A glowing trail of quotes will light up Edinburgh on Tuesday night in celebration of 500 years of publishing in the city.

Striking words and phrases from famous books and writers from across the ages will go on display in 20 specially designed lightboxes.

Quotes include Yann Martel's "life is so beautiful that death has fallen in love with it" and "nothing but time" from James Hutton.

Named the Canongate Stars and Stories project, the illuminated installations will go on display in the windows of businesses along the Canongate from John Knox House to Dynamic Earth.

"Sic iturad astra is the motto of the Canongate and translates as 'Thus you shall go to the stars', an inspirational quote from Virgil's Aeneid," says Ali Bowden, director at Edinburgh Unesco City of Literature Trust.

"This encapsulates the beauty in our literary city with such a rich publishing history, this trail is a glimpse at the books and writers our City of Literature has inspired for over 500 years."

The city's publishing history dates back to September 15, 1507, when James IV of Scotland granted Walter Chepman, an Edinburgh merchant, and his business partner Androw Myllar, a bookseller, the first royal licence for printing in Scotland.

A year later Scotland's first book, John Lydgate's The Complaint of the Black Knight, was published in the Cowgate.

The only known copy is held in the National Library of Scotland's collections.

Printing spread gradually through Scotland, with a press established in St Andrews in 1552, a short-lived one in Stirling in 1571 and in Aberdeen in 1622, with other major towns and cities such as Glasgow following later in the 17th century.

World famous printer-publishers based in Scotland in the 19th and 20th centuries include Bartholomews, Blackie, Collins and Nelsons.

A distinguished name from the 18th century is the Foulis Press of Glasgow, which produced beautifully typeset and carefully printed classical texts.

Today, Edinburgh is home to more than 50 publishing houses of all sizes and specialisms, as well as the trade body Publishing Scotland.

The light up word project, which launches on the Royal Mile, will run until the end of March 2017 and will also feature a physical trail and printed map guiding visitors and locals through the rich and varied stories of the Canongate.

A special Canongate Stars and Stories digital trail which has been made available in the Edinburgh World Heritage iPhone app.

People can tweet their pictures and experience using the hashtag #wordsonthestreet.

"I love the idea of words as light," says Jenny Niven, head of literature, languages and publishing at Creative Scotland.

"A text message from a loved one; a neon message on the Modern Art Gallery saying 'everything is going to be all right', or even a spark of inspiration from an advert on a bus shelter.

"The lightboxes are messages carried by light from writer to reader or simply passers-by.

"Everyone who sees them may not know where the words came from but the light carries the message and a spark is passed on, whether we know it or not."

"The man who made Scotland over again"

John Knox House

Robert Louis Stevenson

1879

"Reid as ye pleifs, I neid no moir narratioun"

Scottish Storytelling Centre

George Bannatyne

16th century

"Blessid be the sempill lyfe"

Saltire Society

Robert Henryson

1480s

"Life is so beautiful that death has fallen in love with it"

Tweeddale Court

Yann Martel

2002

"For ever and aye till the World's End"

World's End Pub

Sydney Goodyear Smith

1965

"The happier productions of female genius"

17 Jeffrey Street

Francis Jeffrey

1828

Edinburgh School of English

"Every writer has his use"

White Horse Pub

Samuel Johnson

1751

"Man is not truly one, but truly two"

Canon's Gait

Robert Louis Stevenson

1886

"Whaur's yer Wullie Shakespeare noo?"

Mama Said

"Beer, biscuits and books"

The People's Story

"To the stars"

Museum of Edinburgh

Sir Walter Scott

1827

"Edinburgh is a hot-bed of genius"

Hillcrest Housing Association (first window)

Tobias Smollet

1771

"Ill-fated genius!"

Hillcrest Housing Association (second window)

Robert Burns

1787

"A city is a drama in time"

Hillcrest Housing Association (third window)

Patrick Geddes

1905

"Bright is the ring of words"

Scottish Poetry Library

Robert Louis Stevenson

1895

"The night sky's tiny keys, the hail clanjamfarie!"

Scottish Poetry Library

Jackie Kay

1895

"The faculty of imagination is the great spring of human activity"

Whitefoord House

Dugald Stewart

1792

"Ae fond kiss"

Clarinda's

Robert Burns

1791

"Nothing but time"

Dynamic Earth

James Hutton

1785