Writing the Troubles with Fiona O’Rourke

Course Summary:

Writing the Troubles is for writers wishing to focus on the North of Ireland in their work in a safe and exploratory writing community. Course content will explore how there is more than one experience of the Troubles and will include recommended reading for in-class discussion. Literature focused on the Troubles will include extracts from short stories, novels, essays and poetry, providing inspiration to generate new work and to develop works-in-progress.

Suitable for writers of fiction, poetry, memoir, and creative non-fiction.

Course Outline:

Week 1: The challenge of writing history that is real-life or inherited experience

Week 2: Understanding another’s culture and beliefs through literature

Week 3: Writing two cultures: ask a friend or research?

Week 4: The female voice blazing the trail

Week 5: Poetic champions compose

Week 6: Ceasefire babies and troubles of the mind

Course Outcomes:

Writers will have the opportunity to share their work in a safe and confidential writing community for peer appreciation and constructive feedback.

Through course exercises and homework (not compulsory) participants will have progressed their work and firmed up an existing or new writing project.

Fiona O’Rourke is a Pushcart Prize nominated author and Arts Council Ireland awardee. Her stories have been published, broadcast, translated, and included on a reading list at Saint Mary’s College, California. Her debut novel was selected for the Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair. Other work has been included in Southword Journal, The Storms Journal, The Belfast Review, Fortnight@50, The Lonely Crowd, The Waxed Lemon, RTE Francis MacManus, The Fish Anthology, and more. She facilitates writing communities at the Irish Writers Centre, at festivals, and in libraries. She was curator and facilitator of the Northern Soul Roadshow for the Irish Writers Centre, supported by the Arts Council Northern Ireland Lottery funding. She was guest sub-editor on The Storms Journal issue IV and was organiser/MC for the Open Mic for Gaza fundraisers online. Full details of Fiona’s work can be found at FionaO.substack.com

Booked out? To be added to the waiting list for this course, please email info@irishwriterscentre.ie.