BOOK Week Scotland begins tomorrow, and there is no better time than our national celebration of reading and writing to take a literary tour of Scotland. Clear your diary and dive into five days of bookish heaven, exploring some of the many literary delights that Scotland has to offer.

Day 1: Edinburgh

We begin our journey at the top of Arthur's Seat, as did Emma and Dexter in David Nicholls' One Day, but with just five days ahead of us instead of 20 years. From here you not only have a magnificent view of our first literary destination but you have already, according to Robert Louis Stevenson, climbed "a mountain in virtue of its bold design".

After descending Arthur's Seat, walk with Diana Gabaldon's Outlander couple Claire and Jamie from the Palace of Holyroodhouse, where they met Bonnie Prince Charlie, along through the Old Town where they are reunited after 20 years apart. If Outlander fever has passed you by, pop into the Canongate Kirkyard and look for the grave of poet Robert Fergusson, whom Robert Burns called "my elder brother in the muse". Time for some refreshment.

It would be very easy to spend the whole five days among the eating and drinking establishments frequented by some of Scotland's most famous authors, ably accompanied by the Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour app, but there are definitely some highlights which shouldn't be missed.

Spoon Café Bistro on Nicolson Street, formerly Nicholson's Café, is famous for being one of two places where JK Rowling penned the early adventures of a certain boy wizard. The Elephant House is a short walk away and similarly famous as a place of inspiration for the Harry Potter novels, with many of the early drafts penned in the back room overlooking Edinburgh Castle. Ian Rankin, author of the bestselling Rebus novels, and Alexander McCall-Smith, author of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, have also been frequent visitors.

After a reviving cup of tea and a scone, make your way to Greyfriars Kirkyard, tucked behind Candlemaker Row, which has had a profound influence on Edinburgh literature. Pay your respects at the grave of Tom Riddle, the alleged inspiration for Rowling's arch villain Voldemort, and visit the gravestone of poet William McGonagall, said to have provided inspiration for Rowling's Professor McGonagall, the head of Gryffindor. Find the statue of loyal Bobby, a stray dog immortalised in Eleanor Atkinson's book, Greyfriars Bobby, and give him a pat (though not on his nose!) while straining to catch a glimpse of next door's George Heriot's School, said to be the inspiration for Hogwarts itself.

Admission to the nearby Writers Museum at the Lawnmarket is free if you'd like to see Robert Burns's writing desk, Sir Walter Scott's rocking horse and Robert Louis Stevenson's riding boots among other literary treasures. Watch your feet in neighbouring Makars' Court where the flagstones bear quotes from John Barbour to Nan Shepherd and measure your hands against Rankin and Rowling's in the quadrangle of City Chambers. Then pop in to Anchor Close where the first printing of the Encyclopaedia Britannica took place, and take in the statue near St Giles's Cathedral of economist and Wealth Of Nations author, Adam Smith. If you're feeling brave, nearby Fleshmarket Close is the inspiration and setting for Ian Rankin's crime novel of the same name.

To round off a busy bookish day, head to The Conan Doyle Pub near Picardy Place, where Arthur Conan Doyle was born and where a statue of his most famous creation, Sherlock Holmes, stands with deerstalker and pipe. For a post-dinner drink in a cosy setting, it's got to be The Oxford Bar, frequented by Ian Rankin and his fictional detective, DI John Rebus.

Day 2: Edinburgh to Abbotsford

There's just time to take in a few more Edinburgh sights before setting off for our next destination. Start the morning with another climb: this time up the gothic Scott Monument, the largest writer's monument in the world, which features so atmospherically in the 2012 film version of David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas.

Moving on north to Queen Street, the Scottish National Portrait Gallery displays a collection of literary faces from JM Barrie to Ian Rankin, commissioned and gifted by Alexander McCall Smith. The gallery also features in Smith's 44 Scotland Street and The Sunday Philosophy Club series.

