The Write Time For inspiration
Fingal Libraries fourth annual Write Time Festival takes place this September to celebrate the art and craft of creative writing. Throughout the month, Libraries will host free workshops and author talks to spark the imagination and inspire creativity.
AnnMarie Farrelly, Interim Chief Executive, Fingal, Lilian Whelan, Senior Executive Librarian Blanchardstown, Deputy Mayor of Fingal Cllr. Tom Kitt, Betty Boardman, Fingal County Librarian.
Fingal County Librarian Betty Boardman said, “Fingal Libraries’ Write Time Festival offers an engaging and varied programme to aspiring writers of all ages and to anybody interested in the craft of writing. This is the fourth year of the Festival and we are delighted that it is becoming a much anticipated event in the library calendar.”
This year’s programme features a panel discussion on Yes, We Still Drink Coffee! - a new anthology of essays by and about women human rights defenders around the world. Orla Lehane, curator and editor, and contributors Catherine Dunne, Hilary Fannin and Lia Mills will discuss their experience of working on this project.
Yes, We Still Drink Coffee! Stories of Women Human Rights Defenders
Portmarnock-based author Rónán Hession will read from his debut novel Leonard and Hungry Paul, described by The Irish Times as a book that will “bring you sunshine even if the summer is a washout”.
Rónán Hession
Comic fiction author Karl MacDermott continues his One Man and His Turnip World Reading Tour of Ireland based on his short story collection, Juggling With Turnips, described by The RTÉ Guide as, “comic cuttings from a Myles na gCopaleen imagination”.
Karl MacDermott
Children’s author Sadhbh Devlin will discuss her work and give practical tips on how to enjoy Irish language books with your children, even if you only have a ‘cúpla focal’.
Sadhbh Devlin
As in previous years, the Write Time Festival offers a range of free creative writing workshops. Travel documentary-maker Manchán Magan will help you transform the sights, sounds and soul of a journey into engaging prose in his travel writing workshop.
Manchán Magan
Lia Mills talks about how to go back in time to find a story that matters now in her workshop on writing historical fiction.
Lia Mills
If you are interested in writing young adult and children’s literature, Conor Kostick will help you create appealing characters and moving dramas.
Conor Kostick
Have you family or local history stories you’d love to write? Yvonne Cullen’s workshop, From History to Story, will help you tell historical stories, big or small.
Yvonne Cullen
What do you need to do to give your work the best possible chance of getting published? Publishing consultant Vanessa Fox O’Loughlin will explain the blueprint from keyboard to bookshelf in her How to Get Published workshop.
Vanessa Fox O’Loughlin
Write Time events to spark the imaginations of young writers include Maeve Devoy’s workshop, The Little Detectives, where she introduces the nuts and bolts of story-telling to children aged 8 – 12 years.
Maeve Devoy
Megan Wynne facilitates a fun workshop where children learn how to create interesting characters and show their personalities by what they say and do in a story.
Megan Wynne
Children and teens aged 10 + can learn to write and perform a Rap Song with the Max Lyrical Rap Workshop.
Glen Boyne
Poet Máighréad Medbh offers teenagers a chance to experiment with different ways of producing a poem in her experimental poetry workshop Truth or Dare.
Máighréad Medbh
Admission is free to all events, but booking is essential. To reserve a place, please contact the library hosting the event. For the full programme of talks and workshops, please contact your local library branch or see Fingal Libraries website: fingal.ie/libraries/ or Facebook page: @FingalLibraries.