Paterson, Don

(1963- )

   Scottish poet and musician, born in Dundee, who during the 1980s toured widely with his music. He has written incidental music for his plays for radio and theatre, and his compositions have been recorded and performed by the Scottish classical guitarist Allan Neave. He lived in London from 1984 to 1989, then moved to Brighton, Sussex, and lived there from 1989 to 1993 before becoming writer in residence at Dundee University. From 1995 to the present he has been poetry editor at Picador, a division of the Macmillan publishing company. He lives in Kirriemuir, on the East Coast of Scotland. He has won ten major literary awards. His poetry publications: Nil Nil, 1993. God's Gift to Women, 1997. Sonnets: From Shakespeare to Heaney, 1999 (editor). Last Words: New Poetry for the New Century, 1999 (co-editor with Jo Shapcott). The Eyes, 1999. Robert Burns: Poems Selected by Don Paterson, 2001 (editor). Landing Light, 2003. All the Poems You Need to Say Goodbye, 2004 (editor). Some of his poems: "A Private Bottling," "Bedfellows," "Heliographer," "The Chartres of Gowrie," "The Ferryman's Arms," "Wind-Tunnel."

   Sources: Biography of Don Paterson (http://www.standrews.ac.uk/Paterson, Donwww_se/paterson/home.html). British Council Arts (http://www.contemporarywriters.com). Don Paterson's Web Site (http://www.donpaterson.com/). The Bloodaxe Book of 20th Century Poetry, from Britain and Ireland. Edna Longley, ed. Bloodaxe Books, 2000. The New Penguin Book of Scottish Verse. Robert Crawford and Mick Imlah, ed. Penguin Books, 2000. The Oxford Companion to English Literature. 6th edition. Margaret Drabble, ed. Oxford University Press, 2000.