Autumn Publishing Day 2025

We are excited to announce our Autumn Publishing Day, and for the first time, we’re bringing it to you online! By making the event virtual, we aim to increase accessibility for all writers across the island of Ireland and beyond. Whether you’re joining us from the bustling city of Dublin, the rural surrounds of Tory Island, or anywhere in between, we look forward to welcoming a diverse and engaged community of writers.

Join us via Zoom on Saturday, 11th October 2025, to hear from a panel of industry professionals on the publishing process from start to finish, as well as gain some valuable insights into this ever-evolving industry. Tickets are available here.

How can I prepare to submit my work to the publishing industry? What are the challenges? Should I self-publish? Do I need an agent, or should I send manuscripts directly to publishers? How do I build my brand as a writer?

These burning questions and more will be addressed by our highly experienced panelists, including: publishers, editors, agents, a TikTok star turned author, and two novelists with very different publishing journeys and more!

This event is ideal for all writers interested in learning more about the publishing process and is sure to be an informative and beneficial step in your writing journey.

Tickets are available for individual panels (€20 each/€18 for Irish Writers Centre Members) or for the full day (€55/€50 for Irish Writers Centre Members)

Zoom links will be made available with the purchase of tickets.

TIMETABLE:

Note: Each session will be followed by a 10-minute Q&A session, where we welcome audience questions.

Panel 1

10:30 – 11:40 am

#BookTok to Bestseller: Building Your Brand as a Writer with J.F. Murray and Ann-Marie Sheehan

Social media is not just an optional extra; it’s a powerful tool in the writer’s arsenal. In this panel, TikTok content creator and breakout literary star J.F. Murray (author of Fling and Hitched) joins Ann-Marie Sheehan, founder of Aspire PR, to explore how writers can best use social and traditional media to build their brand, find and connect with their audience, and market their work on a budget.

From harnessing the viral potential of #BookTok to developing a consistent authorial brand, this conversation will dive into the creative and quirky world of book promotion and give you the resources to develop your media presence – both online and through more traditional press media.

This conversation will be moderated by a member of the Irish Writers Centre Programming team.

BookTok is an online sub-community on the social media platform TikTok, which has amassed an astounding 370 billion views since its emergence in 2019. The community has had a marked impact on the publishing industry, driving sales and increasing interest in reading, particularly amongst younger demographics.

Panel 2

12:00 – 1:10pm

Publishing Roadmaps with Byddi Lee and Kevin Curran.

Traditional, independent, or hybrid publishing – which one is right for you? Discover alternative routes into publishing with authors Byddi Lee and Kevin Curran in this fascinating conversation. These two authors will discuss the practical matters, benefits, and challenges of both methods.

Kevin Curran is a three-time novelist and winner of the first-ever International Debut Novel Competition in 2011. His novels: Beatsploitation, Citizen, and Youth were published by the Liberties Press, and Lilliput Press, respectively.

Byddi Lee is the author of Barren , the Rejuvenation Trilogy, and March to November. She has also written for stage and screen, and edited The Bramley – An Anthology of Flash Fiction Armagh. She has published using a hybrid method – both traditionally and independently.

This conversation will be moderated by a member of the Irish Writers Centre Programming team.

Panel 3

2:00 – 3:10 pm

Demystifying The Writing Life: Agents and Publishers Talk

Bring your notebooks for this jam-packed panel as two leading publishers and a literary agent/editor get together to dispel myths and dispense advice on all things publishing.

We’ll welcome Paula Campbell, publisher with Ireland’s Poolbeg Press and Edward Kirke, comissioning editor with Viking/Penguin Random House UK, in conversation with literary agent and publisher Paul Feldstein of the Feldstein Agency. This conversation will be moderated by a member of the Irish Writers Centre Programming team.

Meet the Panelists

J. F. Murray is an author and BookToker from Gaeltacht Baile Ghib in Co. Meath. Having graduated with a B.A. in Film and Drama, as well as an MSc in Marketing from Trinity College Dublin, J F has always been drawn to fields involving creative expression. During the Covid lockdown, J F began making TikToks and writing his debut novel Fling. He now has over 100k followers and 2 traditionally published Rom Coms available globally. He reads any book that hooks him from chapter 1 and he plans to continue his creative expression on #BookTok and through writing novel number 3.

Ann-Marie Sheehan. Originally from Limerick City, Ann-Marie Sheehan is a leading expert in marketing, communications, and event strategy with over 30 years of experience. She founded Aspire PR & Marketing in 2006, renowned for delivering innovative, results-driven campaigns for clients like Business & Finance Media Group, 3M, Lawlor’s of Naas, The Butler’s Pantry, Cully and Sully, OFS Global Energy, and more.

Byddi Lee is the author of Barren (2025), the Rejuvenation Trilogy (first published by Castrum Press in 2020), and March to November (2014). She has also published flash fiction and short stories. Byddi is a co-founder of the spoken word event Flash Fiction Armagh and edited The Bramley – An Anthology of Flash Fiction Armagh.

Kevin Curran is from Balbriggan and has been a secondary-school teacher in his hometown for over a decade. His fiction largely concentrates on working-class life in the Dublin suburbs. His most recent novel, Youth, is set in his hometown and deals with diversity and multiculturalism.

Paula Campbell is a publisher at Poolbeg Press, one of Ireland’s leading book publishers. The company, founded in 1976, is based in Baldoyle, Co Dublin.

Edward Kirke is a commissioning editor at Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House UK. He is based in London.

Paul Feldstein has over 45 years of experience in the publishing industry. Prior to founding the Feldstein Agency with his wife, Susan in 2007, he was Managing Director of Trafalgar Square, the leading U.S. distributor of U.K. publishers. In addition to running the distribution company, he started and ran Trafalgar’s own very successful illustrated publishing imprint. Paul began his publishing career in 1978 at Marboro Books in New York as a bookseller, moving on to Director of Operations & Finance at art book publisher Abbeville Press. He has a degree in English and American literature from SUNY Purchase. He moved to Bangor, Northern Ireland, in 2007.