Key points
- First Chinese delegate to take part in Publishing Scotland’s International Fellowship Programme
- Ten foreign publishing professionals attend 19 curated events with Scottish publishers
- Funded by Creative Scotland, the fellowship brings Scottish writing to international readers
Caroline Gao, a director at China’s largest private publishing house, has joined Publishing Scotland’s 2026 International Fellowship Programme – helping to strengthen publishing connections between Scotland and China.
Joining a line-up of eight other editors and one literary scout from around the world, Gao is the first Chinese delegate to join the annual programme.
After graduating in 2011 with an MSc in International Publishing Management from the University of Stirling, Gao started her career in China’s publishing industry as a book editor. In 2013, she transitioned into international copyright trade and is now director of the foreign rights department at Beijing Xiron Culture Group Co.
With over 13 years of experience in publishing, editing and international copyright trade, she now leads the publisher’s acquisition and export of copyrights for markets across Europe and the Americas.
As one of the ten publishing professionals visiting Scotland this month to take part in this year’s programme, Gao and the other fellows are taking part in a total of 19 carefully curated events, including individual meetings with publishers and agents from across a wide spectrum of the industry.
Participating Scottish publishers include well-known names such as Canongate, Birlinn, HarperCollins and Floris, to some of Scotland’s smaller and specialist publishers including Glasgow’s Into Books, Oban’s Tin Shack Press, and recent newcomer to the Scottish scene, Batis.
Fellows will experience first-hand the country’s book culture with author showcases involving 22 of Scotland’s leading and emerging writers hosted in a variety of locations, including Publishing Scotland’s headquarters, the Edinburgh International Book Festival, the National Portrait and Fruitmarket Galleries and Glasgow’s Òran Mór, as well as in private homes. They will also be heading to Oban where Waterstones and Publishing Scotland will host Booker-shortlistee Graeme Macrae Burnet reading and discussing his latest novel Benbecula with journalist Breege Smyth.
This year’s Fellowship, funded by Creative Scotland as part of Publishing Scotland’s Multi-Year Funding agreement, underscores the organisation’s ongoing commitment to forging enduring connections in the publishing industry worldwide and to placing Scotland’s writers on the international stage. These efforts are further supported by a Translation Fund, which has contributed the translation 254 translations of Scottish work since 2015, and an Author International Travel Fund, which supports writers with the cost of travelling to promotional events and festivals where their work reaches international audiences.