5 Questions with Lindsey McIntosh

1. Tell us about your connection to Wigtown and the Book Festival.

I just arrived in Wigtown yesterday so my connection to the place itself only really goes back to the past 24 hours. I’ve just started an internship here as the marketing assistant for the Book Festival, so I’m really looking forward to see the spirit of the town shine once the festival begins.

2. What made you apply for an internship?

I’ve always had a passion for literature and the arts, so applying for an internship at an event which incorporated both of those things seemed only natural. I also thought a marketing internship would be useful for me later in my career and this festival seems like a brilliant place to make new contacts with powerful figures in creative and literary industries.

3. What are you looking forward to most during the festival?

This year’s festival has a great line-up with a lot of varied, interesting events so I’m really looking forward to a lot of things. I studied the history of the Middle East as my specialist subject at university, so Frank Gardner's 'Blood & Sand' is an event of particular interest to me - I imagine some of the stories he has are fascinating. In relation to that, the 'Understanding Isis' discussion on the same weekend also captures my interest. I would really like to attend Jamie Byng's '21 Years at Canongate' too as I have an interest in publishing and think hearing some of his stories would be really informative as well as interesting. I’ve never really been to a festival before so I’m looking forward to the general buzz and atmosphere surrounding the events. Oh, and I hear there’s going to be a ceilidh!

4. Who would be your dream author to appear at the Festival?

A lot of my favourite authors are deceased, so for them to suddenly enter the realm of the living again might cause upset and distress which could potentially dampen the spritely festival atmosphere. I wouldn’t want that. Living – I would love to see Irvine Welsh as I grew up reading many of his novels.

5. What's your first impression of Wigtown?

My first impression arriving in Wigtown was that it must be harbouring a sinister secret. Places this nice don’t exist without there being a catch of some sort. The bookshops here are amazing too; I was taken on a tour of the town this morning and was left in awe of all the reading material available. One of the bookshops even has a cat called Captain who roams freely about the shop! A word of warning though, if you do visit Wigtown: bring a Kindle at your own peril.