Over The Edge Alumni Shortlisted for Hennessy Literary Awards

Mary Madec

Michelle O'Sullivan

Aoife Casby

Mary Madec, Michelle O'Sullivan & Aoife Casby are three of the six poets shortlisted in the New Irish Poetry category for this year's Sunday Tribune Hennessy Literary Awards. The winners in each category, the other categories being First Fiction and Emerging Fiction, will be announced, as will the Sunday Tribune Hennessy New Irish Writer of The Year, at a gala lunch at the Four Seasons Hotel in Dublin on Tuesday, April 22nd. This year's judges are Eílis Ní Dhuibhne & Douglas Kennedy.

Mary Madec was born in County Mayo. She started writing poetry about four years ago and since then has published in Crannóg, West 47, The Cúirt Annual, the SHOp, The Sunday Tribune, WOW and Iota among others. In Spring 2007 she was chosen for the Poetry Ireland Introductions; in July she was runner-up in the Raftery competition and chosen for the WINDOWS showcase and anthology. Last autumn she started up a community-writing project Away with Words for people with intellectual disabilities. She has attended a number of poetry workshops at Galway Arts Centre and was a Featured Reader at the November 2005 Over The Edge: Open Reading. Mary will also read at the 2008 Cúirt Festival Over The Edge Showcase reading at the Town Hall Theatre, Galway on Thursday, April 24th at 11am.

Michelle O’Sullivan lives in County Mayo. She has an MA in Literature. Her poetry has appeared in a variety of prestigious publications such as The Shop, Poetry Ireland Review, The Sunday Tribune & Agenda. She has work forthcoming in PN Review & The Southern Indiana Review. She is currently working on a collection of poetry as well as a collection of short fiction. Michelle has been selected to take part in this year's Poetry Ireland Introductions series of readings. She was a Featured Reader at the March 2008 Over The Edge: Open Reading.

Aoife Casby lives in Carraroe. Her poetry and fiction have been published in The Sunday Tribune, The Cork Literary Review, The Divas anthology (Arlen House) and The Cuirt Annual. In 2006 she completed an MA in Writing at NUI Galway, and was highly commended in the Start Poetry Chapbook competition. Aoife was chosen to take part in last year’s Poetry Ireland Introductions Readings. She was a Featured Reader at the August 2003 Over The Edge: Open Reading and also read at last year's Cúirt Festival Over The Edge Showcase reading.

Salmon Poetry launches first collections by Lorna Shaughnessy & Susan Millar DuMars

Big Pink Umbrella by Susan Millar DuMars & Torching the Brown River by Lorna Shaughnessy

Salmon Poetry invites you to celebrate the publication of two debut poetry collections

Big Pink Umbrella
by Susan Millar DuMars

and

Torching the Brown River
by Lorna Shaughnessy

Venue: The City Museum, Spanish Arch, Galway

Date/Time: Saturday 19th April, 1pm

Launch introductions by Dolores Lyne & Moya Cannon

With music by pianist Anna Mullarkey

Susan Millar DuMars was born in Philadelphia in 1966. 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. Her poetry was included in the 2004 Anthology I, published by Ainnir; in 2005, Lapwing published a pamphlet of her poems, the well reviewed Everyone Loves Me. 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. Susan lives in Galway, Ireland. Since 2003, Susan and her husband Kevin Higgins have organised the successful Over the Edge reading series, showcasing new writers. Big Pink Umbrella is the first full collection of her poetry.

Millar DuMars' sense of language, ingrained in the poet's attitude toward her poems, is why they can move such extraordinary distances in tone, language and theme, building to conclusions of breath-taking clarity and directness. Patricia Prime, New Hope International Review

Susan Millar DuMars will not rush sadness, but instead makes language do its poignant job of revealing and evoking strong feelings... Her style of retelling is unique; she doesn't mince her words, she spares them and makes them work. Rita Ann Higgins

Purchase the book online at http://www.salmonpoetry.com/bigpinkumbrella.html


Lorna Shaughnessy was born in Belfast and lives in County Galway. She lectures in the Department of Spanish, NUI Galway. In 2006 she was selected to read at the inaugural Cúirt Festival Over The Edge showcase reading. She has published two translations of contemporary Mexican poetry, Mother Tongue. Selected Poems by Pura López Colomé and If We Have Lost our Oldest Tales by María Baranda, both with Arlen House (2006). Torching the Brown River is her first full collection of poetry.

