This chapter explores the role played by writers of colour on the Scottish literary scene during the first two decades of the twentyfirst century, as well as their potential for changing conceptions of Scottish literature in the decades to come. As has also been pointed out by an important new organisation, the Scottish BAME Writers Network (SBWN, founded 2018), so far only a limited range of Scottish or Scottish-based writers of colour has been known to a wider audience (Guyan 2020: 2f., 15f., 18f., 28, 2021: 3, 17, 21, 28). The much smaller academic segment of the audience presents a similar picture. Most secondary sources that address Scottish(- based) writers of colour at all remain firmly focused on three wellknown figures: Jackie Kay, Leila Aboulela and Suhayl Saadi. While this attention is undoubtedly well-deserved, it sometimes reduces them to token figures that affirm a progressively inclusive image of Scottish culture while, at the same time, the rest of the canon is kept ‘reassuringly’ white. The present contribution aims to go beyond these three big names by providing a more general overview that also pays attention to other writers. It also discusses important elements of the literary infrastructure that help to shape the field, focus attention and facilitate the emergence of new writers. These elements include theatre companies, writers’ groups, bursaries, events and dedicated anthologies. This overview will be supplemented by short case studies of four individual authors – Bashabi Fraser, Tendai Huchu, Raman Mundair and Chin Li – who have so far not received as much attention as the three authors mentioned above. This different sample is intended to encourage further exploration of the full diversity of Scottish literature today. The issues pertaining to this context can also be linked to wider debates on categories of Scottishness, inclusivity and canon (re)formation, burdens of representation, and the problems of ethnic, racial and national ascriptions.

Conceptual and Terminological Issues

For readers who are relatively new to this field, it might be useful to start with a brief review of assumptions and labels that often shape the ways in which writers of colour are discussed (or dismissed).