West Cork Literary Festival 2016

Bantry is the only place to be for the writer who wants to…write!

This is our third year attending the literary festival and it is, without doubt, our favourite of all the lit fests we have attended in Ireland. Ths year was different too, we were bringing our lovely toddler boy, M-boy with us and were staying in a lovely little apartment on Slip Lawns, a ten minute walk otuside Bantry.

There would be no open mics.

There would be no all nighters raving and cavorting through the streets of Bantry and there would be no week-long writing workshops.

But, instead we got a trip on the ferry to Whiddy island, two trips to the lovely beach at the end of Bantry Harbour, a toddler group at Cafe Organico and some really special family meals outside Stuffed Olive and dining in the lovely and very child-friendly and understanding O’ Connor’s Restaurant. We even got two separate days in the beer garden (with Emrys being on his best behaviour) of Ma Murphy’s Pub. Win!

 

Simon went to the Theo Dorgan, Sarah Howe and Jo Shapcott poetry event and I attended Danielle McLaughlin, Maire Gethins and Bairbre LEahy speak about their writing group, what to do, what to avoid and how to make them work and keep working. I will post separately about this.

Simon is reading tomorrow morning at 11 in the Bantry Bookshop and we are excited but sad as we have to leave the gorgeous Bantry straightafter.

Until next year…

The Hay Festival 2016:Kells

This was my first time at the Hay Festival in Kells. I have never even been to Kells and it is a pleasant little town! I was attending the festival as a V.I.P with Simon who was reading there too as a first!

We stayed with friends so were able to nip in quickly enough to the town. There was loads of events on for kids so Emrys got to listen to stories and scribble away to his heart’s desire.

They had many, many big name and a mix of commercial, literary and a focus more so on the reading element as opposed to the writing. The organisers were really warm and welcoming to us and it is possibly the friendliest Lit festival I have attended yet.

The Green Room was located in a wonderful treasure cave of a second hand bookshop cafe and we had plenty coffee, fruit and biscuits. We were also treated to a lovely lunch in the nearby hotel.

I went to see Simon who was a guest speaker at an Amnesty International event with Colm O’ Gorman, Exec Director and they spoke about the refugee crisis. Colm is so passionate and cares so much about human rights issues, I was delighted that Emrys was kept very quiet with a bag of baby books the event organisers gave to him!

Simon took Emrys off the next day and I got to enjoy a full hour of Kevin Barry and Matthew Spangler talking about how Beatlebone should be directed if Matthew were in control! For the last half an hour of the discussion, Kevin and Matthew discussed the various ideas that had been floated on staging Beatlebone, the musical options, the actors and the budget! It was simply a unique format and I was glad for it as sometimes the typical reading of the novel can get a bit yawny.

This was all we managed to get to but we did well, just sauntering around the town and taking it in. I would definitely recommend it, the festival brochure is thick and chunky and full of events for everyone, a real inclusive one.

Thanks, Hay Festival and all who run it! From what I saw, you rocked!

 

 

Red dirt-the book of summer 2016

Red dirt is a novel written by Elizabeth Reapy, former editor of Wordlegs. Firstly, I am always in awe of someone who writes a chunky novel like this and secondly I am in serious awe that it manages to engage a “normally” only short story reader like me!

reddirt

It is a story which is divided into three sections. Elizabeth succeeds in writing in three very interesting voices and very different styles of narration. She really did not go for easy! The characters are all young, Irish people who have headed off to Australia for different reasons and at the end their worlds collide. It is an Irish novel written in what is becoming a very Irish setting, Oz.

I cannot recommend this book more for a summer read. It will keep you reading from the very start until the end. Never a hard read but never an easy one either, if you can see what I mean! The content is edgy, the dialogue is hilarious and spot-on Irish throughout. The girl has done good. Mayo people can be proud.

Red Dirt is published by Head of Zeus and it really is in every good bookshop everywhere!

Carlow Arts Festival 2016

The Carlow Arts Festival used to be in the town only. Then, it moved and stretched out to the wonderful Festival of Writing and Ideas in Borris House and the stretched further to the River Barrow and the Barges on the Barrow Festival.

