Celeste Augé to judge 2008 Over The Edge New Writer of the Year competition: €1,000 in prizes PLUS reading opportunity

LATEST NEWS: The competition deadline has now passed and we are no longer taking entries. This year's competition has been a major success, attracting 220 entries, a 90% increase on last year, some of them from as far afield as New Zealand and California. A long list of forty will be announced in Charlie Byrnes' Bookshop at 6pm on Wednesday, August 20th; the shortlist of eight will be announced at the Over The Edge: Open Reading in Galway City Library on Thursday, August 28th; and the winners will announced at the same venue on Thursday, September 25th. Celeste Augé was born in Canada, but moved to Galway when she was 12 years old. She writes both poetry and fiction. Her poems have appeared in a wide variety of literary journals. She has read her work as part of Poetry Ireland's Introductions and also at the Cúirt Festival/Over The Edge showcase reading in 2006. In 2006 also, she was awarded the Publication Assistance Grant by Galway County Council. Tornadoes For The Weathergirl, a chapbook of her poems, was published in 2007. Her first full collection, The Essential Guide to Flight, is forthcoming from Salmon Poetry.













Over The Edge New Writer of the Year sponsored by Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop, Bank of Ireland, Kelly Office Supplies and Des & Mary Kavanagh

The Over The Edge New Writer of The Year 2008 competition is open to both poets and fiction writers. The winner will receive a cash prize of €600, a spot as a Featured Reader at an Over The Edge: Open Reading, and the title Over The Edge New Writer of The Year 2008. The runner-up will receive a cash prize of €300, while the third-placed writer will receive €100.

Entries should be sent to Over The Edge, New Writer of the Year competition, 3 Carbry Road, Newcastle, Galway, Ireland with an accompanying SAE.

Entries will be judged anonymously, so do not put your name on your poem(s) or story. Put your contact details on a separate sheet.

Criteria: fiction of up to three thousand words, three poems of up to forty lines, or one poem of up to one hundred lines. Entries longer than these will be disqualified. Multiple entries are acceptable but each entry must be accompanied by a €15 fee and an SAE. Fee payable by cheque or money order to Over The Edge. All entries must be typed.

To take part you must be at least sixteen years old by August 1st 2008 and not have a book published or accepted for publication. Chapbooks excepted. Poems and stories entered in the competition must not have been previously published.

THE CLOSING DATE IS AUGUST 1ST 2008. A shortlist of eight will be announced in Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop on Wednesday, August 20th, 2008. The Over The Edge New Writer of The Year 2008 will be announced at the Over The Edge reading in Galway City Library on Thursday, September 25th, 2008. The winner will be a Featured Reader at a reading to be scheduled in Galway City Library in Winter 07/08.

For further details contact Over The Edge on 087-6431748 or e-mail over-the-edge-openreadings@hotmail.com

September Poetry Workshops with Kevin Higgins at Galway Arts Centre

This September Galway Arts Centre is offering aspiring poets a choice of three poetry workshops, all facilitated by poet Kevin Higgins, whose best-selling first collection, The Boy With No Face, published by Salmon Poetry, was short-listed for the 2006 Strong Award for Best First Collection by an Irish poet. Kevin’s second collection of poems, Time Gentlemen, Please, was published in March also by Salmon Poetry and his poetry is discussed in the recently published Cambridge Introduction to Modern Irish Poetry.

Kevin is an experienced workshop facilitator and several of his students have gone on to achieve publication success. One of his workshop participants at Galway Arts Centre recently won the prestigious Hennessy Award for New Irish Poetry, while another had her first full collection of poems published by one of Ireland’s major poetry publishers.

Each workshop will run for ten weeks, commencing the week of September 15th. They will take place on Tuesday evenings, 7-8.30pm (first class September 16th); Wednesday afternoons, 2-3.30pm (first class September 17th); and on Thursday afternoons, 2-3.30pm (first class September 18th).

The Tuesday evening and Wednesday afternoon workshops are open to both complete beginners as well as those who’ve been writing for some time. The Thursday afternoon workshop is an Advanced Poetry Workshop, suitable for those who’ve participated in poetry workshops before or had poems published in magazines. The cost to participants is €110, with an €100 concession rate.

