Over The Edge celebrates its eighth birthday with readings by Michael Coady, Sarah Griffin & Dani Gill

Michael Coady

The first ‘Over The Edge: Open Reading’ of 2011 takes place in Galway City Library on Thursday, January 20th, 6.30-8.00pm. The Featured Readers are Sarah Griffin, Dani Gill & Michael Coady. This is a very special occasion as it is now exactly eight years since Over The Edge was born in Galway City Library in January 2003.

Sarah Maria Griffin is 22 years old and hails from the north side suburbs of Dublin. She is a student on the M.A in Writing at NUI Galway. She has only been performing in spoken word circles since late 2009, but since then has performed at many events such as The Glor Sessions, Exchange Words & The BrownBread Mixtape. She is also the co-founder of the diary-reading event in Dublin, Scarleh Fer Yer Ma Fer Havin Ya. Sarah writes both poetry and fiction and last October won the annual Over The Edge fiction slam.

Dani Gill is originally from Longford. For the past number of years she has worked in the Arts in Galway and has a background in theatre and Arts journalism. In October 2010 she was appointed Literature Officer for the Galway Arts Centre and Programme Director of Cúirt International Festival of Literature. She began creative writing classes with the lovely Susan Millar DuMars in early 2009 and was long listed in the 2010 Over The Edge New Writer of The Year competition. This will be Dani’s first public reading.

Michael Coady was born in 1939 in Carrick-on-Suir, County Tipperary, where he has worked as a teacher, musician and writer. Winner of the Patrick Kavanagh Award for Poetry in 1979 and also of Listowel Writers’ Week and RTE Francis McManus short story awards, he has published five collections with The Gallery Press: Two for a Woman, Three for a Man (1980), Oven Lane (1987), All Souls (1997), One Another (2003) and Going by Water (2009). In 2004 he received the eighth annual Lawrence O'Shaughnessy Award for Poetry from the University of St Thomas Centre for Irish Studies, St Paul, Minnesota. Michael was Heimbold Professor of Irish Studies at Villanova University in 2005. He is a member of Aosdána.

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 & The Arts Council.

GMIT presents Creative Writing for Beginners with Susan Millar DuMars in the New Year

TAKING BOOKINGS NOW

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 7 weeks from 7–9 p.m. The course commences on Wednesday, February 9th. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €95.00. For further details or to book a place contact GMIT, Dublin Road, Galway. Telephone 091-742145 or see http://www.gmit.ie/lifelong-learning/lifelong-learning-programmes/general-interest/artistic-creative/creative-writing-beginners.html


Susan was born in Philadelphia in 1966 to a Belfast-born mother. She holds an MA in Writing from the University of San Francisco. Her poems and short stories have been published widely in the US, UK and Ireland. Susan's stories have been short-listed for many awards, and in 2005 she received an Irish Arts Council Bursary for her fiction. American Girls, a volume of her short stories, was published by Lapwing in 2007. Since 2003, Susan and her husband Kevin Higgins have organised the successful Over the Edge reading series, showcasing new writers. Susan teaches creative writing at Galway Technical Institute, Galway Arts Centre, Galway Mayo Institute of Technology and on the Brothers of Charity Away With Words programme. Big Pink Umbrella (Salmon Poetry, 2008) was the first full collection of her poetry. One of her poems has been chosen by editor, Mathew Sweeney, for inclusion in Best of Irish Poetry 2010 (Southword Editions). Several of her poems feature in Landing Places: Immigrant Poets in Ireland, edited by Eva Bourke (Dedalus Press, March 2010). Her second collection of poems, Dreams for Breakfast, was published this April by Salmon Poetry. Her first full collection of short stories, Lights In The Distance, is published this December by Doire Press.

Charlie Byrne's Bookshop Hosts Launch of New Poetry Collection by Anne-Marie Fyfe

Seren Books

invite you to a launch to celebrate

the publication of

UNDERSTUDIES: NEW & SELECTED POEMS

Anne-Marie Fyfe

6.30 pm

Friday 21st January

Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop

Cornstore Mall

Middle Street

Galway

REFRESHMENTS

http://www.annemariefyfe.com

http://www.serenbooks.com

http://www.charliebyrne.com

January Poetry Slam at Galway Arts Centre

The next Poetry Slam with MC Pete Mullineaux will take place Tuesday January 18th at 7pm at the Galway Arts Centre.

