Lorn Macinnes Macintyre

I was born in a house overlooking Loch Etive in Argyll, Scotland, an area associated with the legendary Pictish city of Beregonium, and that of the famous love story of Deirdre and Naoise, fugitives from Ireland, who lived in a bower on Loch Etive side until tricked into returning to Ireland and tragedy. Both my grandparents and an aunt had what is known in the Gaelic language as An Dà Shealladh, the second sight, the ability to see future events which persists in the family to this day. The paranormal has been an abiding interest for most of my life, and I have written about it in poetry, fiction, and fact.

My idyllic childhood was spent at The Square, our home at Dunstaffnage House, Connel, seven miles or so from Taynuilt, under the enduring influence of the brilliant Angus Campbell, the 20th Keeper of Dunstaffnage Castle. My father Angus had been a champion Highland Games athlete, with records to his name, and he trained his four sons as athletes from an early age. I was the pole vaulter.

In 1959 we moved to the Isle of Mull when my father was appointed manager of the Clydesdale Bank in the town of Tobermory. This, like Dunstaffnage, was another enchanting place, and I have written two well received collections of short stories based on my years there.

I was educated at the universities of Stirling and Glasgow, and have a doctorate from Glasgow on Sir Walter Scott and the Highlands. I have been a journalist with a wide interest of subjects, and a senior researcher and scriptwriter for BBC Scotland television. My wife Mary and I have been dedicated dancers, and my short story collection, Miss Esther Scott’s Fancy is based on many types of dancing. We live in St Andrews, where I continue to write and publish poetry, short stories, and novels, and ride and walk horses on the famous sands where scenes for the film Chariots of Fire were shot.

I have always taken the view that creative writing is not primarily about commercial gain, but is about my own development and the psychological and spiritual insights I acquire into myself and the world as I age. My immersion in paranormal studies has left me with no fear of death.