I'm still a bit grouchy after missing the Glasgow: New Writing event this morning due to the state of the tramworks on Leith Walk.  But the atmosphere in the Peppers Theatre cheers me up enormously, as a selection of writers from the University of Edinburgh's MA and PhD creative writing programs take the stage.

The authors have worked with illustrators from the Edinburgh College of Art to create DUO, a collaborative approach to flash fiction and poetry.

Jo Swingler reads We Howl, which lends itself beautifully to performance and is represented with some success by Genevieve Ryan's illustration. Struan Robertson's languid, descriptive poem It's So Damn Hot In Here works well with Sophie Newell's sparse illustration. Shahnaaz Bakshi's ironic poem on courtship The Course of True Love paired with Lindsay McBirnes illustration contains a clever mix of humour and severity, while Kat Eckert's flash fiction Princess Group Therapy is paired with Trine Mangernes's Quentin Bake-like illustrations. Aiko Harman is a natural, captivating performer with her urban poem Pigeons, paired with Lucy Roscoe's imprints. Paul Thomas presents an excellent use of non-standard language in his poem Interstellar Service, inspired by Mark Noble's illustration.

Karen Dawson reads her poem The Leaving, inspired by Fiona Purves illustration of a boat entering a city river. Alison Ballatyne reads her stunning, beautifully constructed Scots language poem Queen Mary's Clarsach, paired with an illustration by Chien Min Chan, with whom she interestingly had no common language. Sarah Gledhill reads her flash fiction Luke, based on a vivid character from her novel, with motifs from Elizabeth Walker, and David Wright reads his poem Hot Spring with an image from Andrew Denholm. Clare Askew reads her dark, imaginative poem Built In, written while she lived in a Grassmarket flat surrounded by scaffolding, paired with Elizabeth Stewart's illustration. Stephanie Kuypers reads her poem Expire, inspired by Jonathan Hughes' wordless comic strip.

Ending the session, Tracey Emerson reads from her PhD novel The End of the Habitable World, the story of the beginning of the relationship of two main characters.

Although I would have liked to hear much more about the collaborative aspect of the DUO project, the event showcases some talented writers and is a fast-moving and exciting example of both the talent in our city and the changing approach to the craft of writing.