Donald S Murray is from Ness in the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. A former teacher now living in Shetland, his factual books include ‘The Guga Hunters’ (Birlinn), ‘Herring Tales’ and ‘The Dark Stuff’ (Bloomsbury). The latter two were both chosen as among The Guardian Nature Books of the Year. His first short story collection ‘Special Deliverance’ was chosen a number of years ago as among the contenders for the Saltire Society First Books of the Year Award.

Other works include the play, ‘Sequamur’ – based on the history of the Nicolson Institute in Stornoway which has now been adopted as a school text for both Scottish Higher and National 5 courses. It was also chosen as the best Gaelic production of the year, being performed not only throughout Scotland but in London, Belfast and Belgium.

His first novel ‘As the Women Lay Dreaming’ won the Paul Torday Award and was shortlisted for a number of other national prizes including the Best First Novel Award from the Society of Authors. It also featured in BBC Radio 4’s programme where he was interviewed by Mariella Frostrup.

He was selected a number of years ago as one of six writers to represent Scotland at the International Book Festival in Pisa, Italy and has taken part in various book festivals and other events in places such as Iceland, Toronto, Detroit, Dublin, Toronto, Detroit, Chicago and the Faroe Islands. He has also featured on several BBC TV Nature programmes over the years.

He has been awarded both the Robert Louis Stevenson and Jessie Kesson Fellowships. His poetry has also received several awards, including the Callum MacDonald Award from the Saltire Society which chose his collection ‘Achanalt’ as the best pamphlet of the year.. His latest novel ‘The Salt and the Flame’ was linked to various musical events, including a concert that occurred in this year’s Celtic Connections in Glasgow. Like both his other novels, ‘As the Women Lay Dreaming’ and ‘In a Veil of Mist’, it also generated a TV programme on BBC Alba and was chosen as a Times Historical Book of the Month.

Several of his poems have also been chosen as among the Best Poems of the Year by the Scottish Poetry Library. They have also been selected by DePaul University in Chicago as among the best Scottish poems.

He was also a teacher of English for over thirty years.