Poetry Now Festival, Dun Laoghaire

This festival, which was a stand-alone festival up to now, this year took place as part of the dlr Mountains to Sea Book Festival, though it was curated separately by poet Paul Perry.

I attended yesterday Sunday afternoon and got to two events. I met lots of poets and some fellow bloggers and the general agreement seemed to be that this year's poetry festival was very enjoyable but there was some regret that it had ceased as a separate festival.

The Strong Award, which is presented annually to the author of the best first collection of poems published by an Irish poet in the previous year, went ahead with the assistance of Shine, the national organisation involved with mental health issues. The readings and award announcement was well attended.

Three of the four short listed poets read. The shortlisted poets and collections were: Nerys Williams, Sound Archive, Seren; Eoghan Walls, The Salt Harvest, Seren; Noel Duffy, In the Library of Lost Objects, Ward Wood; Ailbhe Darcy, Imaginary Menagerie, Bloodaxe. Ailbe was unable to attend.

The readings were well done and varied. I'm always interested in to what extent a poet introduces/explains poem before reading it. Difficult to get right. Of course the decision was made before the reading which was for the benefit of the audience. Peter Sirr, the adjudicator for the award, announced that the winner was Sound Archive by Nerys Williams. Well deserved on the evidence of the poems read.

Then I attended the launch of Macdara Woods Collected Poems published by Dedalus Press. This event was booked out - free but booking essential. A great venue, the Dun Laoghaire Maritime Museum, and a large collection of well-know Irish poets assembled to celebrate the launch of Macdara's Collected and his 70 years.

We had music, readings of Macdara's poems by eight friends and fellow poets and reading by the author himself, all capably compered by Joseph Woods of Poetry Ireland.

Macdara shortlisted a poem of mine in 2006 in the Scríobh Poetry Competition in Sligo and the poem was published in the competition anthology, my first competition success and first poem published. So well done Macdara!

Macdara signs his Collected for fellow-poet Richard Halperin.

Asking for Directions - A Review

Well not exactly a review, a notice in the September issue of Books Ireland in their First Flush section, a survey of the books received since last issue. (A listing here does not preclude a fuller review.)

Asking for Directions. Michael Farry. Doghouse. 61 pp €12 pb 19 cm +0-9565280-9-4. Farry is a retired teacher originally from county Sligo but now living in Meath. He is also an historian who has written three books on the history of Sligo with a fourth due out this year. As a poet he helped establish the Boyne Writers' Group and edits their magazine, Boyne Berries. As well as this he is an award winning stamp collector and race walker. With the exception of two sections, ‘western trilogy’ and ‘travellers’, these are stand-alone poems. They reflect the life and travels of the poet with titles such as ‘Fuerteventura 2008’ and ‘British Museum’. Even when contemplating the most serious subjects, such as his own death, Farry manages to raise a smile and the poems are marked throughout with a dry humour.   

Hmmm I like that last remark.The other volumes issued by Doghouse Books this year get similar mentions - Slow Mysteries by Monica Corish, The Angels' Share by Barbara Smith, Outward and Return by Gréagóir Ó Dúill and Rus in Urbe by James Lawless

By coincidence my forthcoming history book is mentioned twice in the same issue. Once in the Forthcoming in Autumn section and in a half page Four Courts Press advertisement for new titles on the title page of the magazine. Should be ready mid-October.

 

Phizzfest Poetry Award Result

The prizewinners in the 2012 Phizzfest Poetry Award are as follows:

Winner:   Marie MacSweeney, Drogheda for her poem "Alchemy"
Runner-up:  Dan Reid, Dublin for his poem "Songbird"
Runner-up:  Catherine Ann Cullen, Dublin for her poem "Sonnet of a Five-String Banjo".

The award will be presented at a reading in the Brian Boru pub, Cross Guns Bridge, Glasnevin on Saturday 8 September, starting at 6.00 p.m.

The winning poem will be published on the Festival website where you can also see the full listing of festival events. Festival updates are available on their Facebook page.

Dublin Launch of Windows 20 Anthology

The Dublin launch of the Windows 20 anthology takes place on Thursday 6 September at 6.30pm in the Irish Writers Centre.

A great selection of readers on the night including some or all of the following who are included in the anthology:

Kerri O’Brien, Maurice Devitt, Hugh Mc Fadden, Patrick Chapman, Gerard Smyth, Joe Woods, Philip Casey, Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin, Áine Durkin, Tom Conaty, Todd Swift, Mary O’Donnell, Macdara Woods, Seamus Cashman, Alan Jude Moore, Iggy Mc Govern.

It should be a great event.

Troubadour International Poetry Prize

Sixth Annual Troubadour International Poetry Prize

Prizes: 1st £2,500, 2nd £500, 3rd £250
- plus 20 prizes of £20 each
- plus a Spring 2013 Coffee-House-Poetry season-ticket
- and  a prizewinners' Coffee-House Poetry reading with Jane Draycott & Bernard O'Donoghue on Mon 26th Nov 2012 for all prize-winning poets

Submit by Mon 15th Oct 2012, prizewinners notified by Mon 19th Nov 2012; Submit by post or e-mail, no entry form required; Pay by PayPal or cheque/money-order in Sterling/Euro/US Dollars; all details below and at www.coffeehousepoetry.org/prizes

Judges:
- Bernard O'Donoghue (b. Cullen, County Cork) is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature; a former Reader at Magdalen College and Fellow and tutor at Wadham College, Oxford, he co-edits the Oxford Poets (Carcanet) series with David Constantine. 'Farmers Cross' (Faber, 2011) was shortlisted for the 2011 T S Eliot Prize following poetry collections which include 'Poaching Rights' (1987), 'The Absent Signifier' (1990), 'The Weakness' (1991), 'Gunpowder' (1995, which won the Whitbread Poetry Prize), 'Here Nor There' (1999), 'Outliving' (2003) and a 'Selected Poems' (Faber, 2008). He has written on the poetry of Seamus Heaney and translated Czech poet, Zbynek Hejda.