Anyone can participate on the night and new comers are very welcome. To participate you need one poem/piece that will take about 3 minutes to perform. Judges on the night will select their favorite and the winner will be invited to be a guest reader at the next slam as well as qualifying for the Cúirt Grand Slam which will take place during next year’s Cúirt International Festival of Literature 12-17 April 2011.

In addition to this, the winner’s poem will be published on the Galway Arts Centre website along with a biography of the contestant. There will also be an interactive words game on the night with a Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop voucher up for grabs. Kevin Higgins will be the guest reader this month.The evening is free and all are welcome.

Modern Ireland has Nothing to Inspire Modern Writing

On Wednesday 2nd February the Irish Writers' Centre presents an open panel discussion on how the current economic climate is affecting modern writing in Ireland. Panellists from many areas across the Arts Sector will join together under one roof to discuss the impending budget and its possible effect on modern and aspiring writers as well as the dwindling number of arts organisations across the country.

The discussion will be chaired by poet Michael O' Loughlin, co-founder of Raven Arts Press. O’ Loughlin will be joined by The Sunday Business Post’s Books and Arts Editor Nadine O’Regan, Sean Love, co-founder of Fighting Words and former Amnesty Ireland director, author Claire Kilroy and Gerry Smyth, Managing Editor of the Irish Times and celebrated poet.

The discussion will begin at 7pm and is open to the general public.

The Irish Writers’ Centre is a non-profit organisation run by volunteers that promotes contemporary Irish literature. Since its foundation in 1991, the Centre has welcomed many award-winning writers through its doors, including Nobel, Costa, Man Booker, IMPAC, and Pulitzer Prize winners. It has also served as an important platform for breakthrough talent, with many young writers giving their first public readings here.
--
Irish Writers' Centre
19 Parnell Square
Dublin 1
t: +353 (0)1 872 1302
e: info@writerscentre.ie
w: http://www.writerscentre.ie

Ballybane Library presents Slovenian poetry in translation with Yvonne Cullen

Meta Kušar

On Wednesday 19th January the poet Yvonne Cullen will be in Ballybane Library at 2.30 pm to present some Slovenian poetry in translation.

The Slovenian poet Meta Kušar has written: “I hear a soul crying poignantly outside the door, wanting to come in.”

What world is it that the poetry of Meta Kušar and other Slovenian poets communicates? Meta Kušar writes about the self-regenerating power of life.

Yvonne Cullen promises a very interesting 40 minutes of the poetry of Slovenia.
Please join us!

New Year Poetry Workshops with Kevin Higgins at Galway Arts Centre-BEGINNERS & ADVANCED

In the New Year 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 April by Salmon and his work also appears in the generation defining anthology Identity Parade –New British and Irish Poets (Ed. Roddy Lumsden, Bloodaxe, 2010).

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, while several have published collections of their poems. 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 January 17th. They will take place on Tuesday evenings, 7-8.30pm (first class January 18th); on Thursday afternoons, 2-4pm (first class January 20th) and on Friday afternoons, 2-3.30pm (first class January 21st).

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 Victoria at reception at Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street, phone 091 565886 or email victoria@galwayartscentre.ie

Daytime Creative Writing with Susan Millar DuMars at Galway Arts Centre in the New Year

In the New Year Galway Arts Centre presents a daytime class for all those beginner and continuing creative writing students out there, both facilitated by Susan Millar DuMars. Susan Millar DuMars writes both poetry and fiction. A collection of her stories, Lights In The Distance, is just published by Doire Press; she has published two collection of poetry, Big Pink Umbrella (2008) and Dreams For Breakfast both with Salmon Poetry. She is also co-organiser of the Over The Edge reading series which specifically promotes new writers.

The 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. The class takes place on Monday afternoons, 2-3.30pm, commencing on Monday January 17th and runs for ten weeks.

The cost to participants is 110 Euro with an 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

2011 Cúirt New Writing Prize- 3 categories, cash prize PLUS opportunity to read at Cúirt

Cúirt New Writing Prize 2011

3 Categories: Poetry, Fiction, Non Fiction/Memoir


Prize: €500 cash prize and an opportunity to read at the Cúirt 2011 Over The Edge showcase reading


* We will only consider entries from writers who have not had a collection of their work published or do not currently have a collection under consideration for publication.


