A Scots novelist has seen sales for her upcoming book rocket since she received surprise high praise from First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.
It’s not every day you get commended for doing your job well by the most powerful woman in the country.
But for Kirstin Innes, that’s exactly what happened last night, when the FM hailed her latest offering “a triumph” in a glowing review on Twitter.
The book loving politician is well known for her passion for all things literary and has regularly updated followers with her latest reads as she’s attempted to de-stress during the coronavirus pandemic.
So it comes as no shock to most to see her giving a shout out to one of Scotland’s hottest writing talents ahead of the release of new book, Scabby Queen.
Kirstin, 40, admitted she’s still coming back down to earth after receiving the star approval.
And she is getting used to a bit more fame for herself on the back of the shout-out, which was “an absolute dream”.
She told the Daily Record: “I got an excited text from a pal telling me to check Nicola Sturgeon’s Twitter feed, and thought it might be some good news about lockdown relaxing, or Covid numbers going down – but no! Honestly, I really can’t quite believe it.
“She’s someone I respect a lot, so to have that sort of acknowledgement from her is an absolute dream.
“The impact in the last few hours has been amazing – my book has gone up from 15,000 to 200 in the Amazon sales charts, and I’ve picked up over a thousand new followers on Twitter since 5pm yesterday!”
Award-winning writer Kirsten is no stranger to success, with her debut title Fishnet scooping The Guardian’s prestigious Not The Booker prize back in 2015.
A spoken word artist and journalist, Kirstin’s next novel will be released to the general public next week, covering issues from politics and feminism to celebrity culture.
And thanks to it’s most recent high profile review, it is already looking set to cause a storm.
(Image: Becky Duncan)
After finishing up with her own copy, the FM said: “This by Kirstin Innes is brilliant. A mix of Scottish politics (poll tax to indyref), music industry/celeb culture, feminism & challenges women face. Exquisite writing & an authentic central character you really care about. Gripping & moving. A literary triumph.”
As well as attracting a raft of new Twitter followers on the back of her new superfan, Kirstin said she also found herself in the midst of a few online debates as the FM’s tweet went viral.
But as some cynics questioned how the hard-working SNP leader manages to find any hours in the day for her own downtime, Kirstin had a simple reply.
She added: “It’s also a bit of an honour to know that my book has been her downtime reading for the past couple of weeks at this particular time.
“I’ve been copied in to a lot of tweets since asking how she has the time to read right now, but personally I’d be more concerned if someone in her position wasn’t taking a bit of time out to relax and look after herself even in a small way.
“I also think it’s a really good sign when political leaders are big readers. I get the impression Donald Trump’s not a big book fan!”
Scabby Queen is available for pre-order at Waterstones, Foyles and Amazon now.
Find out more about Kirstin Innes here.