I still see them as three separate and brilliant festivals and I got to attend two out of three this year! You have read my post on Borris so here is the lowdown on the Big Weekender in Festival HQ in Carlow town for the Carlow Arts Festival.

Big Weekender?

Festival HQ?

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Yep, the Carlow Arts Festival or Eigse as everyone really calls it was christened with two new titles this time around- The Big Weekender was jam-packed with big names like Hothouse Flowers, Lisa Lambe, Le Galaxie DJs and Foils, Arm and Hog comedians among many more. There was the usual exhibitions from local artists like Lily O’ Rourke, Blue Print(Bob Frazier) and Carlow Photographic Society and a fringe event from our writing group, the Carlow Writers who brought an Open Mic and a Poetry Slam to the Teach Dolmain, home of the writers’ group.

This year the festival and its HQ and its Big Weekender took over the beautiful grounds of Visual Centre and Saint Patrick’s College. This is the central spot of the town and actually the perfect and only location for an arts HQ so well done to whoever thought of that. There was lots of ale/beet tents, food tents, sweetie tents and a huge, retro playground area for kids and toddlers. M-boy, the babba boy had a great tumble and toddle around the place and would have stayed all day only we had to go home to sleep and cramp his style.

The HQ also hosted outdoor cinema, fireworks, foot magicians up in the air(acrobats) and a human library alongside the energetic Dublin Ukulele Band. I cannot mention everything I saw or hoped to see but the Big Weekender might stretch itself quite nicely into a Big Week next time! Small things like more signs, allowing small trickle of the Big Weekender onto Tullow and Dublin Street and more,more,more local talent for next year are to be suggested right now by me!

As usual, it makes me sad to say another Carlow Arts/Eigse Festival is over. Goodbye, see you soon. See you in 2017.

Belfast Book Festival 2016

We had a nice city break in the compact and cool city of Belfast. Mum came with us and the M-boy and Simon was doing his poetry thing. He was reading with the Doire Poets showcase in the Crescent Arts Centre. Mum stayed with M-boy very kindly as he really does not quite dig poetry just yet!

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We arrived in and the lovely and very poetic Stephen Connolly welcomed us to the lovely Green Room. It was a super Green Room full of nice beverages, treats, dips and sweet things to munch on and drink while we waited.

Stephanie Conn and Michael J. Whelan were also reading with Simon and we had a lovely chat with them and their families who were up to support them.

Simon’s Uncle and Aunty were in the audience to listen to Simon, which he was delighted with as they live in Canada but were in Belfast that week.

Stephanie read from her debut collection, the woman on the other side and Michael’s collection is called Peacekeeper. Stephanie reads very well, I discovered she is a teacher so that explains her excellent reading voice though Michael read his poetry about his experiences of war with emotions well too.

Simon read 6 of his poems and it feels like Ground hog day as over the last five years of him writing these poems, I have heard them again and again. He was still great and sounded very fresh!

Afterwards, we had a drink with Stephen Connolly and we talked about all of the inside gossip of the fiction and poetry world. He walked us to a Japanese restaurant called Sakura in the University District that he recommended and it was really good.

It was a shame I didn’t get to the Short story talk but it was on at the same time as the Doire Press folk and I had to make a choice. Jan Carsen and other new Irish short story writers were speaking but I am sure I will catch them again.

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The Belfast Book Festival is one I would love to see more of but we took time to explore the Black Cab tours of political Belfast and Long’s Fish and Chips restaurant too. A girl cannot spend her time obsessing over books, you know but No Alibis Bookshop was sussed out in the end as was a really nice coffee shop that did refined sugar free goodies in it called Kaffe-O. A Hotel Chocolate shop may have been visited too.

Belfast Book Festival 2016:We are off!

Simon is reading along with Stephanie Conn for the Doire Press evening in the Crescent Arts Centre at the Belfast Book Festival. It is on the Tuesday, 14th June.

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We(Mum, M-boy) are all heading to the city for a few nights. Am hoping to catch something short story related and see some of the city and visit the famous No Alibis Bookshop.

