Day four of our Book Week Scotland series brings a powerful contribution from Emma Grae, author of The Moggie Thit Meowed Too Much, as she advocates for Scots language preservation through children's literature.
It’s Buik Week Scotland. Oan the wan haun, ah’m awfae chuffed thit Scots hus legal recognition fur the first time in history, but oan the ither, ah’m feart. It’s been said that wur enterin a post-literate society and ah couldnae agree mair. Literacy rates roond the wurld are droppin noo that folk are replacin buiks wi technology. There’s nae need tae use yer imagination oan TikTok. As fur stories? AI kin scrive them fur ye. But it wasnae always this way.
Ah’ve fallen victim tae spendin too much time oanline an aw. The nicht, ah hud tae gie masel an honest talkin tae aboot ma relationship wi technology and the impact it’s huvin oan ma literacy. Truth be telt, it aften staps me fae scrivin, despite the fact ah ainlie really feel at peace when ah’m creatin. Ah reckon that’s because ah turn ma devices oan flicht mode when ah settle doon tae scrive. Ah’ve done this fur ower a decade noo. Ah aften scrive by haun an aw. Patti Smith said there’s a real relationship between the brain and the pen and she’s richt. But when ah switch the internet oan, ah’m constantly upsettin masel and fallin intae accidental doomscrollin spirals. Thit doesnae happen wi buiks, regardless o wether yer scrivin or readin them.
Wan o ma tasks this Buik Week Scotland is no jist launchin the Moggie wi bairns, but seriously addressin ma relationship wi technology by acquirin an auld brick phone and iPod. Ah want tae scrive as much as ah kin. Ma whole ability tae tell stories changed fur the better wance ah stairted scrivin in Scots. An expert telt me that there’s likely ainlie a few hunner folk regularly scrivin in Scots. But wi the Scottish Languages Act, the stage is set fur that tae change and ah want tae help make it happen. And if ah’m gonnae make the maist o whitever ability ah’ve gat, ah need tae limit ma screen time wi an auld-fashioned phone, as much as ah acknowledge thit there is a place fur a limited amoont o screen time in the twinty-twinties.
Wur ainlie really gonnae preserve minority languages if weans are exposed tae them fae the get-go and adults huv plenty o material tae choose from an aw. Ah’d hate tae be a wean, in particular, these days though. But mibbie, jist mibbie, we kin teach weans thit there’s mair tae life than screens and jist the English language through Scots buiks. They are, efter aw, the best way o connectin the paist and the present.
Aw ma buiks fur bairns are loosely based roond experiences fae ma ain childhood. Ah feel masel langin fur the likes o Blockbuster and carefully selectin a DVD fur the weekend the mair tech takes a bigger role in wur lives. But mibbie it’s that guan back in time thit will save ma scrivin — and dae the same fur Scots-speakin weans who never gat the chance tae experience a wurld wioot screens and scrollin.
