Author Archives for IWC_admin

Upcoming Online Courses at the Irish Writers Centre

March 26, 2020 11:23 am Published by Leave your thoughts

In light of the most recent measures announced by the government last night, we will be extending the Irish Writers Centre building closure until it is safe to re-open our doors. In the meantime, we are happy to announce that we are continuing to offer our services for writers online. Join in a live classroom with a trusted writing teacher on one of our remote writing courses. You can now nurture your creative writing at home, from anywhere across Ireland or abroad, while practicing safe social distancing.  Sarah Webb will be offering a course for those interested in Writing for Children, starting Thursday 9 April. Immerse yourself in the world of children’s books over 6 weeks. Teacher, author and journalist Justine Carbery will also be running a 6-week Writing for Wellness course starting next Wednesday 8 April. Join a group of like-minded individuals and get comfort from creative solidarity.... Read Moreread more.


Covid-19: Extension of IWC Building Closure

March 25, 2020 4:18 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

  In light of the most recent measures announced by the government last night, current restrictions on the opening of public spaces have been extended until Sunday 19th April, with additional measures put in place. For full details of the government’s measures to tackle COVID-19, please see here: https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/a7e66d-latest-guidance-on-public-health-measures/ The Irish Writers Centre building will remain closed while these measures are in place. During this period, we hope you continue your engagement with the Centre through our newly launched online course programme. Mentoring is also available remotely, and membership continues to be available via our website. You can also engage with the work of the Centre by having a look at our writers’ resources online, applying for advertised opportunities or by making a donation towards our work.  Although it’s not physically possible to visit IWC to write, we hope writers and... Read Moreread more.


COVID-19: Information and Resources for Writers and Artists

March 18, 2020 3:16 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

As precautionary social distancing measures continue in the face of COVID-19, writers, artists, arts practitioners, and the majority of self-employed workers are being placed in difficult positions with little income protection. As the national resource centre for Irish writers and Irish writing, we are taking steps to ensure that we can continue offering our services to writers during this period. There are also a number of initiatives across the community which offer support for self-employed writers and artists. Have a look at some of the resources we’ve compiled below: Official government websites Gov.ie  Department of Health HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre Government statements and press releases regarding COVID-19 COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment This new payment will be available to all employees and the self-employed who have lost employment due to a downturn in economic activity caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.... Read Moreread more.


Online Learning at the Irish Writers Centre

March 19, 2020 11:18 am Published by Leave your thoughts

New Opportunities for Remote Learning We’re happy to announce that during this period of closure, we will be offering remote learning opportunities for those looking to explore creative writing at home. Remote learning allows you to enjoy live interaction with a trusted writing teacher via weekly online courses. This might just be the time to get inspired, hone your writing skills and receive feedback on your work. By signing up for an online course, you are helping the Irish Writers Centre continue to deliver our services through our education programme, as well as providing vital paid employment to freelance writers. As Ireland’s national resource organisation for Irish writers and Irish writing, our staff has been working to continue providing our services to writers over this period. If you are a professional writer looking to learn more about the resources and... Read Moreread more.


A Statement on COVID-19

March 12, 2020 4:08 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

  In light of the most recent developments in the outbreak of COVID-19, the Irish Writers Centre will be closed from today, Thursday 12 March, at 6pm until further notice. Earlier today, Leo Varadkar made a statement in which he said; “…from 6pm today, the following measures are being put in place. They will stay in place until March 29th. Schools, colleges, and childcare facilities will close from tomorrow. Where possible, teaching will be done on-line or remotely. Cultural institutions will close. Our advice is that all indoor mass gatherings of more than 100 people and outdoor mass gatherings of more than 500 people should be cancelled.” During this closure period we hope you continue your engagement with the Centre by viewing our course programme and writers’ resources online. Courses will be postponed until such time as the Centre can safely... Read Moreread more.


Introducing our XBorders: Refuge Patricipants

January 16, 2020 3:02 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

This spring, we are delighted to welcome the return of the cross-border initiative XBorders. Now in its fourth year, XBorders will centre around the theme of Refuge, and participants will have the opportunity to explore this theme through a series of guided workshops.  This year’s participants have all been selected from previous years. They are: Michelle Gallen, Therese Kieran, Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan, Dominique Cleary, Peter McNamara, Cliona O’Connell, Sue Divin, Adam Trodd, Niamh Donnellan, Jane Robinson, Cassia Gaden Gilmartin, and Pádraig Ó Meiscill. ———————————————————————————————————– Therese Kieran lives in Belfast. Her work has featured in magazines and anthologies, including: The Honest Ulsterman, The Valley Press, Poetry NI, The Blue Nib, Four X Four, Washing Windows? Tales of the Forest, Coast to Coast to Coast. She was short-listed for the North West Words Poetry 2019 competition. Sue Divin is a Derry based writer but, hailing originally from Armagh, can’t quite classify herself a ‘Derry Girl.’ Peace worker,... Read Moreread more.


Announcing the Novel Fair 2020 Finalists

December 17, 2019 11:31 am Published by Leave your thoughts

  Announcing the Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair 2020 Finalists  We are delighted to announce that twelve aspiring novelists have been selected from over 200 participants to take part in Novel Fair 2020 on Friday 14th February. Novel Fair is an annual Irish Writers Centre initiative which allows unpublished writers to pitch their novels directly to top agents and publishers in a series of one-to-one meetings. Now in its ninth year, Novel Fair has resulted in almost twenty success stories, giving aspiring writers the chance to kick-start their literary career. Last year alone, five of the twelve finalists secured publishing deals. Previous Novel Fair winners also include Catriona Lally, who was recently awarded the prestigious Lannan Literary Prize for Fiction, worth $100,000. This year’s winners have been named as: Margaret Ryan, Lisa Frank, Miki Lentin, Angela Keogh, Alison Wells, Catherine Joyce, Laura... Read Moreread more.


