HAPPY FLASH FICTION DAY!!

Happy (International) Flash Fiction Day!

I am delighted that my flash chapbook Of Dublin and Other Fictions has received a good review from Kelly Creighton, in New Zealand based journal Flash Frontier. A sample: 'Each fiction is a fresh one: a balance of truth and the surreal. The author makes us laugh (out loud) when we are not expecting to. Anyone who writes flash fiction should read this book; it should be taught! Ní Chonchúir makes brief look effortless, but this is her expertise.' The full review is here.

From 3pm to 6pm today I will be in Arthur's Pub on Thomas Street in Dublin for the Big Smoke Writing Factory's annual flash event. This year: Flash Fury! I'll be reading along with many others and also announcing the winner of the 99 word flash prize. I would love to catch up with some of you there.

I also have a flash called 'Cider and Simnel' in the NFFD anthology, Eating My Words. Which can be bought in paperback at £6.99 or for Kindle at £1.99. Lots of good stuff in there from writers like Tania Hershman, Eabha Rose, Nik Perring, Nigel McLoughlin, Cathy Bryant, Tim Stevenson and Jonathan Pinnock.

INTERVIEW & A LAUNCH & AN ENDING-BEGINNING

My friend and fellow writer Shauna Gilligan interviews me at her blog today about the chapbook. Here.

I am off to Dublin for the New Planet Cabaret anthology launch (ed. Dave Lordan) in The Gutter Book Shop. It will be broadcast on Arena, so if you can't make it, tune in to RTÉ Radio 1.

I sent my American novel (Novel #3) to my agent last night. It feels good to have it finished but, no doubt, the slump will hit soon. Back to short stories now!

HAPPY BLOOMSDAY!

Nora Barnacle House, Bowling Green, Galway

Happy Bloomsday! It's a day I love. I'm sad that the Nora Barnacle House in Galway no longer opens on this day every year: time was when a great party with readings from Ulysses took place there each Bloomsday.

I contented myself with raising a toast to James Joyce at dinner and, of course, I had a fabulous night at the Irish Writers' Centre on Friday with readings and music from all the writers featured in A Telmetale Bloomnibus - an anthology that reimagines the book for the 21st century. It is available now on Kindle for stg £1.99.

Thanks to Clodagh Moynan and June Caldwell at the IWC for a great night based around an innovative idea.

STORY ON ARENA on RTÉ RADIO

My short-short story 'Sunasawsta' featured on RTÉ's Arena tonight; it's 30 minutes in. The story will appear in the Dave Lordan edited New Planet Cabaret anthology (New Island, Autumn 2013). There is still time to submit to that anthology - subs are open until 28th April. From the Arena site:

'For April the New Planet Cabaret mic is open to all kinds of everything....write anything you want in any style you want on any subject you want. The maximum word-count is 700. Please send your entry marked New Planet Cabaret to arena@rte.ie by midnight on the 28th April.'

SILVER THREADS OF HOPE NOW AVAILABLE

You can now buy short story anthology Silver Threads of Hope, edited by Sinéad Gleeson, online. It will be in the shops from next week. It is being sold in aid of suicide charity Console.

From the New Island site (guess which story is mine??!!):

"From the parodied etiquette of Celtic Tiger dinner parties to the first tentative signs of new found love in a coastal tattoo parlour, the collection features stories that evoke feelings of sadness, happiness and humour.

Read stories by: Kevin Barry, Greg Baxter, Dermot Bolger, John Boyne, Declan Burke, John Butler, Trevor Byrne, Emma Donoghue, Roddy Doyle, Dermot Healy, Christine-Dwyer Hickey, Declan Hughes, Arlene Hunt, Colm Keegan, John Kelly, Claire Kilroy, Pat McCabe, Colum McCann, John McKenna, Belinda McKeon, Mike McCormack, Siobhan Mannion, Peter Murphy, Nuala Ni Chonchuir, Phillip O'Ceallaigh, Keith Ridgway, William Wall and Mary Costello."

SILVER THREADS OF HOPE

 
The cover has been released for Silver Threads of Hope, the short story anthology edited by journalist and broadcaster extraordinaire, Sinéad Gleeson. The book will be published in September by New Island, it contains 28 new short stories by Irish writers and is in aid of Console, the suicide support organisation. Songwriter Adrian Crowley gave permission to use a line from his song 'Bless our Tiny Hearts' as the title and Martin Gleeson designed the cover.

