined up as Edinburgh's next poet laureate". The Scotsman.
20. Snow, Maia (23 September 2024). "Faber acquires rights to Edinburgh Makar Michael Pedersen's debut novel". The Bookseller.
21. Biles, Adam (29 February 2024). "On Friendship, with Hollie McNish and Michael Pedersen - Podcasts". Shakespeare & Company Paris.

External links

• Michael Pedersen on Instagram
• Profile page at the University of Edinburgh

• 1984 births
• 21st-century Scottish poets
• 21st-century Scottish writers
• Scottish male poets
• Writers from Edinburgh
• Living people