“Bit it's what bein a hard man is aw aboot; its a journey, a fucking self destructive quest tae find yir limits, cause they fuckin limits eywis come in the form ay a harder man. A big. strong, stiff hard man whae can dae it for ye, whae can teach ye, show ye whaire ye stand, where yir fuckin parameters ur.”

Scottish novelist, short story writer, screenwriter and filmmaker

Irvine Welsh is a Scottish novelist, short story writer, screenwriter and filmmaker. His work is closely tied to Scotland, where many of his novels and stories are set, and he is known for writing about working-class life. His fiction is marked by blunt, often unsparing portraits of addiction, alienation, limited opportunity and boredom. Those themes recur across his novels and short stories, which focus on the pressures and details of everyday life in working-class Scotland.