Scotland Street itself is further north again, although sadly there is no number 44. Fans can instead hail a cab to Bruntsfield, birthplace of Muriel Spark, and go on from there to nearby Morningside and the Canny Man's pub, which also features in Smith's 44 Scotland Street.

After lunch it's time to make our way to the Scottish Borders and Abbotsford, the home of Sir Walter Scott. If travelling by train, make sure to leave from Waverley Railway Station, where Scott's most famous quotes are written across the floor, glass panes and entrance of the station, putting you in the right frame of mind for the next leg of the tour.

Day 3: Abbotsford to Ayrshire/Dumfries

Abbotsford House on the banks of the River Tweed is full of Sir Walter Scott's fascinating private collections and objects of inspiration. Building began at the height of his success and somehow continued through the debt-ridden years before his death. Today, quirky audio guides allow visitors to experience this architectural magnum opus through Scott's own eyes.

The next stop on the tour is Selkirk, birthplace of writer, poet and folklorist, Andrew Lang, perhaps best known today for his coloured fairy tale books which began in 1889 with the Blue Fairy Book and finished in 1910 with the colour lilac and covered over 400 stories from different cultures and countries. You can rest and replenish at Tibbie Shiels Inn by St Mary's Loch, as did 18th-century poet, James Hogg. Then onwards, to Dumfries.

Day 4: Ayrshire/Dumfries to Wigtown

Wake and explore Ellisland Farm where poet Robert Burns spent three productive years farming his imagination, if not the land. Tam O' Shanter is said to have been written in one sitting after inspiration struck Burns during a walk along the River Nith. On one side of the river is the Robert Burns Centre and on the other Robert Burns House where he spent the last of his short years. His mausoleum can be found in St Michael's Churchyard.

At this point those with a car might want to clear the boot and those without will need extra luggage for our next stop. Though Edinburgh is Scotland's City of Literature, Wigtown is its National Book Town.

Those determined to abstain from book buying should head south-west to resist temptation at the ruins of Kirkmaiden Church whose picturesque graveyard overlooks Monreith Bay and the beach where Ring of Bright Water author, Gavin Maxwell, exercised its subject. Mijbil the otter is immortalised not only in the book where Maxwell describes bringing him from Iraq to Scotland, but as a bronze statue near the entrance to St Medan Golf Club. Further up the coast is the village of Elrig as described in Maxwell's autobiography, The House Of Elrig.

Those preferring to stay closer to Wigtown can venture west instead to North Clutag Farm and experience the rural scenery extolled in nature writer, John McNeillie's (aka Ian Niall), autobiography, A Galloway Childhood. Otherwise a simple drink in the Wigtown Ploughman on the town's main square means the travel-weary can still claim a literary association since the pub was named after McNeillie's novel of the same name. Too tenuous? We won't tell!

Day 5: Wigtown to Alloway

We start our final day with anyone looking to extend the itinerary advised to consider a visit to the Rhinns of Galloway peninsula which was the setting for James Barke's ambitious novel, Land Of The Leal. For everyone else, it's on to Alloway.

We revisit Robert Burns in his birthplace where he lived in a cottage built by his father. That cottage is now part of the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, which also encompasses the Burns Monument and Alloway Auld Kirk, "Where ghosts and owls nightly cry." It is here that Tam O' Shanter watches the dancing of witches and warlords who later give chase, and where his father and sister are buried.

The 15th-century cobblestone Brig o' Doon was the means of Tam's escape on horseback from his pursuers, who could not cross the water. See how well it compares to the image on the Scottish £5 note then end the day among the manuscripts, portraits and contemporary artworks inspired by Burns in the museum proper.

Thus ends our own mad gallop, tail intact unlike Tam's poor horse. We bid Burns farewell until Hogmanay when his Auld Lang Syne will hopefully resonate a little more deeply in light of our literary travels.

Book Week Scotland, running from November 21-27, features hundreds of author events across the country for all taste and ages. Visit www.bookweekscotland.com or visit your local library for more information.