Thank you so much Drew for writting such a kind and beautiful review of the talk I did for the Highland Lit – I was so delighted to be invited to the event.
Morven-May Macallum and Finding Joy at the HighlandLit
The HighlandLit was delighted to welcome Morven-May MacCallum to our monthly author event at the Glen Mhor Hotel the evening of July 19, 2017.
Morven-May spoke to a packed room about her recently published novel Finding Joy, in which she describes the experiences of a young woman who has Lyme disease. Charting the background to writing Finding Joy, Morven-May enthralled the audience with insights of how she drew upon her own experience of the disease, vividly detailing its debilitating effects and her long struggle to get the correct diagnosis and appropriate treatment. It is, she told us, a vicious and ‘intelligent’ disease which plays to a given individual’s physical area of particular weaknesses or vulnerability. Thus, Morven-May is determined to do everything she can to raise awareness of the seemingly innocuous yet pesky tick, the devastation it causes, the need for far greater education as to its dangers and the need for significant research funding going forward.
Essentially, Morven-May emphasised how she has always written; it is, she told us, ‘something she has to do’. Hence, it was natural that – when still too weak to leave the house – she began communicating the facts about Lyme disease by writing her novel.
Morven-May comes across as a quietly confident, courageous and resilient young woman, and it was our privilege to meet her last night and hear her captivating story. Always the campaigner, taking every opportunity to speak out about Lyme disease, Morven-May answered questions from the floor with thoughtfulness and patience, and stayed behind afterward to sign copies of Finding Joy and engage further with folks.
Also present at the Glen Mhor lending his support was Morven-May’s grandfather, the redoubtable George W. Macpherson, author and one of the last Seannachies in Scotland. Clearly then, storytelling and the wise wielding of words runs in the family. And although Morven-May – by her own admission – has been busily devoting so much of her time and energy recently spreading the word about Lyme to devote much time to writing, she is she assures us brimming with ideas for future literary pursuits. In which case, HighlandLit would have no hesitation in welcoming Morven-May on a return visit. Watch this space!
Drew Hillier HighlandLIT Programme & Publicity Coordinator