- Jane Draycott (b. London) teaches on postgraduate writing courses at Oxford and Lancaster Universities, and is currently Royal Literary Fund Fellow at Aston University: a PBS 2004 'Next Generation' poet, she won the 2002 Keats Shelley Poetry Prize, was shortlisted for the 2009 T S Eliot Prize and has won several awards for her audio work with Elizabeth James. Her latest work, a translation of 14th century 'Pearl' (Carcanet, 2011) was a 2008 Stephen Spender Prize-winner. Earlier publications include (with Two Rivers Press) 'Tideway' (2002) with Peter Hay, and 'Christina the Astonishing' (1998) with Lesley Saunders & Peter Hay, and three full collections, 'Prince Rupert's Drop' (1999), 'The Night Tree' (2004) and 'Over' (2009), all with Carcanet/Oxford Poets.

Both judges will read all poems submitted.

Prolitzer Prize for Prose Writing

I have a soft spot of Prole Magazine having won third prize in their poetry competition this year.

The Prolitzer Prize for prose writing is now open for entries.

Prizes: Winner - £130, publication in Prole issue 9 and on the website. Two runners up, each receiving £30 and possible publication.

Length: Up to 2000 words of prose, fiction or creative nonfiction.

Closing date for entries, 1 October, 2012.
Winner announced in issue 9 of Prole and on the website by Dec 1st 2012

How to enter: By email (preferred) – include entry in body of text with contact details, paste in PayPal transaction number so we can cross reference. Send to: prosecompetition@prolebooks.co.uk
You do not need a PayPal account to use this service.

If you'd like to send a third person bio with your entry, please do.

Entry fees: £4 for a single entry, £3 for each subsequent entry.

Poetry will have its turn: the Prole Laureate poetry competition opens in October.

Prole, Issue 8 has just been launched. It’s a fantastic collection of fiction and poetry. Prole can be purchased from the website. They are open to submissions for forthcoming issues.

Guidelines on submitting, the writing competitions, and purchasing copies of Prole, are all on the website.

Writing Courses

Saturday is the first day of September. The streets are full of school-going pupils and teachers. It's time to think long dark winter nights and doing that course you always meant to do.

Boyne Writers Group return this evening after their summer break and LitLab in a few weeks. Both groups are organising writing workshops early this term. The Irish Writers Centre has a great variety of course on offer and there are similar courses elsewhere in the country.

Autumn 2012 Writing Courses at the Irish Writers Centre
Intensive Novel Writing Course with Carlo Gébler    
Beginners' Creative Writing with Nessa O'Mahony    
Finish Your Novel with Conor Kostick    
Beginning a Novel with Karen Gillece         
Writing Desire: Flesh Made Word with Sean O'Reilly & Kimberly Campanello        
Crime Writing with Declan Burke              
The Second Draft: the art of rewriting with Mia Gallagher
Feature Writing with Henry McDonald          
Writing for TV Drama and Feature Films with Ferdia MacAnna            
Writing the Short Story with Mike McCormack    
Intermediate Creative Writing with Cláir Ní Aonghusa    

That's quite a lineup with some very well-know names in there. Something for everyone!
Information on times, dates, cost on the Centre website.

For Galway check the Over The Edge blog for information on a number of similar courses.

Late August Garden

And when it's not raining you can sit, drink coffee and read.

The herb garden (just a curved bed) always looks unkempt and lush at this time. There is always a very large fennel in the centre, with coriander to the right and others including some chives to the left.

The fuchsias have done well and I finally gave up trying to grow hostas in the beds. I put one in a pot and used slug pellets to protect it.

Late August Blooms

 

This has been the best August display in our garden for a couple of years I think. It must be because of the poor weather with the plants thriving on the rain.

I don't remember the Hydrangea ever producing so many flowers. It was actually in danger of being dumped for lack of display but has certainly earned a reprieve.

The Gladioli were planted two years ago I think and were a surprise when they emerged again this year. The Japanese Anemone has done very well every year and threatens to take over. Some cutting back after flowering I think.

I did cut back the Rudbekia last year and the display is much less impressive this year. It should recover by next year. The Cosmos I bought to fill the gap when the Oriental Poppies finished has done well and is still producing flowers.

And of course in the background the Nasturtiums in the old rusty wheelbarrow are putting on a great show.

Tara Reading

 

Poetry Ireland in association with Feis Teamhra / A Turn at Tara presents Anne Enright, Susan McKeown, Paul Muldoon and Declan O'Rourke at the Hill of Tara, Co Meath on Sunday 26 August at 2pm.

New Literary Magazine

 

Skylight Poets are now accepting poetry submissions for a new literary magazine to be launched at the 10th Anniversary Over The Edge Open Reading at Galway City Library - Thursday, 24 January 2013 and submissions from designers/artists interested in designing the magazine or in submitting material for publication.

All submissions and design brief requests to skylightpoets47@gmail.com BEFORE 1st September 2012

Poems, of under 40 lines, should be unpublished and sent, with brief biography, as an attachment (.doc, .docx, .txt or .rtf) and in the body of the email. More details here.

Contributors will receive one copy of the magazine plus an invitation to read at a special Over The Edge Reading, in March 2012.

More LitLab Bookmarks

And here are the other LitLab Fleadh bookmarks. Very impressive collection. Members supplied their own images, either producing them themselves or getting talented offspring to do so!