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Festival of Writing and Ideas in Borris 2016: Best talks to go to on the Sunday

Festival of Writing and Ideas in Borris 2016: Best talks to go to on the Sunday

From the 10-12th June, the amazingly lovely and pretty Festival of Writing and Ideas will be launched on the very pretty town of Borris in Co. Carlow.

I’ve been to many, many lit festivals and Borris is absolutely in the top two to visit in Ireland. (Bantry is the runner-up this year, IMO) The FOWI (Festival of Writing and Ideas) 2016 is in its 5th year. We have been to every single one, the first was small but so nice and this year it is big but absolutely keeping its edge and uniqueness. It is spreading into the town/village this year with some events taking part in pubs and the Step House Hotel. Brilliant move.Borris House

I am going to name-check a few events that you really should make an effort to go see if you are in the area of Carlow on the Sunday, 12th of June 2016. I have also a small article on what to see on the Saturday on the blog.

Early start at 11 with the Granta New Irish Writing editors along with Sara Baume, Lucy Caldwell and Donal Ryan in the chapel. I am really enjoying this magazine at the moment so this talk should be good.

You will have about half an hour to breathe, drink coffee, eat sweet things and then saunter over to the Book Tent where Tom Morris has a curated reading hour with Claire-Louise Bennett, Gavin Corbett, Lisa Mc Inerney, Deborah Levy and Rivka Gachen. Lisa has just won the Bailey Prize and Deborah Levy just rocks along with Tom’s wonderful short story collection, this is going to be most excellent. Get in there and buy some books after!

Don’t leave the Book tent though as there is a @Two poets@ event with Simon Lewis reading from his just launched poetry collection, Jewtown and American poet, Rachael Mennes will respond. Should be interesting. Both of these events are free.

Borris House

At 1:50, in the Bookshop there is a reading from the guys at the Long Gaze Back anthology with Sinead Gleason.

Throughout the day, you will have lots of book signings in the Book Tent so it is the place to gaze at authors from afar trying not to look like a stalker!

At 3:30, Donal Ryan will talk to Vincent Woods about his craft and the boundaries between traveller and mainstream society. I’ve read a short piece of Donal’s upcoming novel and it is going to be great.

These are my tips for the Sunday. You can choose to ignore me and just sit in the grass and frolic and saunter around Borris House. I’m easy like that.

 

 

Granta New Irish Writing

Am making my way slowly through this stunning-looking magazine. It is full of “new writing” and not “new writers” at all! This is good though as many of my fave writers are in this.

Donal Ryan has a piece from his forthcoming novel and as always he is sickeningly brilliant at hooking the reader in within seconds. The story sounds brilliant, cannot wait to get a copy.

granta

The Granta mag also has some really, really nice photos of the Travelling community and a disadvantaged estate in Ireland. It’s funny that girls in communion dresses always seem to pop up in a photographic feature on Ireland. Time for a show on the other cultures and religions we have in Ireland?

Anyway, the photos are not only pleasant to gaze at but they are going to be brilliant for using as inspiration for my own writing and any writing classes I may teach in the new term in September.
Granta New Irish Writing Magazine is available in Easons and all good bookshops as well as the granta.com website.

Festival of Writing and Ideas in Borris 2016: Best talks to go to on the Saturday.

Festival of Writing and Ideas in Borris 2016: Best talks to go to on the Saturday

From the 10-12th June, the amazingly lovely and pretty Festival of Writing and Ideas will be launched on the very pretty town of Borris in Co. Carlow.

I’ve been to many, many lit festivals and Borris is absolutely in the top two to visit in Ireland. (Bantry is the runner-up this year, IMO) The FOWI(Festival of Writing and Ideas) 2016 is in its 5th year. We have been to every single one, the first was small but so nice and this year it is big but absolutely keeping its edge and uniqueness. It is spreading into the town/village this year with some events taking part in pubs and the Step House Hotel. Brilliant move.

I am going to name-check a few events that you really should make an effort to go see if you are in the area of Carlow on the weekend of 10th to the 12th of June 2016.

