Scot or Not? Trivia Quiz

Answer:

--- Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832):
Born in Edinburgh, Walter Scott established the historical novel as a literary form. His novels, including 'Ivanhoe', 'Rob Roy' and 'The Heart of Midlothian', drew heavily on Scottish history and landscape. Edinburgh's Waverley Station takes its name from his 'Waverley' novels.
--- Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894):
'Treasure Island', 'Kidnapped' and 'Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde' all came from the same Edinburgh-born writer. Robert spent much of his adult life travelling in search of a climate that would improve his health. He died in Samoa at the age of 44, leaving several works unfinished.
--- Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930):
Sherlock Holmes was modelled in part on Dr Joseph Bell, one of Conan Doyle's professors at the University of Edinburgh, whose powers of observation impressed his students. Arthur was born in Edinburgh's Picardy Place and practised medicine before becoming a full-time writer.
--- J.M. Barrie (1860-1937):
J.M. Barrie was born in Kirriemuir, Angus, and attended school in Dumfries before moving to London. There, he became friends with the five Llewelyn Davies boys, whose games and stories helped inspire 'Peter Pan'. He later became their guardian following the deaths of their parents.
--- John Buchan (1875-1940):
'The Thirty-Nine Steps' helped establish the template for the modern man-on-the-run thriller and influenced spy fiction for decades. John was born in Perth, served as Governor General of Canada from 1935 until his death and was created Baron Tweedsmuir in 1935.
--- Muriel Spark (1918-2006):
'The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie', her best-known novel, was inspired in part by a teacher at James Gillespie's School in Edinburgh. Born in Edinburgh, Muriel converted to Catholicism in 1954, an event she later said transformed her approach to writing fiction.
--- Irvine Welsh (born 1958):
'Trainspotting', published in 1993, was written largely in Scots and Edinburgh vernacular, a deliberate choice to give its characters an authentic voice. The novel was adapted into an acclaimed film directed by Danny Boyle in 1996. He was born in Edinburgh.
--- Ian Rankin (born 1960):
Ian Rankin was born in Cardenden, Fife, and created Inspector Rebus while intending to write what he thought would be a literary novel rather than a conventional crime story. The series now spans more than 20 novels, most of them set in Edinburgh.
--- Josephine Tey (1896-1952):
Josephine Tey was the pen name of Elizabeth MacKintosh, who was born in Inverness. Her novel 'The Daughter of Time', in which Inspector Grant re-examines the reputation of Richard III from a hospital bed, was voted the greatest crime novel ever by the Crime Writers' Association in 1990.
--- Ali Smith (born 1962):
Born in Inverness, Ali Smith studied at the universities of Aberdeen and Cambridge before settling in Cambridge. Her 'Seasonal Quartet (Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer)' was written and published between 2016 and 2020, in response to Brexit and contemporary events as they unfolded.
--- James Kelman (born 1946):
When 'How Late It Was, How Late' won the Booker Prize in 1994, one of the judges famously distanced herself from the panel's choice, going public to denounce the book over its explicit language. James was born in Glasgow and is best known for writing in working-class Glaswegian voices. He has been a major influence on contemporary Scottish literature.
--- William McIlvanney (1936-2015):
William McIlvanney coined the term 'Tartan Noir' to describe Scottish crime fiction with literary ambitions. His detective Jack Laidlaw, introduced in 1977, influenced later fictional detectives, including Ian Rankin's Inspector Rebus. He was born in Kilmarnock.
--- Val McDermid (born 1955):
Val McDermid was born in Kirkcaldy, Fife, and studied at the University of Oxford before becoming a journalist and later a crime novelist. Her character Tony Hill, a criminal psychologist, featured in the television adaptation 'Wire in the Blood', which ran from 2002 to 2008.
--- Alexander McCall Smith (born 1948):
Born in what is now Zimbabwe, Alexander McCall Smith has lived in Edinburgh for many years. He is best known for 'The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency', a series set in Botswana. Before becoming a full-time writer, he was Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh.
--- Douglas Stuart (born 1976):
Douglas Stuart's debut novel, 'Shuggie Bain', won the Booker Prize in 2020 after being rejected by more than 30 publishers. Set in 1980s Glasgow, it draws on his childhood experiences growing up with a mother affected by alcoholism. Although born in Glasgow, he has lived in New York for many years.

The non-Scottish authors are: Thomas Hardy (English), Wilkie Collins (English), Anthony Trollope (English), Elizabeth Gaskell (English), Victoria Holt (English), Oscar Wilde (Irish), Joseph Conrad (Polish), George Eliot (English).