William McIlvanney: 'I'm a born-again writer'
Three William McIlvanney novels which were credited as marking the start of an era in Scottish crime writing which has been called "tartan noir" are being republished for the first time in two decades.
His contemporary Allan Massie recently described him as "both moralist and artist, and a writer to be cherished".
In an interview on Newsnight Scotland, the Kilmarnock-born author said he was a "notoriously slow writer".
When asked by presenter Glenn Campbell how he felt about his works being reprinted, he said: "It feels terrific, it is like being a born-again writer because all the books were out of print.
"Fortunately, Canongate came along and made me a very decent offer."
29 May 2013