Places must be paid for in advance. To reserve a place contact Victoria at reception at Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street, phone 091 565886 or email victoria@galwayartscentre.ie

Range of Autumn Creative Writing Classes at G.T.I

Creative Writing for Beginners with Kevin Higgins takes place one evening per week (Monday) from 7.00-9pm for ten weeks. It commences on Monday, 22nd September, 2008. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €120. Kevin Higgins will provide writing exercises for, and give gentle critical feedback to, those interested in trying their hand at writing poems, stories or memoir.

Intermediate Creative Writing with Susan Millar DuMars (pictured) takes place one evening per week (Tuesday) from 7.00-9pm for ten weeks. It commences on Tuesday, 23rd September, 2008. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €120. This class is suitable for those who’ve participated in creative writing classes before or begun to have work published in magazines. Flexible exercises and work-shopping of assignments, together with the study of the works of published writers, will help each class member to find their own writing voice.

To book a place in either class contact GTI, Father Griffin Road, Galway Telephone 091-581342 or go to http://www.gti.ie/

Creative Writing at Galway Arts Centre with Susan Millar DuMars

This September Galway Arts Centre presents a daytime class for all those beginner and continuing creative writing students out there, facilitated by Susan Millar DuMars. Susan Millar DuMars writes both poetry and fiction. A collection of her stories, American Girls, was published by Lapwing Press in 2007; her first collection of poetry, Big Pink Umbrella, was published recently by Salmon Poetry. Susan is a renowned creative writing teacher, and with her husband Kevin Higgins co-organises the Over The Edge readings in Galway City Library.

This class is suitable for both beginning and continuing creative writing students, working in either poetry or fiction. Students will spend their week responding to writing exercises designed to inspire, rather than inhibit. In class, they will receive gentle feedback on their work from their classmates and from the teacher. They will then be expected to edit their pieces in time for the final class. Thus, students will gain experience in giving and responding to constructive criticism; and will, by the end of the course, have perhaps half a dozen polished pieces of writing finished. An ideal course for anyone who wants help moving from inspiration to finished product.

The class takes place on Monday afternoons, 2-3.30pm, commencing on Monday September 15th and runs for ten weeks. The cost to participants is 110 Euro with a 100 Euro concession price. Booking is essential as places are limited. For booking please contact Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street. Phone 091 565886 or email victoria@galwayartscentre.ie

GMIT: Creative Writing for Beginners with Susan Millar DuMars

Susan Millar DuMars will give support, instruction and feedback to students who are interested in writing either fiction (short stories, novels) or poetry. The course takes place one evening per week (Wednesday) for 8 weeks from 7.30–9.30 p.m. It commences on Wednesday, September 24th. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €120.00. For further details or to book a place contact GMIT, Dublin Road, Galway. Telephone 091 753161 or see http://www.gmit.ie/

New issue of West 47 now online

You can read the lastest issue of Galway Arts Centre's online literary quarterly at http://www.galwayartscentre.ie/west47/

This issue includes new work by Deirdre Kearney, Mags Treanor and Aoife Casby, as well as work by the four participants in this year's Cúirt Festival Over The Edge showcase reading, Mary Mullen, Megan Buckley, Fergal McNally & Hennessy Award Winner, Mary Madec. There is also a review of this year's Cúirt Festival by poet Brian Turner.

From Madrid, Los Angeles, St Louis, Dublin, Galway & Tuam: Writers gather at Sheridan’s Wine Bar

Over The Edge presents a reading by Philip Casey, Eamonn Wall, Aideen Henry, John Liddy, Jarlath Fahy & John Menaghan at Sheridan’s Wine Bar, 14-16 Church Yard Street, Galway on Friday, July 18th, 8pm.

Philip Casey was born to Irish parents in London in 1950 and grew up in Co Wexford. His publications include three collections of verse: Those Distant Summers (Dublin, Raven Arts Press, 1980); After Thunder (Raven Arts Press, 1985); and The Year of the Knife Poems 1980-1990, (Raven Arts Press Dublin, 1991). A fourth collection of poetry, Dialogue in Fading Light, was published by New Island Books in 2005. He has also published three novels, The Fabulists (Dublin, The Lilliput Press, 1994/ London,Serif Books, 1995); The Water Star (London, Picador, 1999); and The Fisher Child (Picador, 2001). A member of Aosdána, Philip initiated and maintains the website Irish Writers Online. He lives in Dublin.

