

Hi, I’m Jeda. I’m a Scottish Jamaican writer and poet based in Scotland.
My work often traverses/reflects the ‘in between’ and explores the intersections of belonging, disability, secrecy and survival.
I write poetry, fiction and occasionally create multidisciplinary work.
I also love arts programming, collaborative projects and helping develop community platforms.
About Jeda | Collaborate |Events |Writing |Books | Subscribe

Jeda Pearl’s debut poetry collection
Time Cleaves Itself invites you into the split and rewoven threads of a disabled Scottish woman of colour’s intersecting, in between worlds as she navigates belonging and claiming space. Landscapes and bodyscapes are brought into focus through lenses of race, illness, disability and womanhood. Here lyrical acts of observation unfold with defiance, tenderness, rhythm and the occasional side-eye. The accordion of time stretches across poems that deliver a sonic meditation on memory, grief, disability, belonging and resilience.
Cover artwork and design by Kezia Lewis.
Published July 2024 by Peepal Tree Press
Inspiration for my work comes from many places…
- The musicality of my family’s shared languages, Scots, Geordie, Jamaican Patois
- Science fiction, the fantastical, surreal, eccentric, weird and unexpected
- Superstitions, folklore and unsettling, twisted fairytales
- Untold and hidden histories
- Highlighting people and stories from underrepresented communities
- Life in all its rough and tough edges, incredible beauty and everything in between
- The wilds of parenthood
- Creativity in all its forms and so many amazing writers and artists…
Read, listen or watch selected readings
Blog posts
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Time Cleaves Itself book events and replays
Various dates – book events | Come and hear about my debut poetry collection, Time Cleaves Itself!
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Time Cleaves Itself Giveaway
Closing 14th July 2025 | Time Cleaves Itself book birthday Giveaway!
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Jeda Pearl at Edinburgh International Book Festival 2025
15 & 17 Aug 2025 | Shani Akilah, Jeda Pearl and Lisa Williams celebrate Andrea Levy’s legacy; plus Disrupting the Narrative at Edinburgh International Book Festival.
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Martine Bewitches Goat-Head Table
New poem exhibited at Paxton House’s Caribbean Connections exhibition.
More blog posts
Bio
Jeda Pearl (she/her) is a Scottish Jamaican author and artist based in Edinburgh, Scotland. In 2024, she was shortlisted for the Royal Society of Literature (RSL) Jerwood Poetry Award, and her short fiction was longlisted by the British Science Fiction Association Awards. In 2022, her poetry was shortlisted for the Sky Arts RSL Award and longlisted for the Women Poets’ Prize. Art installations include Disrupting the Narrative (2024), Windrush Legacy Creative Reflections (2023), and Acts of Observation (2021). Performances include StAnza, Hidden Door, Push the Boat Out, Cymera and Edinburgh International Book Festival. Her poems and short stories are published by Luna Press, New Writing Scotland, Open Book, Not Going Back to Normal, Shoreline of Infinity, Aesthetica, Tapsalteerie, and her debut poetry collection, Time Cleaves Itself, is published by Peepal Tree Press. @JedaPearl jedapearl.com.
Connect on: Ko-Fi | LinkTree | Instagram | Facebook | BlueSky
Contact Jeda for readings, panels, writing workshops, creative collaborations or her writing CV.