The bookmarks appear to have been all distributed during the Fleadh, which was the intention, so there are probably none left.

LitLab Bookmarks for Cavan Fleadh

Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann has been held in Cavan for three years now and our Meath-Cavan Writing Group, LitLab, have been involved to a small degree each year - not playing music or dancing but reading and producing items for free distribution to Fleadh-goers.

The first year we produced drinks coasters with members' Haiku, last year we had short poems on pictorial postcards and this year we produced bookmarks.

Six of our members wrote short, thin poems and supplied images to create six different bookmarks. They have been distributed in book shops in Cavan and at various events. There were some very complimentary comments about them at the Windows launch.

Most of the members took music as their theme but I wasn't listening when the exercise was being explained and did a kind of word association trail starting with book mark and ending with closed book.

The image I used is from a stained glass window in St Patrick's Church, Trim.

Each year we were encouraged by Cavan Arts Office and the energetic Arts Officer, Catriona O'Reilly, who financed the production of these items.

This is the last year of the Fleadh in Cavan so next year we will have no excuse to produce something. But then who needs an excuse to publish!

LitLab Reading at Cavan Fleadh

I can't sing, I can't dance, I can't play a musical instrument but I performed at Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in Cavan 2012!

The Meath/Cavan LitLab group were invited to do two fifteen minute slots on the Green stage and we were delighted to be a part of it.

We had done readings for the previous two Fleadh in Cavan in a small hall to a very discerning audience. These were different. The Green Stage has different performers every fifteen minutes, there was no published programme so the audience consisted of people who had wandered into the area or were connected with some of the other acts.

So a different challenge and one we met head on. On Friday evening Paddy Halligan, Paddy Smith, Lorna Milligan and myself read poetry and prose to a reasonably sized audience which was appreciative and applauded at the right time. Some even came up afterwards and complimented some of us on our pieces.

Friday Night's LitLab Readers

Paddy Smith's story about an insurance salesman's effort to decide if a potential customer was a Catholic or Protestant was especially mentioned. I even saw a few smiling at various lines in my Celtic Tiger Recession Blues.

 

Saturday Morning

Saturday morning at 11.30, we were reduced to two readers, Paddy Smith and myself, but we acquitted ourselves well, read for fifteen minutes to what was a slightly smaller audience.

LitLab is delighted to have taken part in each of the three Cavan Fleadh Cheoil. We had a poetry/prose reading each year and, with the help of Cavan Arts Office, we produced some small items which were distributed free to attendees. 

In 2010 we produced drinks coasters with our haiku, last year colour postcards with our short poems on the theme of music and this year bookmarks. More about those later.

Windows 20 Anthology Launch

Windows 20 Anthology was launched in Cavan on Wednesday evening last. A most enjoyable and well-attended event with readings by a dozen poets and an art exhibition by some of the artists featured in the volume. Congratulation to editors Heather Brett and Noel Monahan. This anthology is a fitting tribute to their work with Windows Publications over the last twenty years.

 The top table: From left, Heather Brett, Cavan Co. Manager, Cavan Co. Council Chairperson, Mayor of Cavan, Joe Woods of Poetry Ireland and Noel Monahan.

This is an impressive anthology of single poems from many of the best-known and well-regarded poets in Ireland. I'm thrilled to be included alongside people like Pat Boran, Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin, Michaél D. Ó hÚiginn, Macdara Woods, Nessa O'Mahony, Theo Dorgan, Peter Sirr, Michelle O'Sullivan, Moya Cannon etc etc.

Poets Honor Duff, Heather Brett and Kate Dempsey.

Among the readers in Cavan were Kate Dempsey,  Mary Melvin Geoghegan, Gerard Smyth and Joan McBreen. The volume also includes five writers in the Authors and & Artists Introduction Series 10 - Luke Morgan, Breda Wall Ryan, Eoghan O'Driscoll, David Mohan and Canadian, Carolyne Van Der Meer, as well as artist Ruth Cadden.

Poets Eamon Cooke and Kieran Furey.

The anthology will be launched in Dublin at the Irish Writers Centre on 6 September and during the Patrick Kavanagh weekend at the end of September. There will also be a Longford launch.

LitLab Reading at Cavan Fleadh

Again this year LitLab Writers Group is doing a reading at Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in Cavan. 

We are reading poetry and prose on the Green Stage in Bridge Street Carpark, Cavan Town on this Friday 17 August at 7.45pm for 15 minutes and on Saturday 18 August at 12.30 also for 15. The Green Stage provides free entertainment, Ceol, Craic, Filiocht, Caint agus Damhsa, by various musical and artistic performers.

Three or four of us will take part in each session so that's no more than five minutes each. Short and snappy! So what to read? Maybe it's time to bring out the Celtic Tiger Recession Blues again. I had hoped it might be out of date by now but it looks as if it will be current for some time yet. 

The Green Stage is part of the Green Zone programme which is a joint initiative of the EPA and European Recycling Platform (ERP)to raise awareness of the importance of recycling.

Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann runs in Cavan from 17th – 19th August 2012.

Windows 20 Launch in Cavan

Wednesday, 15 August, sees the launch of the Windows 20 anthology celebrating twenty years of Windows Publication run by poets Heather Brett and Noel Monahan.

The launch takes place at 7pm in the Cavan Crystal Hotel and there will be readings from many of those included in the anthology. Among the speakers will be Joe Woods of Poetry Ireland.

Each of Windows previous publication included art as well as poetry and prose and this is no exception. An art exhibition featuring artists included in the volume also takes place in the venue on the same date from 5pm to 9pm .

Free admission, refreshments served and everyone welcome!

Aesthetica Creative Writing Competition

I had a poem included in the Aesthetica Creative Works Annual 2010 which included the selected winners in the art and writing competitions.

