A FORMER Ilkley Grammar School student turned crime writer returned to her old school to promote her debut novel.

Alison Baillie, born Massie, now lives in Switzerland, but says her years at the school were one of the things that inspired her novel, Sewing The Shadows Together.

She describes how her English teacher, Tony Barringer, encouraged her love of literature and poetry, and one poem she remembers reading when she was thirteen – The Bat by DH Lawrence – is mentioned in the book and a quote from it gave her the title.

The novel opens with a school reunion, which was inspired by an Ilkley Grammar School event organised by her friend, Rowena Harbour, both from the class of 1965.

When Alison attended this, she thought it would be an ideal way for the main characters to meet up again.

Many of Alison's school friends were able to attend her book launch at The Flying Duck last Thursday, together with her inspirational English teacher, Mr Barringer, and several of the Wharfedale Poets.

Another old schoolfriend and member of the poetry group, Fiona Williams, interviewed Alison, and she and Tony both read one of their own poems.

As a former English teacher, Alison is always keen to encourage young writers and returned to the Grammar School to meet head of English, Andy Colman, and his creative writing group. There she met young students and talked about her experience of writing the novel.

Mr Colman was excited to welcome both an ex-student and successful author back to Ilkley Grammar School.

He said: "As Alison and Rowena left, they commented on how intelligent and perceptive the students were in asking their questions.

"Amongst other memories, Alison also reminisced how her older sister had once rescued Alan Titchmarsh from the school swimming pool!"

Sewing The Shadows Together is mainly set in Portobello, the seaside suburb of Edinburgh, where Alison, who had Scottish parents, taught English after attending the University of St Andrews. It is also set in South Africa and the Outer Hebrides, both areas Alison knows well.

The book tells the story of how friends and family of a little girl murdered in 1976 come together and cope with the news the convicted killer was released after new DNA evidence proves he was not the murderer.

Sewing The Shadows Together is published by Troubador and is available from bookshops and as an ebook.

l See pages 26/47 for reviews of the latest Ilkley Literature Festival shows