Galway University Hospitals Arts Trust is seeking entries again for its exciting annual poetry competition

Galway University Hospitals Arts Trust is seeking entries again for its exciting annual poetry competition. 

 
CRITERIA: poems entered in the competition should be no more than 30 lines long. They must be the original work of the entrant. Poems previously published in magazines or poetry collections are eligible. Multiple entries are accepted; poets can enter as many poems as they wish.

PRIZE 
*the winner will have her or his poem published and displayed on the Arts Corridor of University Hospital Galway as part of the 2017 Poems For Patience. Poems For Patience is a long running series which over the past decade has featured poems by leading Irish and international poets such as Seamus Heaney, Philip Schultz, Jane Hirschfield, Michael Longley, Vona Groarke, Tess Gallagher and many more. The poems after exhibition on the Arts Corridor are then displayed in waiting areas throughout Galway University Hospitals.

*the winner will be invited to read his or her winning poem at the launch of the 2017 Poems For Patience at the Cúirt International Festival of Literature in April 2017.

*the winner will be provided with accommodation in Galway if travelling for one night during the 2017 Cúirt International Festival of Literature

*the winner will be given a copy of their poem printed and framed as a Poem for Patience poster

*the winner will be asked to submit six poems for consideration to be a Featured Reader at the Over The Edge: Open Reading series in Galway City Library. 

ENTRY FEE: to enter one poem the fee is €10. If you enter two or more poems the entry fee is €7.50 per poem i.e. to enter two poems it costs €15, to enter three poems €22.50 and so on.

Payment should be made by cheque or postal order payable to Galway University Hospitals Arts Trust. 

Entries should be sent by post to Margaret Flannery, Arts Director, Galway University Hospitals Arts Trust, Galway University Hospitals, University Hospital, Newcastle Road, Galway. Do not put your name on the poems; please include your contact details on a separate sheet. 

THE CLOSING DATE is Friday, March 3rd 2017

THE JUDGE: The competition judge is Kevin Higgins. Kevin Higgins is Writer-in-Residence with Galway University Hospitals Arts Trust. He facilitates poetry workshops at Galway Arts Centre; teaches creative writing at Galway Technical Institute, on the NUI Galway Summer School programme and on the NUIG BA Creative Writing Connect programme. He is the poetry critic of the Galway Advertiser. Kevin is co-organiser of Over The Edge literary events. His first collection of poems The Boy With No Face was published by Salmon in February 2005 and was short-listed for the 2006 Strong Award. His second collection, Time Gentlemen, Please, was published in March 2008 by Salmon. His work also features in the anthology Identity Parade – New British and Irish Poets (Ed Roddy Lumsden, Bloodaxe, 2010) and in The Hundred Years’ War: modern war poems (Ed Neil Astley, Bloodaxe, 2014). Frightening New Furniture, his third collection of poems, was published in 2010 by Salmon Poetry. Mentioning The War, a collection of his essays and reviews was published by Salmon in 2012. Kevin has read his work at most of the major literary festivals in Ireland and at Arts Council and Culture Ireland supported poetry events in Kansas City, USA (2006), Los Angeles, USA (2007), London, UK (2007), New York, USA (2008), Athens, Greece (2008); St. Louis, USA (2008), Chicago, USA (2009), Denver, USA (2010), Washington D.C (2011), Huntington, West Virginia, USA (2011), Geelong, Australia (2011), Canberra, Australia (2011), St. Louis, Missouri (2013), Boston, Massachusetts (2013) & Amherst, Massachusetts (2013). His poetry has been translated into Greek, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, Russian, & Portuguese. Kevin’s fourth collection of poetry, The Ghost In The Lobby, was published by Salmon Poetry in 2014. During 2015 and 2016 Kevin was satirist-in-residence with the alternative literature website The Bogman’s Cannon. During 2016 he published 2016 – The Selected Satires of Kevin Higgins (NuaScéalta) and the pamphlet The Minister For Poetry Has Decreed (Culture Matters – Manifesto Press). Song of Songs 2:0 – New & Selected Poems will be published by Salmon in Spring 2017.