This year they are launching two separate prizes: the Aesthetica Art Prize and the Creative Writing Competition and publishing two separate volumes.

The Aesthetica Creative Writing Competition celebrates and champions creative writing, nurturing talent and bringing work to international attention. There are two categories for entry, Poetry and Short Fiction, and a selection of fantastic prizes including:

£500 prize money – Poetry winner.
£500 prize money – Short Fiction winner.
Publication in the Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual.
Complimentary copy of the Aesthetica Creative Writing Anthology.
A selection of books from our competition partners, Bloodaxe and Vintage.

The Aesthetica Art Prize is a celebration of excellence in art from across the world. Artists working in all forms are welcome to submit work and there is an excellent selection of prizes including:

6 months’ studio rental courtesy of AWOL Studios.
Up to £250 in art supplies courtesy of Lawrence Art Supplies
£1000 prize money – over-all winner.
2013 group exhibition in York
Editorial coverage in Aesthetica Magazine
Publication in the Aesthetica Art Anthology
Complimentary copy of the Aesthetica Art Anthology
A selection of books from our competition partner, Prestel.

More information here.

The deadline for both competitions is 31 August.

Garden: Early August

The wet summer has meant plenty of vigorous growth in the garden. And this recent sunny spell has seen the garden at its best. The woodbine has never been better and the sweet pea have done remarkably well also. The herbs are overflowing their space, the fennel and the feverfew especially prominent.

In the background the nasturtiums look good in the old wheelbarrow and the willows provide a good framework for the old rambling roses. And the fuchsia is doing well in the hanging thingumajig.

A relation said "I love the wilderness look of the garden!" I said "It takes a lot of work to get that wild uncared-for look".

Intensive Novel Writing Course

 

Intensive Novel Writing Course at the Irish Writers Centre, Dublin with Carlo Gébler. Guest writers include : Keith Ridgway, Sean O'Reilly, Karen Gillece and Mia Gallagher.

Duration: 5 days, Monday - Friday, 3rd - 7th September, Time: 10.30am - 4.30pm.
Cost: €450/€420 (members). Spaces are limited so early booking is advised.

This is a five-day course for those who either want to start a novel, advance a novel, or finish a novel.  The course will be highly structured. Each morning will start with an informal presentation by the tutor, Carlo Gébler. This is based on a novel that the tutor admires.

After the informal presentation participants will be expected to talk about the work they wish to write or to read from work they have written. In order to facilitate this, participants must bring to the course either, if they are beginners, a description of the novel they want to write and a summary of its plot, or, if they are more advanced practitioners, as much of the manuscript as they have written.  The talks and/or readings will be followed by a discussion, led by the tutor, about what has been read aloud.  In the afternoon guest writers will give a talk on novel writing or an aspect of novel writing and, if time allows for it, will give a critique of a students work.

At the end of five days participants should have a better sense than when they started of the book they want to write and how to set about starting it, advancing it or finishing it.

More information on the Irish Writers Centre website.

Sligo The Irish Revolution, 1912–23 - The Cover

The cover has been decided for my history book. I'm very pleased with it, a nice clean design with Sligo well highlighted. The cover picture is very striking. It's a Rolls Royce armoured car, probably The Ballinalee, in Old Market Street, Sligo on Easter Sunday 1922 for the pro-Treaty election meeting.

The picture is in the Irish Independent archive in the National Library of Ireland and was almost certainly taken by Sligo photographer and author Tadhg Kilgannon. Thanks to Paul Gunning of Sligo for alerting me to the photo and identifying the street.

Full details of the book on the Four Courts Press website.The book is a "balanced, comprehensive and absorbing study of county Sligo from 1912 when the Irish Party controlled all political affairs to 1922–3 when the county saw considerable action during the civil war".

This is the first of the Irish Revolution series from Four Courts Press and this will be the standard design of the series' covers. Different picture of course. Sligo is first!!

Not sure of publication date but either just before or just after Christmas.

Details on the publisher's website.

Ballymote Heritage Weekend

 

Ballymote Heritage Weekend is always an enjoyable and interesting affair. A mixture of daily outings and evening lectures, this years programmes is as varied as usual.

Last year I gave a lecture there and this year I may drop in for one or two talks. Kevin Myers on Monday evening should be interesting.

Lecture programme: All at 8.30 in the Coach House Hotel, Ballymote.

Friday 3 August:
What is classical Architecture? Edward McParland.

Saturday 4 August:
Myths and Monuments from Moyturra to Keashcorran, Co Sligo. Sam Moore.

Sunday 5 August:
The Titanic. Stephen Cameron.

Monday 6 August:
Ballymote, Sligo and the Great War. Kevin Myers.

There are outings to Boyle Abbey, Roscommon (picture above), Emo Court, Laois, Newport and Burrishoole Abbey, Mayo.

iYeats Results and Presentation

 

A busy day in Sligo today. I attended two lectures of the Yeats Summer School, the presentation and readings of the iYeats Poetry Competition and was filmed for a forthcoming TV history documentary.

The two lectures were: Joe Lee, New York University:  Yeats and History, and Keith Schuchard:  Swedenborg, Yeats, and Jacobite Freemasonry. More later on these maybe.

The iYeats presentation and reading, in the Hawk's Well Theatre, was enjoyable. It's great when the judge attends and says something about why he/she wnet about the task of choosing the winners.

Theo Dorgan and Paula Meehan were the judges and Theo was present. He spoke of how difficult it was and how long it took to choose a shortlist and then to choose a winner. They were looking for a sense of devotion to craft and clarity of language. The commended poems certainly displayed these qualities, he said, and he spoke about how the winning poem in the Open section created space between the lines.