I have a new story in the anthology called 'Squidinky' - it features tattoos (I like what I like), grief and third-age friendship. I know Colm Keegan has a story in there too and I am looking forward immensely to reading all the other writers' stories. I believe they include ones from Roddy Doyle, Anne Enright and Emma Donoghue. Stellar!

PRESIDENTIAL GIVEAWAY - SHINE ON

In honour of our wonderful new President, Michael D. Higgins, I am giving away a copy of the new Shine On: Irish Writers for Shine anthology which contains a poem by the very man. Also a story by me and fabulous work by lots of other Irish writers. I blogged its launch here.

In the spirit of patriotism, I am confining this giveaway to Ireland. Sorry, my lovely overseas readers - I will do a giveaway of the new poetry book next month which will be for everywhere :)

Just leave a comment to say you want to be in the draw and I will pull a name out of the hat next Friday, the 4th November. Good luck!

SHINE ON ANTHOLOGY LAUNCH

I have a short story, 'My Name is William Clongallen', in the anthology Shine On: Irish Writers for Shine. Shine is the national organisation dedicated to upholding the rights of all those affected by enduring mental illness. My story is about a Brooklyn man who comes to Ireland to search for the mother he never knew.

Miriam O'Callaghan, wrote the foreword and the book features work from many well known writers, including Claire Keegan, Paul Durcan and Sinéad Morrissey. 

Shine On: Irish Writers for Shine will be launched tonight, October the 11th, in the Westin Hotel in Dublin. The book will be in all Irish book shops and can also be ordered  here with free delivery worldwide.

TCD ANTHOLOGY LAUNCH

The creative writing M.Phil class at Trinity College Dublin present the launch of this year's anthology, Alms on the Highway. Launch by Minister Jimmy Deenihan of the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. The anthology includes poetry and fiction from the likes of Eileen Casey and Edel Corrigan. Foreword by Kevin Barry.

Wednesday 25th May at 6.30pm at Gutter Bookshop, Cows Lane, Temple Bar, Dublin 1.

W gutterbookshop.com

The Granta Book of the Irish Short Story - review

The nice people at Granta sent me a copy of The Granta Book of the Irish Short Story because they 'thought I'd like it'. I do like it - thank you, Granta! So I thought I should repay them by reviewing it here. So here goes:

Will I do the clichéd reviewing-an-anthology thing and lament the excluded writers? Wail about the story that should have represented X writer? Moan about the fact that anthologies usually represent who the writer is friends with/connected to, rather than who is actually writing and publishing short stories at the time? No, I won’t bother. This is very much Anne Enright’s personal selection. She read hundreds of stories for this book – I have no doubt that she took her task seriously and, here, she presents the stories that stayed with her, long after reading them. Her foreword is cryptic in the way only Anne Enright can be cryptic. She appears to say that the English are not great short fiction writers – or does she? She is also provocative in that she takes issue with Frank O’Connor’s assertion that the short story is about the lonely and ‘submerged populations’.

I’m a huge Enright fan and I enjoyed reading her introduction to the book, even if I didn’t fully get all of it. She has, as always, interesting things to say. Consider, for example her assertion that ‘if the short story is a national form it did not seem to flourish in the national language of Irish, where all the excitement, for me at least, was in poetry.’ Agh – what about Liam Ó Flatharta’s Dúil? Or Peig which was essentially a collection of stories? (Or am I unique in that I enjoyed Peig?!)

But I love what she says about John McGahern’s stories: ‘[they] are the literary equivalent of a hand grenade rolled across the kitchen floor.’ Brilliant.

My heart fell to my boots when the opening story by Michael McLaverty was about nuns. Groan. Ireland is not all about religion and alcohol – really! Anyway, I read the story. It broke a few ‘rules’ of writing, for example, it shifted viewpoint throughout and it was overloaded with characters. But, do you know what? I enjoyed it. It zones in on the claustrophobia and pettiness that always seems to surround convent life; it highlights the childish nature of many nuns; it focuses on one event, which is what any good short story should do. The story ends predictably, but so what? Sometimes there is comfort in that.

