Novelist Mike McCormack at May Over The Edge: Open Reading

Mike McCormack

After the huge success of the Over The Edge showcase reading at the Cuirt Festival in April, the May ‘Over The Edge: Open Reading’ will take place on Thursday, May 25th, 6.30-8pm in Galway City Library. This month’s Featured Readers – Mike McCormack, Jan Schlegel & Mags Treanor - are all fiction writers.

Mike McCormack is a Mayo-man and was born in 1965. He studied English and philosophy at UCG, as it was then, and has published three books, Getting it in the Head, 1996 - a collection of short stories – and two novels Crowe's Requiem, 1998 and Notes from a Coma, 2005. For the last three years he has been writer in residence at NUI Galway and is currently finishing a book of short stories.

Jan Schlegel grew up in the north of Germany. She currently lives in Galway City, where she works as a translator. She writes short-stories and is a regular contributor to the monthly Fiction Clinic, facilitated by Susan Millar DuMars. A chapbook of Jan’s short-stories, One to Five, was published last year by Over The Edge. Her work has also been published in Stories From The Half-Lit Hours – the Fiction Clinic Chapbook.

Mags Treanor writes prose, short stories and slam poetry. She is currently working on an autobiographical novel, Girl Racer. Her work has been published in The Cuirt Annual, anthologised by New Island Press, and broadcast on RTE Radio. In her spare time Mags works as a business consultant, single-handedly parents three young children and takes leisurely strolls on the Prom.

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 welcome. The MC for the evening will be Susan Millar DuMars. For further details contact 087-6431748.

Over The Edge acknowledges the financial support of Galway City Council

John Menaghan & John Walsh at Sheridan's

On Friday, May 5th, 9pm, there will be a poetry reading by American poet John Menaghan and Derry-born, Galway-based poet John Walsh at Sheridan’s Wine Bar, Galway.

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 – is published by Salmon Poetry.

John Walsh was born in Derry. He lived in Germany for many years, but has now settled in Galway. He is an accomplished singer-songwriter, and MC and organiser of the hugely successful North Beach Nights poetry slam. His poems have been published in the Black Mountain Review, Flaming Arrows and Crannog magazine. His first collection of poems, ‘Between Morning and the Noon-Day Tide’, is forthcoming from Marram Press.

Brendan Murphy, who won the Cuirt Festival Poetry Grand Slam on Saturday has agreed to come along and read his winning poem during the half-time break.

All welcome. For further details phone 087-6431748.