The successful poets:
1st Prize - Open: Snow Falling, Lady Murasaki Watching by Richard Halperin
1st Prize - Emerging Talent: Dunyazade to Her Sister by Lyndsay McCabe

Highly Commended (in alphabetical order):
Being Bold at the Dunsink Observatory by Rachel Hegarty
Taking Simple Vows by Brian Kirk
A Beatitude by Anne O'Connell
On Doing Fourteen Lines by Breda Ryan
Silvered Now, and Fine by C. P. Stewart.

Richard, Rachel and Breda attended (pictured above with Theo) and read and the other poems were read by Hawk's Well staff and in the case of C.P. Stewart's by Richard Halperin. Lyndsay lives in New Yourk and sent a video file of her reading her winning poem.

You can read the poems on the iYeats website.

Thanks to Connie for her great comment below. Here is the link to the YouTube video of Lyndsay reading her winning poem.

Anthology for a River launched in Limerick

I went to Limerick last Thursday to read my poem which is included in the Anthology for a River collection. This is a fund raising and awareness raising venture as part of a campaign to call a halt to the water extraction proposals Dublin City Council is pushing as a solution to chronic water shortages in the capital.


The campaign is organised by the River Shannon Protection Alliance. More details here and here.

Edited by well known Limerick writer, Teri Murray, the anthology includes the work of 38 poets who have either written tributes to the Shannon or jeremiads against Dublin City Council’s plans.

Mine was neither really, a short poem written in Dromineer on Lough Derg at a poetry workshop by Dublin poet Tony Curtis. It's called Diving into Lough Derg.

A great night in the White House pub, lots of fun and enthusiasm, chat and poetry. Jane Clarke from Dublin, originally Roscommon, also drove down to read one poem so I felt less of a fool. I also met poets Richard Halperin and Tim Cunningham there.

Anyway Limerick is a great place to visit. I went down early, looked around St Mary's Cathedral and browsed the second-hand bookshops.

Photos: Poets reading at the event: Dominick Taylor, Noel King and Shiela Fitzpatrick O'Donnell

Ledwidge Day 2012

Enjoy an evening of poetry, music and song at the annual celebration of the life and writings of poet Francis Ledwidge which takes place on Sunday 29 July in Slane Castle. The event begins with a Cheese & Wine Reception in the splendid Entrance Hall at 6pm. A short talk on the history of Slane Castle will follow and the main event will then take place in the Gothic Revival Ballroom.

The Special Guest is Dr. Andrew Rynne, practising General Medical Practitioner in Clane, Co. Kildare and son of Alice Curtayne. Dr Rynne will relate how his mother came to write the life story of Francis Ledwidge. The title of his talk is; ‘My Mother and Francis’

Frances Mulley, international poetry reader from Belfast will read and Bobbie Forrest from Limavaddy, Co. Derry, will sing and recite some Ledwidge poems. Dearbhla Collins from Drogheda, a second year student with Dr. John O’Connor in the Royal Irish Academy of music and Aebh Kelly from Skerries, a recent Feis Ceol winner will perform music and song. Pat Coldrick from Navan will play classical guitar and traditional Irish music will be provided by a very talented group of musicians from North County Dublin with uileann piper Leo Rickard.

Tickets, 20 euro, are available at the museum or pay at reception on the day. For further information; contact Francis Ledwidge Museum or email: info@francisledwidge.com. Website here.

Anthology for the River Shannon

Help launch a poetry book to raise funds to protect the Shannon!

The background is the proposal  to drain upwards of 500m litres of water per day from the headwaters of the Shannon to supply Dublin's needs. River Shannon Protection Alliance has organized a book of poetry to fund efforts to save the Shannon.

The anthology is called  Anthology for a River and it is edited by the well-known Limerick poet, editor, novelist and playwright, Teri Murray.

I have a poem in the anthology called Diving into Lough Derg which was begun at a workshop with Tony Curtis at Dromineer Festival a couple of years ago. Dromineer is on Lough Derg, part of the Shannon system. Picture above is from their website.

The anthology is being launched on Thursday, 26 July, at 8pm in the White House pub on O'Connell Street, Limerick. Meet and hear many of the 38 contributing poets. Free refreshments. Refreshments served.

More, including a poem from the anthology, here.

Gallery Press in Hodges Figgis

This looks like a very interesting reading in central Dublin. Ideal after a day in the National Library close by.

The Gallery Press in association with Hodges Figgis presents an evening of poetry with Eamon Grennan, Vona Groarke and introducing Andrew Jamison, Michelle O’Sullivan, MC: Peter Fallon.

Date: Wednesday 25 July. Time: 6.30pm. Venue: Hodges Figgis Bookshop, Dawson Street, Dublin 2

Free admission. All welcome.

I'm delighted to see Michelle O'Sullivan (above) has published her first poetry collection with Gallery, The Blue End of Stars. Michelle was one of the poets included in Boyne Berries 1, 2007, and she made the journey from the north west to read at the launch. I'll be checking to see if the poem we printed, The Wishing Box, is included in this collection.

New Cork Literary Magazine

The Penny Dreadful is a new Cork based literary magazine and is currently accepting submissions.

We accept all known forms of creative writing, and several that are sadly as of yet unknown to all but our editorial staff. And we want you. Yes, even you, as wretched and forlorn as you may well be. We want you to submit to us anything that you may happen to have written that you feel is of a certain quality and standard to appear in the esteemed pages of The Penny Dreadful.

So then go forth and multiply and then tell us about it in a poem or something.
Fiction: Two stories of no more than 3,000 words.
Poetry: Six poems, unless you are writing long heroic epics. We won’t accept six of those.