There's a nasty little story from Roddy Doyle and a not very convincing one from John Banville but all in all there's a tempting selection in the anthology. I like that Maeve Brennan is included and Mary Lavin, but I would have loved more modern stories.

I wonder if this book was rushed out in the end – the copyediting and proofreading is poor. Claire Keegan’s name is spelt wrong twice and there are odd gaps left around the ellipsis here, there and everywhere. It’s enough to drive a reader mad! And for anyone who thinks I’m nitpicking – perfection in presentation is crucial (ask Noah Lukeman). I would have thought that Granta would be top-notch when it came to such issues.

There is a sense of the usual suspects about this book – only one name was not familiar to me: Jennifer Cornell. Wouldn’t it be lovely to open an anthology and be introduced to heaps of lesser known writers? None of the writers represented here is under 40 years of age either. That, I think, is unfortunate and an oversight. I would also have liked to see Emma Donoghue in the book and, maybe, Des Hogan.

There, I did end up doing the clichéd thing but maybe, when reviewing an anthology (however briefly), it can’t be avoided. Would I encourage you to buy it? Well, if you are not familiar with Irish short fiction of the 20th Century, yes. If you're looking for ultra-contemporary Irish short stories, not so much. But it's a good overview of many of the writers who paved the way for the rest of us and for that alone, it's worth the investment (€18.89 from The Book Depository, delivered). Or maybe Santa Claus will be gifting it this year.

2011 WOW Awards for New Writers

There are just over two weeks left until the closing date for the 2nd annual WOW! Awards in poetry and fiction.

The WOW! Awards are awarded to the best entries in poetry and fiction submitted and will be published in the WOW! Anthology. There is no cash prize - publication in the anthology is the prize.

The Admins say 'The WOW! Awards are particularly suitable for those who have a short publishing record and for more emergent writers.'

Full details, including submission details, are on www.wordsontheweb.net.

Dublin: Twelve Journeys, One Destination

I have a story in a new anthology from the Irish Writers' Exchange - out in October - and myself and fellow contributor Jeanette Rehnstrom are featured in their newsletter this month. We were each asked the same two questions and our answers, from the Exchange's current newsletter, are below.

From the newsletter, about the anthology:

"Out this autumn, Dublin: Twelve Journeys, One Destination is a collection of short stories about Dublin by Irish authors as well as authors of other nationalities who have made Ireland their home.

From Melatu Okorie's tale of the Irish asylum system's hidden depth to Oran Ryan's moving account of the trials of a library assistant, from Joan Arbery's story of a late-night misadventure throughout the streets of Dublin to Isabel Roleff's account of one woman's victory over institutional child abuse, the collection seamlessly weaves together profound insight into life's momentous issues with experiences we can all share. A dazzling array of fresh talent, the collection truly has something for everyone.

Dublin: Twelve Journeys, One Destination, is now available for pre-order on our webpage.

Find out more about the publication and order your copy here."

Featured Author: Jeanette Rehnstrom

Jeanette's writing life began with her grandmother’s gift of a beautiful round-keyed typewriter. Having lived in her native Sweden, London, Los Angeles and New York, she moved to Dublin in 2004. A regular contributor to GCN magazine since 2005 on immigration and rural isolation issues, she is working on her novel At Cross due out this coming winter.

Why do you write?
I’ve always felt writing to be something self-evident in my life. I write because that is what I do. When I write I come live to a degree which is very particular to that activity alone. Writing connects me to a type of freedom which I am otherwise rarely able to reach.

Why did you provide a story for Dublin: Twelve Journeys, One Destination?
Much of my life I’ve spent as an “other”, this even when I was living in my country of birth, Sweden, due to a very personal disconnection to much of what is asked of Swedes by Swedes. I strongly believe in the wisdom generated by outsiders. I believe this particular sort of insight works as a rocket fuel for positive change on ingrown debilitating societal patterns. Hence, my involvement in this project.

Featured Author: Nuala Ní Chonchúir

Galway writer Nuala Ní Chonchúir holds a BA in Irish from Trinity College Dublin and a Masters in Translation Studies from Dublin City University. Having worked as an arts administrator, translator and bookseller, she currently teaches creative writing. She has been shortlisted for the Edge Hill Prize for her short story collection Nude.