Deadline: Friday 4th February 2011 at 5pm.
Poetry: 3 poems, each under 50 lines
Fiction: up to 2000 words
Non Fiction/Memoir: up to 2000 words
Entries must be sent in hard copy only to:


Cúirt New Writing Prize
Galway Arts Centre
47 Dominick Street
Galway City


An entry fee of €10 is applicable for each entry. This must be a postal order or a bank draft made out to Cúirt International Festival of Literature.


* You must submit 3 copies of your work.
* Entries in both the Irish and English language are welcome.
* In addition to your work we ask that you include the following contact details on a separate sheet: Name, email address, phone number. Please do not type your name on each page you submit as we judge the entries anonymously.
* You may include a short biography of yourself if you so wish. If you do so please do not staple or attach it to your work; place it at the back of the envelope; separate to your work.


For any further enquiries please see: http://www.galwayartscentre.ie/cuirt/literature.html
or email: info@galwayartscentre.ie

2011 Arts Council Funding For Over The Edge

Over The Edge is delighted to announce that we have just this morning been informed that we will retain the same level of funding for 2011, under the Arts Council's Small Festivals and Events Scheme, as we received in 2010. In the circumstances this is a great result. Over The Edge has an exciting programme of events lined up for the coming year, which includes readings by Michael Coady, Claire Kilroy, Miriam Gamble, Rita Ann Higgins & Clare Pollard as well as the 2011 Cúirt Over The Edge Showcase reading.

December Poetry Slam at Galway Arts Centre

The Galway Arts Centre December Poetry Slam will kick off on Tuesday 21st December at 7pm at the Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street.

The Slam with MC Pete Mullineaux takes place the third Tuesday of every month with winners earning a place in the popular Cúirt Grand Slam event next April.

Anyone can participate on the night and new comers are very welcome. To participate you need one poem/piece that will take about 3 minutes to perform. Judges on the night will select their favourite and the winner will be invited to be a guest reader at the next slam as well as qualifying for the Cúirt Grand Slam which will take place during next year’s Cúirt International Festival of Literature 12-17 April 2011. In addition to this, the winner’s poem will be published on the Galway Arts Centre website along with a biography of the contestant.

There will also be an interactive words game on the night with a Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop voucher up for grabs.

Admission is free, mulled wine and mince pies will be provided. All are welcome.

Launch of 'Lights In The Distance' Short Story Collection by Susan Millar DuMars

Siobhán Campbell for final Over The Edge: Open Reading of 2010

Siobhán Campbell

The December Over The Edge: Open Reading takes place in Galway City Library, St. Augustine Street, Galway on Thursday, December 16th, 6.30-8pm. The Featured Readers are Elaine Cosgrove, Edward Lee & Siobhán Campbell.


Elaine Cosgrove was born in Sligo in 1985. Since then, she has been a hippie, a rocker, a metaller and an indie kid. She moved to Galway in 2004 to study at NUIG, and graduated in 2007 with an Arts Degree. She has participated in creative writing classes at Galway Technical Institute. This year, she was shortlisted for the Fish Publishing One Page Story Prize and the Over the Edge New Writer of the Year Competition.

Edward Lee is originally from Dublin, but now lives in Galway. His poems, short stories and photography have been published in a wide variety of publications, including The Shop, The Stinging Fly & The Sunday Tribune. He is also a visual artist and has had several exhibitions in various venues in Dublin and Galway. He has an exhibition entitled 'Playing Poohsticks: Part One' running in Galway City Library from the 1st December to the 21st December, which consists of 15 paintings and the 15 poems from his poetry collection that inspired them. Edward’s debut poetry collection Playing PoohSticks On Ha'Penny Bridge was published last year.


Siobhán Campbell’s third full poetry collection Cross-Talk, was published by Seren Press in 2009 and was declared “(a) cunning sideways take on the pastoral” by the Irish Times. She was shortlisted for the Michael Marks Award for That Water Speaks in Tongues (Templar Poetry). Her other books include The Permanent Wave and The Cold that Burns (Blackstaff Press). Siobhán is a Principal Lecturer at Kingston University London. She has won awards in the National Poetry Competition as well as in the Troubadour and Wigtown competitions. She is anthologised in The Field Day Anthology of Irish Writing and in Identity Parade: New British and Irish Poets (Spring 2010, Bloodaxe).