Please send submissions to
Email: The.P.Dreadful@gmail.com
Post: The Penny Dreadful, 7 Sharman Crawford Street, Cork.

Call for Poetry Submissions - The Stony Thursday Book

I had two poems published in this great annual publication in 2009 when the editor was Ciaran O'Driscoll.

The Stony Thursday Book is seeking submissions from local, national and international poets for its next issue, to be published as part of CUISLE, Limerick City International Poetry Festival in October 2012.

This years editor is the Limerick based poet Jo Slade.

The Stony Thursday Book was founded by Limerick poets John Liddyand Jim Burke in 1975, and has also been edited by Mark Whelan, Kevin Byrne, Patrick Bourke and Knute Skinner, Thomas McCarthy and Mary Coll.

The Stony Thursday Book is one of the longest-running literary journals in Ireland and celebrates its 37th Anniversary Edition in 2012.

To Submit: Send no more than 6 poems, write your name and address on each page.

Send poems to: The Arts Office, Limerick City Council, City Hall, Merchant’s Quay, Limerick

Or by email: artsoffice@limerickcity.ie. Phone: 061 407363 or 061 407421
Please mark your envelope: The Stony Thursday Book

Closing date for submissions: Friday August 10th 2012.

CUISLE, Limerick City International Poetry Festival will take place in Limerick from 10th – 13th October 2012 and is funded by The Arts Council & Limerick City Council.

New Dylan Album - Tempest

Columbia Records announced today that Bob Dylan’s new studio album, Tempest, will be released on September 11, 2012. Featuring ten new and original Bob Dylan songs, the release of Tempest coincides with the 50th Anniversary of the artist’s eponymous debut album, which was released by Columbia in 1962.

The new album, produced by Jack Frost, [Dylan himself] is the 35th studio set from Bob Dylan, and follows 2009’s worldwide best-seller, Together Through Life.

Full press release here. Lots of comments on the web. Suggestions that the cover may be based on Bernini's sculture, The Ecstasy of St. Teresa though this statue of Pallas Athene in Vienna seems to be a contender also.

The full set list is here and it is said to contain two epic songs, one about the Titanic and one about John Lennon.

Dylan is finishing a European tour at the moment and goes on to tour in the USA later in the year. No Irish date in the current tour. After Friday's brilliant Paul Simon concert in Dublin I played Dylan on the way to Tralee to reassure myself. Blood on the Tracks did the job.

We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with sleep.

- William Shakespeare, The Tempest, 4.1

Paul Simon in Dublin

 

Due to a lucky (unlucky for some) chance I got two tickets for Paul Simon's Friday night concert in Dublin. And not just any tickets, second row, right in the middle. It was a great concert. I've never seen Paul Simon live before.

Almost two and a half hours of music, with the full Graceland album performed with many of the original artists. Ladysmith Black Mombaza also did a short set of their own.

All stages of the singer's career were covered with versions of The Boxer and Sound of Silence and a great finish on Still Crazy. Earlier he sang Dazzling Blue from the most recent So Beautiful or So What album. 

But the highlights had to be the Graceland songs. Among these The Boy in the Bubble was my favourite, Simon's Desolation Row, delivered in front of three screens of dramatic images which added to the effect.

Irish fiddler, Martin Hayes, played with Simon on a couple of songs and South African singer, Thandiswa Mazna, joined Simon for Under African Skies as well as singing a couple of her own songs.

Simon, and indeed all the musicians, seemed to enjoy themselves immensely and responded well to the crowd appreciation.  

The full setlist is here. Eileen Battersby in the Irish Times caught the flavour and reaction to the concert perfectly but this this other one seems quite a bit off. Well actually completely off. It was Paul Simon you went to see Phil. So Paul was very quiet? Do you mean he didn't talk much to the audience? Have you been to a Dylan concert recently?

Picture is from the Irish Times review.

Tralee Doghouse Poetry Reading

 A very enjoyable visit to Tralee for the Poets in the Doghouse reading in Siamsa Tíre. Six of this years poets took part, Monica Corish, Barbara Smith, Gréagóir O'Dúill, Anatoly Kudryavitsky, James Lawless and myself. A small but very appreciative audience in a great venue.

We each read from our current Doghouse book for about 15 minutes. I was nominated to go first so I read twelve poems with short introductions.

 I tried to pick ones I hadn't read in public recently and left out "greatest hits" so no Ball of Twine or spreading all my clothes from here to Sligo. (Buy the book!!) As you read a poem you learn something new about it.

A great variety of poetry on offer. It was fascinating to listen to the others and make mental notes - Must try that! Why didn't I think of that?

Anatoly hasn't yet had his book published. It's an anthology of Irish Haiku entitled Bamboo Dreams, and the launch is set for 25 September in the Unitarian Church, Stephen's Green, Dublin. It should be quite an occasion.

Anatoly explained that Ireland was the last country in Europe to have a national anthology of haiku. Well done Doghouse!

Then a meal with the other readers, Editor Noel and Doghouse poets and friends. Great discussion on poets and poetry. I came home with a list of poets I must look up and read. Thanks Doghouse!

Pictures: Top:  Barbara Smith. Right: Anatoly Kudryavitsky.

Doghouse Poets in Siamsa Tíre, Tralee

 

I'm really looking forward to this, a reading with the other Doghouse 2012 poets in Siamsa Tíre Theatre, Tralee this Saturday evening.

The details: Doghouse Poets. Saturday 14 July at 5pm. 

Poetry Ireland in association with Siamsa Tíre Theatre and Doghouse Books presents Monica Corish, Gréagóir O'Dúill, Michael Farry, Anatoly Kudryavitsky, James Lawless and Barbara Smith.

