Poetry Slam judge at Kanturk Arts Festival:
I am delighted to share with you that I have been invited to judge at this year's Poetry Slam Competition at Kanturk Arts Festival.
Poets are invited to read their own work for a chance to win a prize in that category. Another category invites people to perform work written by others.
I have the honour of listening to the participants and deciding on a winner. I haven't said it will be easy but it will be fun.
Find out more about Kanturk Arts Festival here:
http://kanturkarts.ie/
Thursday, 10 March 2016
Thursday, 5 November 2015
Some five sentence fiction and competition link…
Some
five sentence fiction and competition link…
Different Shades
Sometimes they are yellow, sometimes just blue. I used to
love putting on makeup to look my best, now it’s worn for another reason. Last
night some came up deep purple. So many factors influence the colours. My body shows
different shades of pain, just depends on how hard he hits.
This story came out of a prompt, one word: Purple. I
expanded this story into a 2,000 word piece that ended up being listed in the
Penguin Ireland/RTE Guide Short Story Competition 2013.
Competitions are worth entering, gets your work out
there. Regarding entry fees: check the prize and see if the entry fee is worth
it. Also, check if there is a long list/short list. Then make your decision on which
ones are worth your work.
While we are on the subject of writing competitions
check out http://ladynicci.com/writing/seven-writing-competitions-you-should-enter-in-2016/
Nicola has done a fantastic job of compiling a list
of:
Seven writing competitions you should enter in 2016
Why
not sign up for her newsletter.
Let
me know your opinions of competitions and if you have any links to share,
please do.
Friday, 4 September 2015
All you need is a bit of patience and something free, yes free, to read …
It is no easy task submitting, waiting, waiting, submitting
and some more waiting. Then, like buses, things come along together. This
summer my patience paid off.
In July I was fortunate enough to receive a bursary to
attend the John Hewitt International Summer School in Armagh. This event
brought with it a feast of readings, entertainment and friendship. I got to
shake hands with Paul Muldoon, discuss the notion of fiction combined with non-fiction
with Hannah Lowe and receive invaluable advice from crime writer Anthony Quinn,
author of ‘Border Angels’ and ‘The Disappeared’. http://anthonyquinnwriter.com/
Later in July I received news that one of my short stories
had been accepted into Belfast’s The Incubator Journal along with an array of
multi-talented literary folk. Issue six includes an interview with Kelly
Creighton, author of ‘The Bones of It’. You have
to put it on your ‘must read’ list and a review of Paul McVeigh’s ‘The Good Son’
which is on my ‘must read’ list. In
fact I’ve included a link here if you wish to read Issue 6 of The Incubator
Journal free gratis! Yes really a freebie.
https://theincubatorjournal.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/the-incubator-issue-6.pdf
If you want a printed copy you’ll have to shell out a
little.
I have also been honoured to be invited to Belfast on 20th
September to read my short story at the launch of Issue 6 of The Incubator
Journal.
In August I received a nice email, another of my short
stories had been long listed in the RTE Guide/Penguin Ireland Short Story
Competition 2015.
Now, some of you may remember in 2013, I along with five
other writing colleagues, were long and short listed in the RTE Guide/Penguin
Ireland Short Story competition. We collaborated and published a collection of
those award winning stories. Here’s the link if you wish to hold the printed
version in your grasp.
I continue to edit a play I have written with the multi-talented
Mary Bradford, Mary Angland and Mary-Anne Bartlett under the mentorship of John
Sheehy of CallBack Theatre. This play is for staging in November 2015. I am
also editing my crime novel.
All of this is done while life is happening and firing things
at me. Because of these ‘life missiles’ (which I will share further in time) I
have, many times, felt like throwing in the towel. But, I have managed to chase
thoughts of that nature from my mind. It was worth the wait this summer when I
got those nice emails.
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog and in case
you missed it above here is the link to The Incubator Journal. Please enjoy and
share so others can enjoy.
https://theincubatorjournal.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/the-incubator-issue-6.pdf
Saturday, 13 June 2015
RTE Guide / Penguin Ireland Short Story Competition 2015 - No Entry Fee
RTE Guide / Penguin Ireland Short Story Competition 2015
Entries for the RTÉ Guide / Penguin Ireland short story Competition 2015 should be
original, unpublished and previously not broadcast short stories in English, of 2,000
words or less. Paper manuscripts must be typed and cannot be returned. Entrant’s
name and contact details (address, phone and/or email) should be on a separate
page. There is no fee for entering the competition but only one entry is allowed per
person. The deadline for this year’s competition is 6pm, Friday, June 19, 2015. Send
your entries to: RTÉ Guide / Penguin Ireland short story Competition 2015, PO Box
1480, RTÉ, Donnybrook, Dublin 4 or email to: rteguide@rte.ie, making sure to label
your mail ‘RTÉ Guide / Penguin Ireland Short Story Competition 2015’.
Saturday, 9 May 2015
It's a poetry thing ...
It’s
a poetry thing …
As the wave curled over, sweeping us through the
salty waters of poetry day… Well, I was going to continue on this vein, but to
write a whole blog post poetically could be done but instead, to put a finer
point on it, I was honoured to be invited to read for Poetry Day Ireland 2015
last Thursday 7th May. I did so with the very talented Kerri
Fitzgerald.
After the typically Irish thing of a cuppa
beforehand, we got underway to a receptive crowd who were kind enough to take
time out of their day to join us. We danced through sonnet and verse to do what
we were asked, to deliver some poetry for the enjoyment of others.
This day is another example of how important our
libraries are and should be supported. Check out yours, you’ll be surprised
what it has to offer.
Wednesday, 6 May 2015
Time Poor but love a good story ...
If you
love to read but only have a few minutes spare, then Five Sentence Fiction is
the solution, a complete story told in just five lines.
Thanks to
Lillie McFerrin, this week’s prompt is: Memories.
Memories
The dark
surrounds me. I tense as I hear the door open followed by footsteps closing in.
I feel the cold knife pressed against my skin but it’s not used to sever my
binds. I hear the sirens getting louder as they near, but they may not make it
to me in time. So, I’ll take my memories, the one thing he could not take from
me, and say goodbye.
Read the other contributors here:
http://new.inlinkz.com/view.php?id=522832 Sunday, 3 May 2015
Five Sentence Fiction - Departure
Five Sentence Fiction time again folks thanks to
Lillie McFerrin.
http://lilliemcferrin.com/five-sentence-fiction-departure/
This week’s prompt is: Departure.
Hope you enjoy. Please leave a comment. I appreciate
the feedback.
Mistaken Identity
Gerard
answered his mobile when he saw it was his twin brother Dean ringing, maybe he’d
have an explanation about his girlfriend, Amy, where she’d gone and the reason
her spare key to his apartment was left on the table. He’d contacted her
friends and relatives but they refused to tell him where she was or how to get
in contact, they seemed furious with him but no one would explain the reason
for her sudden departure.
“Hey
Gerard, look I wanted to apologise for using your spare key while you were
away, bro, it had been worth it though and I promise you, I changed sheets.”
“I’ve
no idea what you’re talking about, Dean, I’m only in the door.”
“Crap! Who walk in on us so if it wasn’t you?”
Check out the other contributors http://new.inlinkz.com/view.php?id=520146
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