ENGLANDER WINS O'CONNOR 2012

Nathan Englander Photo: Telegraph

Nathan Englander has won the 2012 Frank O'Connor Award for his short story collection What we Talk about When We Talk about Anne Frank. He will appear at the Cork International Short Story Festival in September, the programme for which is now online here.

I am teaching a four day short story workshop at the same festival (there a are a couple of places still available) and I'm reading with D W Wilson, on Thursday the 20th September at 7.15pm in Triskel Christchurch.

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In other news, novelist Kevin Power is teaching a one-day novel writing workshop this weekend at the Irish Writers' Centre in Dublin. €80.

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 In other other 'news', I am sitting here working with the heat on, a body warmer on, and a scarf around my neck. It's July for God's sake! Arrgghhhh!

FRANK O'CONNOR SHORTLIST 2012

Kevin Barry is the only Irish nominee on the shortlist for the 2012 Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award, the world’s biggest prize for a collection of stories. What a year he's having!

Congrats to all of the six-strong list which is nicely international with collections from Americans Nathan Englander and Lucia Perillo, Israeli Etgar Keret, New Zealander Fiona Kidman and British writer Sarah Hall. Nathan Englander is effectively on the list twice as he translated Keret’s book; he and Keret will split the prize money if the book wins. Perhaps they'll do a nice two-hander at the festival if that happens. That would be cool. Etgar K gave a good reading and interview the last time he was shortlisted for the award.

The winner of the award of €25,000, organised by the Munster Literature Centre and funded by Cork City Council, will be announced on July 5th and the prize will be presented at the Cork International Short Story Festival in September. The judges are poet James Harpur, Irish novelist Mary Leland and festival organiser Ann Luttrell.