There will be an open-mic when the Featured Readers have finished. This is open to anyone who has a poem or story to share. New readers are always especially welcome. The MC for the evening will be Susan Millar DuMars. For further details phone 087-6431748 or see our website http://overtheedgeliteraryevents.blogspot.com/

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

North Beach Poetry Nights 2010 Grand Slam with Billy Ramsell & John Peppard

North Beach Poetry Nights announces the 2010 Grand Slam on Monday 13th December in the Crane Bar at 9 pm. Guest Poet Billy Ramsell (Cork). Special music guest from London - John Peppard.


Billy Ramsell was born in Cork in 1977 and educated at the North Monastery and UCC. 'Complicated Pleasures', his first collection, was published by Dedalus Press, Dublin, in 2007. He has been shortlisted for a Hennessy award and the Strong award. He has been invited to read his work at many festivals around the world, most recently in Shanghai and in San Francisco. He lives in Cork where he co-runs an educational publishing company.

14 poets, winners of the North Beach Poetry Nights' Slams throughout the year will perform and compete in a 2-round Grand Slam before a select panel of four judges. The judges will decide the winners based on the quality of the poem, the quality of the performance and how well the poet engaged the audience - and on their own personal reaction. The top 3 winners will be co-published in a poetry chapbook to be launched in 2011.

Door 5/3 Euro. Info: John@ 091-593290

North Beach Poetry Nights acknowledges the financial support of Galway City Council.

Launch of 'Stacey and the Mechanical Bull' by Sarah Clancy

Stacey and The Mechanical Bull (Lapwing Press) the debut poetry collection by Sarah Clancy will be launched by Kevin Higgins in Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop on Friday, December 10th, 6pm. All welcome.

Sarah Clancy is from Salthill. She is a participant in the Galway Arts Centre Poetry Workshops facilitated by Kevin Higgins and has read her poetry at North Beach Poetry Nights, the Over The Edge open-mic and was a Featured Reader at the August Over The Edge: Open Reading. This year, in a display of what she describes as beginners luck, Sarah was shortlisted in both the poetry section of the WOW awards 2010, the Listowel Writers Week Collection of Poetry Competition 2010 and the Over The Edge New Writer of The Year Competition. Her poems have been published in Revival, Dogs Singing (Edited by Jessie Lendennie, Salmon Poetry 2010) and Behind The Masks, the anthology of poems by participants in the advanced poetry workshop at Galway Arts Centre. Stacey and the Mechanical Bull is published by Lapwing Press in Belfast and is Sarah’s debut collection of poetry.

For further details about the launch 087-6431748

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

Salmon Poetry presents Galway Launch of 'Dogs Singing' anthology

Dogs Singing: A Tribute Anthology
Compiled & Edited by
Jessie Lendennie


GALWAY LAUNCH:
Venue: The Town Hall Theatre, Courthouse Square, Galway
Date/Time: Saturday 4th December, 2pm

"Dogs Singing: A Tribute Anthology" brings together poems which highlight and examine and celebrate the canine world, and our place in it.

"First love, enduring love; the witness, the stoic, the companion, the protector, the better part of us, the abiding presence, the warrior, the survivor, the guardian angel. Here is a big book of many poems, all inspired, devoted, motivated by a sacred bond that happens, the supreme privilege, that something far bigger than romance - a relationship with a dog. Dogs do sing; they also smile, socialise, engage and celebrate, mark a homecoming in proper style, even if it’s only the return from the local grocery store; they sigh, but most of all they understand, they grieve, they mourn, they empathise, they remember..." Eileen Battersby, Arts Writer & Literary Correspondent, The Irish Times

Royalties from the sale of this book go to the Soi Dog Foundation (Phuket, Thailand) and MADRA (Co. Galway, Ireland)

For more info,and to purchase copies online, visit the Salmon Poetry website:

http://www.salmonpoetry.com/

Art Exhibition By Poet Edward Lee @ Galway City Library

Playing Poohsticks: Part One

An Art Exhibition

at

Galway City Library

1st - 21st December 2010

Inspired by the poems of his first collection, Playing Poohsticks On Ha'PennyBridge (Spider Press, 2009), the artist Edward Lee is proud to present the first part of a quartet of exhibitions spanning the next four years. The first exhibition will take place in the Galway City Library on St. Augustine Street from the 1st - 21st December 2010.

The quartet will be a reflection of each of the 60 poems contained in the collection. For the first exhibition, the artist will present the first 15 paintings in the series, alongside the poems that inspired them. All of the paintings on exhibit will be for sale for 60 euro each and will include a copy of the poetry collection signed by the author. For the duration of the exhibition, the book will also be available to purchase for the special exhibition price of 6 euro.