Admission €6/4. Siamsa Tíre Theatre, Town Park, Tralee

Paul Simon Graceland Concert

PAUL SIMON plays the O2 in Dublin, this Thursday & Friday, 12 & 13 July, and I have been lucky enough to get a ticket for the Friday show. Dylan skipped Ireland in his current European tour so this is the next best thing. Thanks!!!


"Included in the evening will be a special performance of his Graceland album and will feature Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The night will cover songs throughout his illustrious career, as well as the performance of the GRACELAND album. This will be the first performance of this type which kicks off a month long tour in Europe

‘Under African Skies’ – a documentary directed by Joe Berlinger chronicling the creation and lasting influence of ‘Graceland’ debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in January of this year, kicking off a year-long celebration commemorating the 25th Anniversary of Paul Simon’s musical and cultural achievement.

In 1986, ‘Graceland’ sold 14 million copies worldwide, and received universal praise from critics around the globe.  In 1987, it won Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards. Then, in an unprecedented carryover, the album garnered the Grammy for Song of the Year with its title track in 1988.

Graceland continues to provide rewards to its listeners and remains a pivotal listening experience for writers, artists and fans alike.

All in all it promises to be an incredible evening, from one of the greatest contemporary songwriters of our time."

Kerrie O Brien – Matters of the Heart.

 

As part of the 10 Days in Dublin, 5 - 14 July Festival: Kerrie O Brien poetry reading entitled Matters of the Heart on 13 July at 19.30 in the Twisted Pepper, Middle Abbey St., Dublin. Running Time 60 mins. Free!!!

Come and experience one of Dublin’s emerging literary talents. Her poems explore memory, faith, loss and the fragility of human relationships.

Kerrie O’ Brien has been published in various Irish and UK literary journals. In February 2012 she was the first poet to read as part of the New Writers Series in Shakespeare & Co. Paris. Her poem Blossoms was chosen as the winning entry in the Emerging Talent category of the 2011 iYeats Poetry Competition. She recently won the RTE Arena Flash Fiction Competition 2012 and Culture Ireland have sponsored her to read in Los Angeles in June. She was highly commended for the Over the Edge New Writer of The Year Competition 2011 and has performed her work at festivals such as Electric Picnic.

Swift Satire Pictures

This is the victorious Meath Writers Circle team having been presented with the Battle of the Books trophy  yesterday. Michael, Tommy and Frank look happy at having defeated us. Well done!

The scoreboard shows that we lost by 2.5 marks. I might just point out that the 18 - the highest individual score of the contest - was mine, one judge gave me a maximum 10.

And here is a scene from my Gulliver's Travels, the modern 5 minute version. Kevin, Mary and Eoin did a great job. It's a thrill to see such fine actors taking your words off the page and making them come alive. Thanks!!

Swift Satire Festival Sunday

The Swift Satire Festival concluded with a feast of satire this afternoon at the Bite of Satire Lunch in the Trim Castle Hotel. In the annual Battle of the Books satire competition The Meath Writers Circle had a narrow but deserved win over us, Boyne Writers. They took the lead straight away and never really looked like being overhauled. Michael "Sheriff" Shiels, Frank Murphy and captain Tommy Murray had strong topical pieces full of humour and satire. Their blogs will no doubt be full of reports and maybe pictures.

Our team performed very well. Barbara Flood was called in at the last minute to read for Caroline Carey Finn who suffered a family bereavement and did very well. James Linnane and myself did our best but it wasn't to be our year.

Well done Tommy, Frank and Michael. Looking forward to next year already!

Then there was the five minute play competition with the shortlisted five being performed. This worked very well, the plays were very different but were all enjoyed by the large audience. The two plays from Bradford were ambitious, very funny and very well staged. Inspector Gulliver Calls, by Vera Cait Walsh, Wicklow Town was set in a not very attractive future and the costumes were especially effective.
 
My Gulliver's Travels, the modern 5 minute version was very well done by my three actors and went down well. The judge had some nice things to say about it. But the obvious winner was the other Trim play Gulliver at the Gate, by Gareth Mahony. Sharply satiric, great characters and costumes (the stars and stripes tie was a winner on its own) it was both the judges choice and the popular winner.

A most enjoyable afternoon! The events ended with the usual thankyous and indeed the usual question over the continuation of the festival. It certainly deserves to continue. I relaxed afterwards by attending the final showing of the animated feature Gulliver's Travels (1939) in the cinemobile. Great!

Some pictures later maybe. I was too busy to take any!!

Tale of a Tub Reading

 

Lots going on today in Trim. The one-day reading of the whole of Swift's Tale of a Tub took place in Market Street with readers having a choice of reading in the tub with shoes on, with shoes off or ignoring the tub. Above a good friend of the festival, UCD Professor Andrew Carpenter, one of the early readers.

I read my two pages, contributed to the Aware charity and got my certificate. 

A good crowd attended my talk on Gulliver as Comic Book Hero. They listened attemtively, laughed at the correct moments and some came up to me to discuss comics afterwards. I enjoyed it!

Tomorrow, the last day of the festival, sees the final of the 5 minute drama and the Battle of the Books as part of the Bite of Satire: Lunch and Extras event. Tickets have been selling well for this I hear.

We have rehearsed my play and my actors will do their best as will the Boyne Writers Group in the satire competition. No sign of the Meath Writers Circle around the town today - they must be training in secret somewhere. Good luck lads!!

Poetry in Motion

 

The weather may have been bad but the show must go on! Boyne Writers Group and members of the passing public read poetry in the main street of Trim yesterday as part of the Swift Satire Festival.

Paddy Smith, (above) Swift committee member and chair of the writers group, started proceedings. I thought his choice of The Donkey as first poem of the day a bit self-satiric but Shall I compare thee to a Summer's Day as second was inspired. This summer's day would have been at home in February or November.