Eamonn Wall was born and raised in Co. Wexford, has lived in the US since 1982 and is now settled in Missouri. His poetry collections to date are Dyckman--200th Street (1994), Iron Mountain Road (1997), The Crosses (2000), and Refuge at Desoto Bend (2004) all published by Salmon. From the Sin-é Café to the Black Hills (2000), a volume of essays on the Irish Diaspora, received the Michael J. Durkan Prize from the American Conference for Irish Studies for excellence in scholarship. Eamonn Wall teaches at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. This reading will be the Galway launch of Eamonn’s fifth collection of poems, A Tour of Your Country (Salmon Poetry).

Aideen Henry lives and works in Galway. Her poems have been published in The Shop, Soutword, West 47, Crannóg, Revival, The Cúirt Annual & The Stony Thursday Book. She is currently a student on the MA in Writing at NUI Galway. Aideen has also taken part in poetry workshops at Galway Arts Centre. She has read her poems many times at the Over The Edge open-mic; was a Featured Reader at the March 2007 Over The Edge: Open Reading and was shortlisted for this year’s Cúirt Festival/Over The Edge showcase reading.

Jarlath Fahy is a native of Tuam Co Galway. He is a dramatic reader of his work. He has read at the Voices from The Tower lunchtime readings in Galway’s Fisheries Tower, been a featured reader at an Over The Edge: Open Reading in Galway City Library and also featured at North Beach Poetry Nights. He has been compared to both Paul Durcan and Pat McCabe for his darkly comic content and to ee cummings for his typographical style. The Man Who Was Haunted By Beautiful Smells (Wordsonthestreet, 2008) is Jarlath’s first published collection.

John Liddy was born in Youghal, Co. Cork, grew up in Limerick and now lives in Spain. His poetry collections include Boundaries (1974), The Angling Cot (1991), Song of the Empty Cage (1997), Wine and Hope (1999), Cast-A-Net (2003) & The Well: New and Selected Poems (2007). 'La Barca de la Arena' (a translation by Francisco Rivero in Spanish of The Angling Cot), 'Poisionous Pleasure' (a tanslation by John Liddy from 'Tosigo Ardento' by José Maria Álvarez) will both be published soon. His work has been widely praised by critics such as Desmond O’Grady and Patrick Galvin. He lives in Madrid.

John Menaghan was born in New Jersey to Irish-American parents. He teaches literature and creative writing at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, where he also serves as Director of both the Irish Studies and Summer in Ireland programs and runs the annual Irish Cultural Festival. His most recent collection of poems, She Alone - a book-length poetic sequence, which traces the life of an imaginary woman from birth to death and beyond – was published in 2006 by Salmon Poetry. It has been described by the Hudson Review as “one of the best books” of the year.

There is no entrance fee. All are welcome. For further information contact 087-6431748.


Over The Edge acknowledges the financial support of the Arts Council and Galway City Council.

North Beach Poetry Summer Break

North Beach Poetry returns on Tuesday September 9th, 7pm with a new series of readings in Galway City Museum

The line-up is:
Sep. 09: Lorna Shaughnessy, Kevin Higgins, Robyn Rowland(Australia)

Oct. 07 Susan Millar Du Mars, Pete Mullineaux, Caroline Lynch

Nov. 04: Miceál Kearney, Moya Roddy, Jarlath Fahy

Dec. 09: John Walsh, Alan McMonagle, Moya Cannon (in association with Poetry Ireland)


AND North Beach Poetry Nights returns!

on Monday 15th September at 9pm

in its new venue: The Crane, Sea Road.

Guests for September Elaine Feeney and Neil McCarthy (Galway)

October: Raven (Dublin)

November: Tim Wells (London)

December: Lucy English (Bristol)


In the meantime, if you missed the launch of Miceál Kearney's debut collection

'Inheritance' from Doire Press,

you can pick it up for 10 Euro in Charlie Byrne's or direct at http://www.doirepress.com/

John Walsh (091-593290)

Counterparts Stories from Contemporary Ireland

Mephisto Theatre Company
Presents:
Counterparts: Stories from Contemporary Ireland
July's Theme: 'Men and Boys'

Mephisto Theatre Company is sorting out the boys from the men this month at the King's Head Ruby Room. Our aim is to provide a platform for local talent to showcase their stuff. Join us for the first instalment of our short fiction readings featuring work by local and Galway-based writers, headlined this month by Alan McMonagle. For more information contact us at mephisto.theatre@gmail.com


Where: The King's Head Ruby room
When: Wednesday 9th July, 8pm
Cost: €5 / €3--

Mephisto Theatre Company

50 Grattan Pk

The Claddagh

Galway

Ireland

http://www.mephistotheatre.org/