Announcing Ciara Ní É as an Irish Writers Centre Ambassador

December 13, 2019 3:33 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

We’re delighted to announce Ciara Ní É as a new Irish Writers Centre Ambassador! Dubliner Ciara Ní É is the founder of REIC, a monthly bilingual spoken word and open mic night that features poetry, music, storytelling and rap. She has performed her work in Ireland and internationally. She has been published in a variety of journals including Icarus and Comhar, and in 2018 she released a series of 4 poetry videos in partnership with the Irish Writers Centre. Ciara’s commissions include UNESCO’s Dublin City of Literature video 2015, and a poem for Seó Beo Pheil na mBan on TG4, which received more than 300,000 views online. We’re fortunate to have exceptional Ambassadors in Eilis Ni Dhuibhne, Anne Enright, Mike McCormack, John Banville, Marian Keyes, Joseph O’Connor and now, Ciara Ní É. IWC Ambassadors are all key figures in Irish literature selected across a range of disciplines and we... Read Moreread more.


Reflections on Cill Rialaig

November 8, 2019 11:40 am Published by Leave your thoughts

by Katherine Mezzacappa Last month I was one of seven writers awarded a ten-day Irish Writers Centre residency at Cill Rialaig in Co. Kerry. I am grateful not only to the IWC for selecting me, but also to Dr Noelle Campbell-Sharp for having the foresight to save what remained of a former famine village and rebuild it as a dedicated artists and writers retreat. My stay was one of the most productive periods of my writing life, but the effect of Cill Rialaig will last much longer than the time I spent there. I can now go there in my head, and continue to work as I did there. Life at Cill Rialaig was almost Carthusian, in that each of us lived independently in a simply furnished cottage, though we did meet, talk, and walk;I have formed long-lasting friendships with... Read Moreread more.


A Week in Florence

November 1, 2019 11:36 am Published by Leave your thoughts

by Eamonn Lynskey    Thanks to the generosity of the Irish Writers Centre I was able to partake of a week-long residency in Florence as the guest of St Mark’s English Church in early October 2019. During the week, I gave an evening reading of my work and held a workshop some days later in which I showed how one of my poems progressed from the status of being a vague idea to being a published piece in The Irish Times. I was very taken by the enthusiastic reaction of the participants on both occasions. Narrow thoroughfares Apart from these duties, my days were filled with wandering around this beautiful city and exploring its famous piazze and intriguing narrow streets. The church of Santa Maria Novella was as beautiful as I remembered from twenty-five years ago when I first spent a few days here (and when... Read Moreread more.


Announcing the 2019 DBF Young Writer Delegates

October 9, 2019 2:28 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

We’re delighted to announce our Dublin Book Festival Young Writer Delegates!   Darragh Ambrose, Eva Griffin, Kevin O’hÉanna and Andrew Maguire will all be heading to Dublin Book Festival as Irish Writers Centre delegates. Now in its second year, the IWC Young Writer Delegates Programme gives young writers an opportunity to immerse themselves in a literature festival, soak up the atmosphere and to contribute to it as active participants.  During this period, they will be supported by spoken word poet Ciara Ní É who will act as a mentor, encouraging the delegates to reflect on the festival share their views online. You can keep up with the Young Writer Delegates on the Irish Writers Centre and Dublin Book Festival’s social media.   Darragh Ambrose Darragh Ambrose is from Dublin. A graduate of psychology, he was recently fired from the Crumlin Village Missile Defence Programme (CVMDP) for a breach of... Read Moreread more.


Special Offer on Membership

October 3, 2019 12:00 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

  Good news! We have a special offer on our Membership. Our Membership runs for the calendar year from January to December, with all Membership ending on the 31 December. However, in order to give people who wish to join in 2019 the full benefits of IWC Membership, we are offering a special rate. If you sign up to become a Member before the end of 2019, you will pay a special offer price of €60 which will extend your Membership until December 2020. Being a Member of the Irish Writers Centre gives you full use of our beautiful Georgian building on Parnell Square, along with heaps of other benefits. For more on how you can avail of this offer, visit our Membership page.  read more.


Novel Fair 2016 Finalist, Artist and Writer, Eoin Lane on his Forthcoming Debut Novel: BEYOND THE HORIZON

September 5, 2019 9:37 am Published by Leave your thoughts

“She points the lens of the camera.  He turns his head slightly.  The light catches his brow and his silver, white hair.  She snaps.  He is lit like a Vermeer.” A novel about light and love and loss and one man’s determination to fulfill his life’s ambition. “And when she died,” he says “the bed began to blossom with violets.  And every Spring to this day, scented violets grow all around San Gimignano.”  One man.  The Sea.  One painting. I once heard Maeve Binchy tell how people sometimes came up to her and said “Sure, I could have written that” and her reply in typical, Binchy, trademark fashion was to simply say “well yes but you didn’t.”  I love that story and it illustrates how important it is to take pride in your work, even if you haven’t been published.... Read Moreread more.


Autumn Flash Sale Until Friday 30 September at 5 pm!

August 29, 2019 11:28 am Published by Leave your thoughts

  We are so excited about our Autumn Programme that we are giving 10% off a selection of courses happening in the first week. Use the code AUTUMNFLASH to receive your discount for the following courses: http://bit.ly/2MKit4jhttp://bit.ly/2NCmR53http://bit.ly/346k0Hohttp://bit.ly/2ZmTnPHhttp://bit.ly/2Zo0VSnhttp://bit.ly/2Zxs7t0read more.