Today I give a talk on Gulliver as a Comic Book Hero at 5pm in St Patrick's Cathedral, Trim where a wonderful exhibition, Swift in 30 Objects, is on show.

And in the satire tent, satire and comedy all day (and part of the night).

Swift Satire Festival - Launch

The official launch of the Swift Satire Festival last evening in Trim Castle Hotel. Noel Dempsey, former TD and government minister, whose idea the festival originally was, speaking. Behind him the chairpersons of Meath County Council and of Trim Town Council. So how would Swift have reacted to Facebook and Twitter. would he have been blogging?

 

Read some of Swift's words in water taken from Swift's Laracor and help Aware! What genuis comes up with these brilliant ideas? If it rains will the whole thing get diluted?

 

The three members of the Meath Writers Circle looking very pleased with themselves. Just because the rehearsal went well doesn't mean the Battle of the Books is in the bag Tommy!!

Swift Satire Festival, Trim

OK it's about to start - the Swift Satire Festival (the new official name) is being launched this evening at Trim Castle Hotel at 7.30. And then until Sunday evening a feast of events to suit everybody's taste.

One of the strengths (though it might actually be a weakness) of the festival is the wide range of different events. You need to check the website to see the full list.

This year a new feature is the Cinemobile, the mobile cinema, which will show the 1939 feature length cartoon version of Gulliver's Travels but also present day films like Snow White and the Huntsman. A nice juxtaposition is the successive showing of  The Dictator (Sasha Baron Cohen) and The Great Dictator (Charlie Chaplain).

There's a satire day all day Saturday in the comedy tent with many of Ireland's top comics performing and the usual Swift Round Table dinner and discussion on the Friday evening featuring many of those well-known commentators who pretend to know something about everything (a common Irish failing).

There's also a public day-long reading of Swift's Tale of a Tub and poetry reading in the streets of Trim. Just come along and join in.

I'm giving a public talk on Gulliver as a comic book hero in St Patrick's Cathedral, Loman St. at 5pm on Saturday. The cathedral is also hosting an exhibition of items associated with Jonathan Swift curated by William Dalton, a native of Trim who is now living in Dublin. It includes the altar silver Swift used at Laracor, Trim’s 18th century maces, historic editions of Gulliver’s Travels and much more. Opening hours 3-6pm on Friday and Saturday, 6th and 7th July, and at the end of the Guided Walk (11am start of walk) on Sunday, 8th July.

And then on Sunday the Bite of Satire - Sunday Lunch with the Battle of the Books and the final of the 5-minute drama competition. I'll be involved in both of those.

Phew!!

The Battle of the Books - Trim Swift Festival

 

And also on Sunday as part of the Bite Of Satire: Sunday lunch + extras is the annual Battle of the Books. This is the third year of this satirical writing and delivering competition between our Boyne Writers Group and the Meath Writers Circle. We won the first one, they the second and we won last year.

The opposition more or less self-destructed last year with their timing completely off. There is a strict time limit with transgressions punished by loss of marks. Their satire was very good but some pieces were far too long and they lost lots of marks.

I'm sure they will have everything finely tuned this year and I expect them to win easily. Ah well! We are finalizing our team on Thursday night. Teams have been reduced from four to three this year so we may have to have a vote to select our three.

The photo above, showing the rival captains Tommy Murray and myself, was staged as publicity for the original contest and has been reused in this year's brochure. Tommy has been giving little away on his blog.

The Battle of the Books is part of Sunday's A Bite Of Satire: Sunday lunch + extras. For €20  you get a 2-course Sunday lunch PLUS the annual Battle of the Books PLUS the Five Fives drama competition for five 5-minute plays PLUS a chance to see the specially restored version of the 1939 full-length animated film, Gulliver’s Travels, which will be given a private showing in the Cinemobile immediately after the lunch event.


Not to be missed - book your tickets online!

My Play is in Rehearsal

Next week-end sees the Trim Swift Festival or the Swift Satire Festival or whatever it's called this year. Changing the name appears to be a clever touch of Swiftian satire. After all Gulliver's Travels isn't called Gulliver's Travels, if you know what I mean.

Anyway I entered their new five minute play competition, Five Fives: the flash drama competition, and got shortlisted. The five shortlisted plays have to be performed as part of the Bite of Satire event on Sunday afternoon in the Trim Castle Hotel.

These are the shortlisted plays:
A Swift Response, by the Bradford Literature Group
Inspector Gulliver Calls, by Vera Cait Walsh, Wicklow Town.
If Gulliver was on the Titanic, by Mark Burrow, Bradford
Gulliver at the Gate, by Gareth Mahony, Trim
Gulliver’s Travels: A modern 5-minute version, by Michael Farry, Trim.


The plays had to have no more than 3 characters, one of whom had to be called Gulliver. It does appear that each one included a Swift reference instead of just having a random Gulliver character. Actually my three characters are called Gulliver though this probably won't  get me any more marks.


I have been lucky to get three prominent members of Trim Drama Group to take the parts in my play and rehearsals have begun. I'm supposed to be the director as well as writer but these experts need little direction. It should be interesting to see how the writers have approached the task. Five minutes is a bit brief to develop characters so mine is designed as a bit of a romp and designed to get a few laughs.

The event, which starts at 1.30 on Sunday 8 July also includes a lunch and the annual Battle Of  The Books, "a verbal joust of satirical writing between the Boyne Writers’ Group (the holders of the trophy) and the Meath Writers’ Circle". I'll probably be involved in that as well though we still have to finalize our team.

All for only 20 euro!! (Well 21.95 actually - those booking fees are annoying aren't they!)
You can book on the Festival website.