Another Listowel Writers' Week put to bed, exhausted by good talk, food and chats. I facilitated the three day short fiction workshop (with a great group of people), did two readings and a panel. And attended the opening night awards ceremony. Busy busy.
A few pics from the week is the most I have time for; I've to give talk to a writing group in Athlone today and I'm busily writing articles for US and Canadian newspapers and such for
Miss Emily promo. Six weeks exactly to pub day!
I managed to get to a few readings in between my own hectic schedule of events. Highlights: Anne Enright, Colm Tóibín and Dennis Lehane. And meeting my co-reader Alex Preston. Each of whom read/spoke with passion and verve. Some quotes I jotted down:
'Writers live in the shadows and work in silence.' Colm Tóibín
'I'm often surprised by my characters - I don't live in a goggle-eyed state, but I like to be surprised. I like an unexpected but
right thing to happen.' Anne Enright
'The hard stuff is having to crawl into dark spaces and write them.' Dennis Lehane
On authors who are novel-to-film moaners (about their own book): 'It's like the guy coming out of the whore house saying he doesn't feel loved.'
On that happy note, I'm off to write yet another piece about my beloved Emily :)
 |
| Juno and me at our B&B, Gurtenard, waiting to got to the Kerry Award ceremony |
 |
| Signing copies of The Closet of Savage Mementos for Anne Enright and Colm Tóibín |
 |
| The five Novel of the Year shortlistees with the man from Kerry & judge Gerald Dawe |
 |
| Shortlistees with Anne Enright, Colm Tóibín and Seán Lyons, Director of Writers' Week and judge Gerald Dawe |
 |
| Flowers on the table at the pre-awards dinner at the Listowel Arms Hotel |
 |
| Anne Enright doing the official opening speech |
 |
| Caoilinn Hughes and Ger Reidy receiving their Piggott Prize shortlistee prizes (listees got an engraved pen and a cheque) |
 |
| Judge of the Kerry Award, Gerald Dawe, saying lovely things about our shortlisted books for the Kerry Prize |
 |
| Winner of the Kerry Award, Eoin MacNamee, accepting his prize |
 |
| Anne O'Neill, myself and Alex Preston at our reading/discussion event |
 |
| Newly engaged writers Tanya Sweeney and David Butler |
 |
| Our B&B, Gurtenard |
 |
| Myself and Patrick O'Keeffe - fellow listees! |
 |
| Juno on the Alice chair |
 |
| O'Connor's - yay! |
 |
| A drink in John B. Keane's bar |
 |
| Juno with dancers at the children's festival - she had a brilliant time |