Why do you write?
I write because I'm compelled to; if I don't write, I'm extrememly crabby so it keeps me sane, really. My writing grows out of my reading - I've always been a hungry reader - and I just love telling stories. Not orally but specifically by writing them down.

Why did you provide a story for Dublin: Twelve Journeys, One Destination?
I'm from Dublin and I love both city and county, so I was attracted to the project for that reason. Lots of my work - including my novel You - is set in Dublin. It seemed to be a fit for me so I sent in my story and was
delighted to be accepted.

SHORT CIRCUIT COMES TO TOWN

Short Circuit editor Vanessa Gebbie will be here on Wednesday as part of her virtual tour for this wonderful anthology of essays on all things short fiction.
Join us for a listen as we chat about character naming and procrastination, among other things.

The Watchful Heart Launch - tonight

Happy May Day, everyone! And, especially, a big happy birthday to my best pal, Ó.F., if she's reading!

The Watchful Heart is being launched tonight at Kenny's Liosbán shop in Galway. 6pm - all welcome!

Subtitled 'A New Generation of Irish Poets – Poems and Essays', the book is an anthology of the work of twenty-four Irish poets born in the last fifty years. It has bio and biblio details of each contributor, together with photographs. The anthology was ably edited and compiled by Joan McBreen.

My copy arrived this morning and it looks great. I had a very quick dip into the poems and essays - a lovely, varied lot - and how are these for a taster of the essay titles?:

'The brindled cat is chewing the nightingale's tongue' - Louis de Paor on translation

'Poetry doesn't exist' - Alan Gillis - ??!! intriguing...

'Closing the book on the open mic' - Eileen Sheehan - ooh, controversial-sounding!!

'Getting my snake, getting my corset and getting my tongue pierced' - Kate Newmann on writing with kids in schools.

My own essay is rather soberly titled 'The Art of the Body: poem as female self-portrait'.

It's a very comprehensive anthology and a nice match for Salmon's other recent anthology Poetry: Reading It, Writing It, Publishing It, which I am currently reading and thoroughly enjoying. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who wants to be published or who has any interest at all in contemporary poetry. There are some great essays in it, notably (from my reading so far) by Nessa O'Mahony and David Gardiner.

Hoping to see some of you at tonight's Watchful Heart launch!

MARKS AND BUZZ

I arrived back after my trip to Dublin for the Marks launch to a big, fat envelope stuffed with a generous 10 copies of the Buzz anthology from Templar Poetry in the UK. It is a gorgeous production and I am delighted to have three poems included. Fellow Galway writer Maureen Gallagher is also featured. I read half of it last night and the standard is amazing. I can only imagine that the winners of the pamphlet competition were outstanding. One of them was Siobhán Campbell, a well-known and exciting poet. I heard her read at Cúirt a few years ago and one of her poems, about a girl's sexuality being formed by her father's pornography stash, was alarmingly frank and taut.

Copies of Buzz can be bought here for £8 sterling. My pals will be getting a copy for Christmas from my contributor's pile! If anyone wants to review it, contact me through my website or, indeed, go straight to Templar Poetry.

The Marks launch was a blast: a big crowd turned up to drink bottles of Miller and swelter in the studio in Temple Bar Gallery where it took place. Circa did such a good job of the publication: it looks beautiful. Alan Jude Moore, Kevin Barry and myself read

Kevin's piece was about a famous Irish sculpture, the Anna Livia Fountain (nicknamed The Floozy in the Jacuzzi), which was inexplicably moved from its spot on O'Connell St in Dublin several years ago and is now in storage. His monologue was raucous and funny: pure Kevin. I loved his silver and gold runners too - very snazzy!

I met the lovely film-maker Paddy Cahill and his equally lovely brother Conor. Watch out for Paddy's excellent documentary on Liberty Hall which will be shown on RTÉ in the coming months. Also at the launch were writer and blogger P.J. Nolan, writers Kathleen Murray and Sinéad Morrissey, and artists Cora Cummins and Seán Lynch.

It was a great night and all credit goes to Declan Meade of The Stinging Fly and Peter Fitzgerald of Circa. Marks is available to purchase for a bargain €6 here.