Opening Night & wine reception will be Thursday 9th December 2010 from 6.30 ~ 8.00pm

“Edward Lee's poems in PLAYING POOHSTICKS ON HA'PENNY BRIDGE have a raw, exposed emotional quality with fiercely painful images...For me though the truly original and remarkable poems are those studying love, lust, disillusionment, whether about the same woman and the same affair, and are among the best poems I have read on the theme - visceral, honest, full of powerful feelings and imagery”. ~Weyfarers Magazine Issue 107
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

lastimages@yahoo.com

Edward Lee is also a Featured Reader at the December Over The Edge: Open Reading which takes place on Thursday, December 16th (6.30-8pm) in Galway City Library. For more see here http://overtheedgeliteraryevents.blogspot.com/2010/11/siobhan-campbell-for-final-over-edge.html

EVENING OF HUNGARIAN POETRY @ EYRECOURT LIBRARY

Poetry is like bread!
The Nobel prize-winning poet, Pablo Neruda, said that: “Poetry is like bread. It should be shared by all, by scholars and the man on the street corner, by all our vast, incredible, extraordinary family of humanity."


In Eyrecourt Library on this coming Wednesday evening, November 24th, at 7.30pm, we would like to share with you the poetry (in translation) of Hungary!


Hungarians have tended to the belief that poetry can change social life. We hope that a few of the people who attend might read aloud a Hungarian poem or paragraph which they like and which has been translated into English. There are some really interesting pieces, and the translated poems will be available in the Eyrecourt Library in advance.

Please join us. AND REMEMBER....if you do not wish to read there will be no problem: you are under no pressure to do anything but sit and listen and enjoy the event. We would like to make this a very enjoyable and social evening for everyone.

Hope you can make it!

Thank you for reading this.

Pat McMahon,
Galway County Libraries.

Yvonne Cullen's Writing Train

WRITING TRAIN


WINTER 2010/ SPRING 2011


COURSE DETAILS

Day courses starting Nov/Dec 2010, booking now open:

TUES NOV 30 INTERMEDIATE WRITING TRAIN 12 weeks, €290

SAT DEC 4: POETRY ONE-DAY COURSE, €70

MON DEC 6: START TO WRITE 8 weeks, €230

ONGOING ENROLLMENT ALSO AVAILABLE IN ADVANCED WORKSHOPS.( Details below).

Writing Saloon Reading nights: SAT 29th Nov 8p.m and SAT 11 Dec 8 p.m. (details below).

Spring term at Writing Train also booking now at discount rates. Full details at http://www.yvonnecullen.com/ or email yvonnesworkshops@gmail.com

January timetable:
8 JAN, DEVELOPING POET, 12 weeks of 2.75 hrs €290

WEDNESDAY 12 JAN FORTNIGHTLY WRITING TRAIN, 16 sessions of 2.75 hrs over 32 weeks €420.

Sat 16 JAN €70 (One Day Course) START TO WRITE

February timetable:

MON 7 FEB, START TO WRITE, 8 weeks of 2.5 hrs, €230

10 FEB THURSDAY NIGHT WRITING TRAIN, 15 weeks of 2.75 hrs, €370

FRI 11 FEB: DAYTIME WRITING TRAIN, SANDYCOVE 14 weeks of 2.5 hr sessions €340

WEDS 7 FEB: New term for: WEDNESDAY DAYTIME WRITING TRAIN 14 weeks of 2.5 hours €340

March timetable:

FIRST WEEK MARCH: “FROM HISTORIES TO STORIES” – make progress with your researched creative writing project. 10 weeks of 2.5-hour sessions daytime, South city centre, from first week in March. Day will be picked to suit participants, as far as possible. €285

29 MARCH New start for TUES NIGHT INTERMEDIATE WRITING TRAIN. 12 weeks of 2.5 hour sessions, €335.

POETRY DAY SAT 4th DEC
Self-contained one -day poetry course, focusing on areas of skill chosen by participants in advance, and designed to fire up your poetry furnaces. This year, poetry students from Writing Train have been shortlisted for the important Bridport Prize, for the Strokestown Poetry Prize and for the Hennessy Award!