For further details:  Tel: +353 (0)91 544979
 Email: Margaret.Flannery@hse.ie    

New Year Beginners & Intermediate Creative Writing Classes at Galway Technical Institute BOOK YOUR PLACE NOW

Susan Millar DuMars & Kevin Higgins

Creative Writing for Beginners with Kevin Higgins takes place one evening per week (Monday) from 7-9.30pm (8 weeks) with a mid-term break. It commences on Monday, January 16^th, 2017. 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 stories, poems, or memoir.

To book a place, go to http://www.gti.ie/parttime/course/detail/t/75/c/201611-004758

 

Intermediate Creative Writing with Susan Millar DuMars takes place one evening per week (Tuesday) from 7-9.30pm (8 weeks) with a mid-term break. It commences on Tuesday, January 17th, 2017. 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, go to http://www.gti.ie/parttime/course/detail/t/75/c/201611-004770

YOU CAN ALSO BOOK in person at Galway Technical Institute, Monday-Friday, (10am-4.30pm) before GTI closes for the Christmas break and also when it re-opens in early January.

For further information contact Galway Technical Institute, Father Griffin Road, Galway, phone 091-581342 or email gtiadulted@gretb.ie or see http://www.gti.ie

 

POETRY WORKSHOPS AT GALWAY ARTS CENTRE starting January

Starting in January, 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 2008 by Salmon Poetry and his poetry is discussed in The Cambridge Introduction to Modern Irish Poetry. His third collection Frightening New Furniture was published in 2010 by Salmon. His work also appears in the generation defining anthology Identity Parade –New British and Irish Poets (Ed. Roddy Lumsden, Bloodaxe, 2010) and The Hundred Years’ War: modern war poems (Ed Neil Astley, Bloodaxe April 2014).  A collection of Kevin’s essays and book reviews, Mentioning The War, was published by Salmon Poetry in 2012. Kevin’s poetry has been translated into Greek, Russian, Spanish, Italian, Japanese & Portuguese. His fourth collection of poetry, The Ghost in the Lobby, was published in 2014 by Salmon. Kevin's poetry was the subject of a paper 'The Case of Kevin Higgins, or, The Present State of Irish Poetic Satire' presented by David Wheatley at a Symposium on Satire at the University of Aberdeen. Kevin is satirist-in-residence with the alternative literature website The Bogman’s Cannon. 2016 – The Selected Satires of Kevin Higgins was published by NuaScéalta earlier this year; a pamphlet of his political poems The Minister For Poetry Has Decreed is published in December by the new Culture Matters imprint of U.K. based Manifesto Press. Song of Songs 2:0 – New & Selected Poems will be published by Salmon in Spring 2017. The Stinging Fly magazine recently described Kevin as “likely the most widely read living poet in Ireland”. 

Each week Kevin will give participants a poetry writing exercise for the following week and will offer each participant constructive suggestions as to how her or his poem can become the best possible poem it can be.

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 won the prestigious Hennessy Award for New Irish Poetry, two have won the Cúirt New Writing Prize, and yet another the Cúirt Poetry Grand Slam, while several have published collections of their poems; two being shortlisted for the Shine-Strong Award for Best First Collection of poems. In 2013 a group of his students set up the poetry newspaper Skylight 47, which publishes new poems, reviews of poetry books and opinion pieces about poetry related matters. Kevin teaches poetry on the NUI Galway Summer School programme and on the NUIG BA Creative Writing Connect programme. Kevin is also co-organiser of the successful Over The Edge reading series which specialises in promoting new writers.

Each workshop will run for ten weeks, commencing the week of Monday January 16^th. They will take place on Tuesday evenings, 7-8.30pm (first class January 17th); on Thursday afternoons, 2-4pm (first class January 19th) and on Friday afternoons, 2-3.30pm (first class January 20th).

