IWC/WCLF Young Writer Delegate Programme 2022

We invite ambitious young writers aged 18-26 to apply for this extraordinary opportunity to attend and contribute to West Cork Literary Festival as IWC/WCLF Young Writer Delegates.

Deadline Extended to Wednesday 15th June at 5pm

In 2022, the Irish Writers Centre launched a new 5 year strategy. For over 30 years the IWC has acknowledged and uplifted those with the courage and compulsion to write by providing opportunities for them to develop their skill, advance their ambitions and join a vibrant and diverse community of people who share their passion and purpose.

At the Irish Writers Centre, we seek to enhance opportunities for people across all communities to explore and participate in creative writing. Now in its fifth year, the IWC Young Writer Delegate Programme is intended to give young writers an opportunity to immerse themselves in a literature festival, soak up the atmosphere and to contribute to it as active participants. The selected four young writers will attend WCLF Festival events, and reflect on their experiences through social media.

During this period, they will be supported by an IWC facilitator and writer mentor to reflect on the festival, develop creative work, and share their views through WCLF and the IWC’s social media platforms. Delegates will also be provided with a small honorarium for participation in a creative showcase, along with free tickets to each of the events.

Please note: We are very glad to be returning to in-person events this year, with accommodation provided for three participants from outside the West Cork area, with a fourth dedicated place for a YWD living in West Cork.

Who is it for?

This programme is open to writers aged 18-26 living anywhere on the island of Ireland with strong interest in writing, reading and an ambition to connect with and contribute to the Irish literary scene.

We encourage young writers from backgrounds typically underrepresented in Irish literature to apply.  We particularly invite applications from Black, POC (person of colour), Traveller, Roma, LGBT+, disabled and working class writers, and those who consider themselves to be within the target groups described in the EDI statement on our website.

How to Apply:

You will need to send:

A short cover letter including home postal address stating clearly and concisely why you would like to be selected as a Young Writer Delegate, how you think your writing would benefit, and how you think you can contribute to the Festival using social media or other platforms to draw attention to the festival.

A Curriculum Vitae (max. two A4 pages) including any written work which may have been published online or in print.

Two differing samples of work (max. 500 words each)

Compile ALL of the above into a single attachment in Word or pdf and send to projects@writerscentre.ie. Incorrect formatting will disqualify.

About the Mentor:

Fiction writer Danielle McLaughlin has been unveiled as local writer mentor for our IWC/WCLF Young Writer Delegate Programme. Danielle’s short story collection Dinosaurs on Other Planets was published in 2015 by The Stinging Fly Press. In 2019, she was a Windham-Campbell Prize recipient, and won the Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award. Her first novel, The Art of Falling, was published in 2021 by John Murray and was shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award 2022.

Application Deadline:

Wednesday 15th June at 5pm

About the Irish Writers Centre:

For over 30 years as the leading support and development organisation for writers, the Irish Writers Centre has acknowledged and uplifted those with the courage and compulsion to write by providing opportunities for them to develop their skill, advance their ambitions and join a vibrant and diverse community of people who share their passion and purpose. We carry out our work, online and in person, on an all island basis. Our just-launched strategy outlines a commitment to diversity and sustainability across our activities and its ambition is to connect writers of all types and talents across the island.