Venue: Glasthule (On dart line, Sandycove station)

Running time: 10.30 – 1.00 and 2.30 – 5 p.m with a break for a dash to Cavistons deli for lunch and chance of a quick run to the sea while we’re at it, plus option to eat together at Poppies café in Dunlaoghaire when afternoon sessions end, to chew over the day and go on talking poetry! Day will be completely tailored to students’ areas of interest and you’ll take materials away. NB: This will be more of a tutored course with exercises and discussion than a workshop, €70.

If there is a quorum for a “workshop” day on SAT 11th DEC this is also an option as a follow-on – fee: €125 for both.

THE DEVELOPING POET From Sat 8th Jan, 3 p.m. United Arts Club, Fitzwilliam Street, D. 2.

12 weeks of 2.5-hour sessions – a fourth season for this popular and inspiring course.

This year, poetry students from WT have been shortlisted for the important Bridport Prize, for the Strokestown poetry Prize and for the Hennessy Award.

€295 / €280 if booked and paid by 17 Dec.

Get going! Keep going! Start again - with WRITING TRAIN’s “Begin to Write” and “Intermediate Writing Train” courses. (Whether you need a big push, or a little one…)

START TO WRITE from 6 DEC 8 x 2.5 hour meetings €230

Starts Monday night, 6 DEC. 8 weeks of 2.5 hour evening sessions from 6.30 – 9 p.m. A 10-week course in 8 meetings! Running across the Christmas break will also give you time to do some interesting exercises and finish a story, short piece of drama or poem before the second part of course begins in January. Fee: €230. Venue will be Nora’s Room at the atmospheric Sweny’s Chemist’s at Lincoln Place. All the short forms will be looked at in this course. Even more importantly, in this course, the fundamentals of observation, of tuning in to your own excitement ( and tuning out the censor!), aspects of the habit and practice of writing and ways of reading more effectively will be illuminated for you. If you really do want to write, after this (touch wood!) you won’t look back!

START TO WRITE: ONE DAY COURSE: (A.K.A Getting your Ships into Bottles - or should that be out of them?)

SUN JAN 16th

City Centre venue, fee €70 for full day to get you going, to help you find the material that’s already within your reach and help you surprise yourself with your skill! This course will use my favourite techniques and approaches plus lots of focused discussion and materials to take away. Please email or phone Writing Train on number below if you’d like further details.

(See also Start To Write 8 week course, beginning 7 FEB)

For further details check http://www.yvonnecullen.com/, yvonnecullen’s writing train page at facebook, and email yvonnesworkshops@gmail.com

Matthew Sweeney, Laura Brennan & James O'Toole for November Over The Edge: Open Reading

Matthew Sweeney

The November Over The Edge: Open Reading takes place in Galway City Library, St. Augustine Street, Galway on Thursday, November 18th, 6.30-8pm. The Featured Readers are James O’Toole, Laura Brennan & Matthew Sweeney . The reading is sponsored by Poetry Ireland.

James O’Toole was born in Galway but caught the travel bug early and spent twenty five years on the road studying life and sports medicine in America, England and Dublin. His poetry has been published in Poetry Ireland Review and also in literary magazines in the United States. James is currently a participant in the advanced poetry workshop at Galway Arts Centre and his work features in the group’s recently launched publication Behind The Masks. He was highly commended in this year’s Over The Edge New Writer of The Year competition.

Born in Dublin, Laura Brennan is a visual artist now living in Galway. Her practice combines painting drawing and writing. She is a member artist of Artspace Studios and has exhibited in Ireland and abroad and recently completed residencies in Reykjavik and Inishturkbeg Island. In the past two years she has participated in Kevin Higgins’s poetry workshops at Galway Arts Centre and was shortlisted in the 2010 Over The Edge New Writer of The Year Competition.

Matthew Sweeney was born in Co Donegal in 1952. He moved to London in 1973 and studied at the Polytechnic of North London and the University of Freiburg. He now lives in Cork City. His poetry collections include A Dream of Maps (Dublin, Raven Arts Press, 1981); Blue Shoes (Secker & Warburg,1989); Cacti (Secker & Warburg 1989); The Bridal Suite (London, Jonathan Cape, 1997); Black Moon (Jonathan Cape, 2007), which was shortlisted for the T.S. Eliot Award and The Irish Times /Poetry Now Award; and The Night Post (London, Salt, 2010), which is a Selected Poems.

There will be an open-mic when the Featured Readers have finished. This is open to anyone who has a poem or story to share. New readers are always especially 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 and The Arts Council and the sponsorship of this reading by Poetry Ireland.