Book launches
A number of book launches are taking place in Dublin over the next few weeks. Liberties Press launches Love on the Road 2015: Twelve More Tales of Love and Travel in Hodges Figgis on Dawson Street on February 11th. Edited by husband and wife, Sam Tranum and Lois Kapila, the stories in the anthology are written by award-winning authors from Ireland, the US, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Kenya.
The Dublin King by Dr John Ashdown-Hill will launch at Christchurch Cathedral on February 12th. Dr Ashdown-Hill was one of the team who discovered the remains of Richard III in a car park in Leicester in 2012. This new book examines the truth behind Lambert Simnel, who was crowned King of England at Christchurch in 1487. The author will give a short presentation on the night.
Mary Robinson is the guest speaker at the launch of Deirdre Purcell's new biography, Aengus Finucane: In the Heart of Concern. The book examines the life and work of the priest who founded the charity Concern. Better known for her novels, Purcell's non-fiction titles include Diamonds and Holes in my Shoes (2006) and Follow Me Down to Dublin (2007). This new book charts Finucane's efforts to grow the charity into a global non-profit organisation. The launch takes place in Hodges Figgis on Dawson Street on February 17th.
Salwa Elhamamsy, an Egyptian writer living in Dublin, will launch her new travel book about Ireland in the Irish Writers Centre on March 18th. Living away from her native Egypt for the past two decades with her diplomat husband prompted the author to write about her relationship with travelling and her adopted homelands. The Sun Shines Sometimes focuses on her four years in Ireland. "Ireland inspired me from the first day I came here," says Elhamamsy. "I liked its romance, the greenery everywhere, the kind people, the countryside, the caws and sheep, the birds in the sky, the cotton white clouds, the history, the festivals." First published in Arabic, the English translation is now available from Amazon. Elhamamsy will also speak about her book at the Immrama Festival of Travel Writing in Lismore, Waterford in June.
Literary competitions
Fish flash fiction
The deadline for entering the popular Fish Flash Fiction competition is February 28th. With a word limit of 300, the entry fee for the first submission is €14 and €8 thereafter. The competition will be judged by the writer Bret Anthony Johnston. First prize is €1,000, second prize is an online course in flash fiction with Fish. Ten entrants will be shortlisted and published in the 2015 anthology. Results will be announced on April 10th and more information can be found at fishpublishing.com/flash-fiction-contest-competition.php.
Poetry Ireland competition
The 2015 Trócaire and Poetry Ireland Poetry Competition is open for submissions. With a theme of Feeling the Heat, entries are invited from both published and emerging poets, in English and Irish. There are special categories for younger entrants and a spoken word category for performance poetry. The closing date for entries is March 13th. Entries will be judged by Mary Shine Thompson, former Dean of St. Patrick’s College, Drumcondra (Dublin City University), the poet Theo Dorgan, and Trócaire’s Trish Groves.
Prizes for adults include a stay at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre in Annaghmakerrig, a year's subscription to Poetry Ireland Review, or professional feedback on your poetry through Poetry Ireland's Critical Assessment Service. Younger entrants can win a Kindle or book tokens, and a visit to their school by a writer. The winning poems are published in booklet form, distributed to arts festivals, community events, schools and poetry readings. Winners and runners-up are invited to read at Poetry Ireland's lunchtime awards ceremony at the National Library of Ireland. Details on how to apply are at poetryireland.ie.
Northside love stories
To celebrate their new production of The Good Father, a play set in north Dublin by Christian O’Reilly, the Axis Theatre in Ballymun is inviting members of the public to share their stories of Northside Love on stage. Short stories, poems or anecdotes up to 600 words can be submitted for consideration. The competition is open to anyone over the age of 18 and the closing date is March 2nd.
Ten shortlisted entries will be read on stage at Axis, one before each performance of The Good Father from March 9th - 21st. Entries will also be published as video content online with the writers consent. Axis will make available four free tickets to the show on the agreed night to the shortlisted entrants. Shortlisted writers will be treated to a drink on arrival and a meet and greet with cast and director post show. The overall winning piece will be read on opening night, Tuesday, March 10th.
Literary events and festivals
Zadie Smith reading
A reminder that the Baileys Prize winner Zadie Smith, author of White Teeth and more recently NW, will appear alongside her poet and novelist husband, Nick Laird, on February 16th as part of a series of literary readings taking place at University College Cork. Acclaimed poets Matthew Hollis and Robin Robertson will give readings in March and April. For more information visit ucc.ie/english/news.
Sexy Shakespeare
"We're going to get sexy with Shakespeare and bring some 50 Shades into contemporary poetry," promises Amy Herron from the Irish Writers Centre of the Bee-Loud Glade literary cabaret taking place at the centre on February 12th. La Folie Parnelle is billed as a fast, fun, rollicking cabaret with a literary twist. The Bee-Loud Glade crew consists of actors and musicians who dabble in rock, folk, jazz and blues. The group will take on contemporary and established literary greats, spinning their works into experimental forms and styles. Joyce performed with humour, Shakespeare delivered with sex appeal and contemporary Irish writing transposed to the realm of the erotic – and all for €5. More info at writerscentre.ie.
Limerick Literary Festival
Edna O’Brien, Booker nominee Niall Williams, Joseph O’Connor and Audrey Magee are among the line-up for the 2015 Limerick Literary Festival. Held annually in honour of the Limerick-born novelist and playwright Kate O’Brien, the event runs from February 20th - 22nd. This year’s festival features author visits, readings, lectures and panel discussions at 69 O’Connell St (formerly The Belltable) and The Lime Tree Theatre at Mary Immaculate College in Limerick City.
Poets John Montague and Niall McMonagle, novelists Mary O'Donnell and Nick Barlay, and RTE Arena's Seán Rocks also feature on the programme, which includes a wide range of speakers from travel writers to university lecturers. This year's festival has been extended to include an all-day conference in Mary Immaculate College on the theme of "Loss in Irish writing", which is free to the public. The inaugural Kate O'Brien Award will also be presented to the most popular Irish author at this event. For a full listing of all events, visit limerickliteraryfestival.com.
Mountains to Sea festival
Bookings are open for this year’s Mountains to Sea dlr Book Festival, which takes place from March 18th-22nd. Highlights include two events specially organised for International Women’s Day on March 8th, a talk with the actress and author Sheila Hancock, and a panel discussion on reading women in fiction hosted by laureate Anne Enright.
Fiction readers are well-served with two popular thriller writers, SJ Watson and emerging author Paula Hawkins (The Girl on the Train) speaking about their new books, plus readings from Andrew O’Hagan, Polly Samson and Sarah Bannan. Another event to watch out for is a panel discussion with Ireland’s new wave of writers, Rob Doyle, Colin Barrett and Sara Baume. Fans of the Ross O’Carroll Kelly series will be pleased to see Paul Howard on the bill, in conversation with Irish Times journalist Róisín Ingle.
For non-fiction and poetry fans, the celebrated poet Paul Durcan returns to read from a new collection of poems. LA Times crime reporter Jill Leovy discusses the topical issue of policing black neighbourhoods in the US. Leading English novelist and critic David Lodge will talk about his new memoir Quite a Good Time to be Born, and Rory O'Neill, aka Panti Bliss will be closing the festival on Sunday evening. More info and booking details at mountainstosea.ie.
