What’s a grown man to do, living in the shadow of one of the nation’s most famous entertainers? Run away from home, of course.
Stefan Mackechnie is the son of Delonia Mackechnie, famous folk-singer and variety show host. When Stefan writes a letter out of frustration to his dead father, he receives an unexpected reply, a message that leads him on a journey across the ocean to a timeless city where he’ll face love, oblivion, and eternity.
Stefan Mackechnie is the son of Delonia Mackechnie, famous folk-singer and variety show host. When Stefan writes a letter out of frustration to his dead father, he receives an unexpected reply, a message that leads him on a journey across the ocean to a timeless city where he’ll face love, oblivion, and eternity.
• • • •
I moved to Edinburgh, Scotland in 2001. There’s something magical about this city, something that’s inspired generations of writers to do their work here. My awe at the city moved me to write my own love-poem to the place.
But how do you write dialogue for people who use unfamiliar words for every little thing? And how do you chronicle a place when every aspect of its history has been studied in intricate detail?I chose to write a story from an outsider’s perspective, and to dip my toes into a new genre: magical realism.
Writing about a fluid, imaginary version of Edinburgh allowed me to pay tribute to this place I’d fallen in love with, and also to take issue with the development I’d seen happening here — its unique details sold off in exchange for the same concrete, glass, and steel you can find anywhere.
Underlying the story is the question of how place informs our sense of ourselves. But hopefully that’s well in the background, behind a modern fairy-tale about a man leaving what he knows, discovering a new place, and falling in love.
But how do you write dialogue for people who use unfamiliar words for every little thing? And how do you chronicle a place when every aspect of its history has been studied in intricate detail?I chose to write a story from an outsider’s perspective, and to dip my toes into a new genre: magical realism.
Writing about a fluid, imaginary version of Edinburgh allowed me to pay tribute to this place I’d fallen in love with, and also to take issue with the development I’d seen happening here — its unique details sold off in exchange for the same concrete, glass, and steel you can find anywhere.
Underlying the story is the question of how place informs our sense of ourselves. But hopefully that’s well in the background, behind a modern fairy-tale about a man leaving what he knows, discovering a new place, and falling in love.