The top event that you must, must, must see is Beowulf. This is a live theatre, one-man performance by Bryan Burroughs. I saw this last year in Visual in Carlow. I had heard so much about it and it excelled my expectations. It will blow your away, make you cry,cry, cry and laugh and be in awe of the actor that is Bryan Burroughs. He writes, produces and performs in this play based on the story of Beowulf but with a modern, universal twist. It received top play in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and New York Times rated it 5 stars out of 5. It sells out wherever it goes and I actually think it might be too late for you to even see this! It is on Sat, 11th June  at 7 pm in the Hennessy Stage in Granary. Go now and book.

Next up, let me go back to the Friday, 10th June,  my tips there are the reading by Simon Callow of Seamas Heaney Aeneid VI, it is accompanied by uileann piper, David Power who previsouly performed with Heaney. Probably booked out already!

Saturday, 11th June again and plenty to see. The day tickets are sold out so book tickets individually. I can only ever do 2-3 readings in a day at Borris as I like to browse the book tent and drink coffee and sample the food there. 11 o’ clock in the Ballroom, and we have an interesting title Successful writing is a slow, daily meticulous form of mental illness with Joseph O’ Connor and Sinead Gleeson. At the same time in the Granary we have Life Changing adventures with Rob Penn and Andy Middleton. The conversations at Borris between authors and seemingly not authors like Andy Middleton are always engaging and much more interesting than your stock Q and A with “So, tell us about your writing process?” etc.

At 12:30 in the Ballroom, we have the brilliance that is Claire Kilroy, Danielle McLaughlin and Ayelet Waldman. They will chat about literature and it being about sex and not having children. I am there. At the talk, I mean…

Straight after at 2:00 we have Deborah Levy, Claire-Louise Bennett and Rob Doyle all talk about a day in the life of a book. Deborah Levy was in Borris last year and I really enjoyed listening to her, she is a quirky short story writer so check these three out.

Borris House

You might have time to relax for an hour or two, grab some lunch or saunter around the village or frolic with the children in the meadows(TM-Simon Lewis) as the next interesting talk is at 5 with  events running at the same time! We have Kate Tempest who is a poet, rapper and novelist. Impressive. Also, have Sara Baume, Donal Ryan and Luke Brown(Editor of Granta:New Irish Writing Magazine) talk about the Granta Irish issue. Donal Ryan is a great reader, writer and gives most excellent answers so go for that alone. The third talk that is on that time is 5 X 15:5 speakers, 15 minutes each. I am going to say to go to this one if you have to pick as the speakers are all totally diverse and intriguing. Love this format. Deborah Levy talks about David Bowie, Viv Albertine talks about fatherless girls, Ayelet Waldman talks on LSD microdosing so it sure to be fun, fun, fun!

Lastly at 6:30 and this is the highlights (as it is very late for a Rozzie and a husband and a young boy to be out and about) is Kevin Barry and Mariella Frostrup. I know, you are sick of me saying go see Kevin Barry.

Go, see Kevin Barry.

That is my lot for Saturday. Next post will be on what you can go see on the Sunday, 12th June. Come back then. You know you wanna.

 

 

Granta New Irish Writing: Nuala O’ Connor and Kevin Barry freebies!

The Granta New Irish Writing was reviewed by Eileen Battersby a few weeks back and she seemed unimpressed with many of the stories and writing in the new issue of Granta New Irish Writing. I can see her point about the title being “New Irish Writing” but perhaps the editors meant new Irish writing by established and well-loved Irish authors!

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In this issue, we have the lovely Kevin Barry( and an black and white photo of him.) writing about his time in and love of Cork city. Fascinating, as always I am hooked into his every written word!  Also there are pieces from Colm Tóibín, Emma Donaghue, Sara Baume, Colin Barrett, Roddy Doyle, Siobhán Mannion, Belinda McKeon, Sally Rooney, Donal Ryan, and William Wall and more.

In fact, Eileen raved about William Wall so much that I broke my “No buying books” New Year’s resolution and ordered his new short story collection from Doire Press!

I am enjoying reading the free stories and writing on the Granta website and finished a nice short story by Nuala Ní Chonchúir called “Mayo, oh, Mayo” and have to admit the title drew me in being from Mayo myself. Enjoyed the scenes of Knock basilica and delighted with the ending!

You can find the freebies here.