The Tuesday evening and Friday 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 reception at Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street, phone 091 565886, email info@galwayartscentre.ie, or go to GalwayArtsCentre.ie

New Year Daytime Creative Writing Class with Susan Millar DuMars @ Galway Arts Centre BOOK NOW

Starting in January, 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, Lights In The Distance, was published in December 2010 by Doire Press; she has published three collections of poetry, Big Pink Umbrella (2008), Dreams For Breakfast (2010) & The God Thing (2013) all with Salmon Poetry. Susan was the Featured Fiction writer in a recent issue of the American online magazine The Atticus Review. Her latest book of poems, Bone Fire, published by Salmon Poetry, was launched at this year’s Cúirt Festival of International Literature. She is also co-organiser of the Over The Edge reading series which specifically promotes new writers. Susan edited the anthology Over the Edge – the first ten years, published by Salmon, which includes work by forty seven writers who have published a first book since they did a reading at an Over The Edge: Open Reading in Galway City Library.

The class is suitable for both beginning and continuing creative writing students, working in either poetry or fiction. Students will spend their weeks 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. The class takes place on Monday afternoons, 2.30-4pm, commencing on Monday, January 16th. It runs for 10 weeks. 


The cost to participants is 110 Euro with a 100 Euro concession price. Booking is essential as places are limited. There are no refunds once the class has started. For booking please contact Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street, phone 091 565886, email info@galwayartscentre.ie, or go to Galway Arts Centre.ie

December Over The Edge: Open Reading with Mary Lee, Helena Kane, & Matthew Caley

The December ‘Over The Edge: Open Reading’ takes place in Galway City Library on Thursday, December 15^th, 6.30-8.00pm. The Featured Readers are Matthew Caley, Helena Kane, & Mary Lee. There will as usual be an open-mic after the Featured Readers have finished. New readers are especially welcome. The Over The Edge end of year celebration will take place afterwards. 

Mary Lee was born in Curramore – a small village west of Headford. She has a background in psychotherapy and spirituality and draws on her former experience to write and work part time as a facilitator and psychotherapist. Her poems have appeared in Skylight 47; Orbis; Crannog; The Linnet’s Wings; The Galway Literary Review; The Poet’s Search for God; The Furrow and Spirituaity. Her work has also been broadcast of RTE Radio’s The Living Word. Her poetry collection Bloom was published recently by Matthew James Publishing Ltd. She now lives in Galway and is a participant in the Advanced Poetry Workshop at Galway Arts Centre.

Helena Kane grew up in East Galway but now lives in Galway city. She is a retired teacher so now finally has the time to pursue her interest in writing. When her children grew up she began to attend writing classes and has been working on a novel for the past four years. Titled `The Long, Long Road `, it starts in the Fifties. It’s about a young girl, Maire, who was in an Industrial school from the age of seven. She was allowed to leave there when she was sixteen. She enjoys her freedom for a while but through naivety and ill-luck she ends up in a Magdalen Laundry. There is no baby involved. She plans her escape with the help of a young man she met at a dance while she was free. Helena Kane is currently taking part in Susan Millar DuMars’s Advanced Fiction Writing Class.

Matthew Caley

Matthew Caley’s Thirst (Slow Dancer, 1999) was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection, and followed by The Scene of My Former Triumph (Wrecking Ball Press, 2005), Apparently (Bloodaxe Books, 2010); his ‘lost second collection, Professor Glass (Donut Press, 2011); and his fifth collection, Rake (Bloodaxe Books, 2016). His work has been included in many anthologies, including Roddy Lumsden’s Identity Parade (Bloodaxe Books, 2010) and John Stammers’ Picador Book of Love Poems. He has also co-edited Pop Fiction: The Song in Cinema with Stephen Lannin (Intellect, 2005). He lives in London with artist Pavla Alchin and their two daughters.

As usual there will be an open-mic after the Featured Readers have finished. New readers are always most welcome. The MC for the evening will be Susan Millar DuMars. For further details phone 087-6431748.

Over The Edge acknowledges the ongoing generous financial support of Galway City Council, Poetry Ireland, & The Arts Council.