Lorna Shaughnessy's first collection of poetry explores the nature of loss, the possibility of change and the ephemeral world of relationships. Her heart is her true barometer as she weaves a delicate web of verse. This assured collection, with its arduous sense of enquiry, crosses borderlines of time and space, speech and silence, mapping the poet’s creative journey with an eye firmly on the rear-view mirror. En route, we encounter the poet’s great gift for apt metaphors with their surprising signposts that lead to fresh engagements with the world of myth and reality. Noel Monahan

Purchase the book online at http://www.salmonpoetry.com/torching.html
For further information, please contact Jessie or Siobhán at 065-7081941 or email info@salmonpoetry.com

Salmon Poetry, Knockeven, Cliffs of Moher, County Clare
http://www.salmonpoetry.com/

Love Poetry, Hate Racism

This year's 'LOVE POETRY, HATE RACISM' night

in association with the Arts Office NUI, Galway

takes place in

BOI Theatre, NUI, Galway

@ 7pm

on Saturday 19th of April

tickets: €3 on the door

for more info. email: lovepoetrygalway@gmail.com

Evening of Polish Poetry at Sheridan's Wine Bar

Friday April 11 is the date for an evening of Polish poetry organized by Over the Edge at Sheridan’s Wine Bar, opposite St. Nicholas’s Church, with the help of Galway-based Polish journalist Magalena Szulc. The evening is being supported by the Polish Embassy in Ireland. The reading will start at 8pm.

There will be readings from the work of the great Polish poets Halina Poswiatowska, Wislawa Szymborska, Zbigniew Herbert and Czeslaw Milosz. Verses will be read by volunteers in both Polish, and English. On top of that, some of Galway’s Polish residents will present their own poems to the audience. Kevin Higgins will MC the evening.

For more details, suggestions or to volunteer taking part, contact Kevin Higgins on 087-6431748 or Magdalena Szulc on 087-6944162.

Over The Edge acknowledges the support of the Arts Council, Galway City Council and The Embassy of the Republic of Poland http://www.dublin.polemb.net/index.php?document=255

POSTSCRIPT: THE EVENING WAS A HUGE SUCCESS. Thanks to all those who participated. It was, we think, the best attended Over The Edge event ever to take place at Sheridan's Wine Bar and we estimate that the audience was in or around 50% Polish. Among those who attended was the Polish Ambassador. You can see photos of the event on http://www.galway.net.pl/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=67&Itemid=40

American Novelist Michael Strelow at March Over The Edge: Open Reading

The March Over The Edge: Open Reading takes place in Galway City Library, St. Augustine Street, Galway on Thursday, March 27th, 6.30-8pm. The Featured Readers are Michael Strelow, Hedy Gibbons Lynott & John Corless

Michael Strelow is a professor of literature and chair of the American Studies program at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon USA. His novel, The Greening of Ben Brown, was a finalist for the Ken Kesey Oregon Book Award in 2005. He has published poetry, short stories and prose in many literary magazines and anthologies. He has just finished a new novel, The Moby-Dick Blues.

Hedy Gibbons Lynott has contributed numerous pieces of non-fiction to Lyric FM’s Quiet Quarter & RTE’s Sunday Miscellany. Her poetry has won the Writelink and Lyric Breakfast awards, and been published by Arlen House in Divas! A Sense of Place. Her work has also appeared in the anthologies Sunday Miscellany 2003-2004, ed. Marie Heaney and in County Lines, (2006) ed. Dermot Bolger. In 2007 she completed an MA in writing at NUIG. She is a member of the Talking Stick Writers Group and Java’s Writers.

John Corless writes short stories, poetry and drama. He is a founder member of the Mayo Writers’ Block, a group of creative writers who meet regularly in Claremorris and recently won the 2008 National Writers Group Festival Writers Group of the Year award. He is currently facilitating a course in Creative Writing for beginners at GMIT – Castlebar. His poetry and short fiction has appeared in a number of publications in Ireland, the UK and USA. In 2007 John’s work featured in Window’s Author’s & Artists.

As usual 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 contact 087-6431748.

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

Paul Perry at North Beach Poetry Nights

North Beach Poetry Nights

presents

Paul Perry

Upstairs at Richardsons. Nr 1 on the Square.
Thursday March 20th at 9. 15 pm

Paul Perry was born in Dublin in 1972. He has won the Hennessy New Irish Writer of the Year Award and The Listowel Prize for Poetry and has been a James Michener Fellow of Creative Writing at The University of Miami, and a Cambor Fellow of Poetry at The University of Houston. His work has appeared in numerous publications, including Poetry Ireland Review, Cyphers, TLS, Granta and The Best American Poetry 2000. He has been a Writer in Residence for Co. Longford, the University of Ulster, and Rathlin Island. His first book The Drowning of the Saints was published by Salmon Poetry in 2003 to critical acclaim.

and

The North Beach Poetry Nights' 2 Round Slam.

The winner of this month's Slam goes forward to
the 2008 North Beach Poetry Nights' Grand Slam in December.
The prize for the Grand Slam winner is publication of a collection of her/his work.

Next month's guest poet: Conor Aylward (Manchester)

We look forward to seeing you upstairs at Richardsons!
Admission 5 Euro.

North Beach Poetry Nights gratefully acknowledges the support
of the Arts Council and Galway City Council Arts Office.

info: John Walsh @ 593290

Spring Literary Extravaganza at Sheridan's Wine Bar

Over The Edge presents readings by Damian Smyth, Susan Lindsay, Frank Golden, Alan McMonagle & Tom Morgan at Sheridan’s Wine Bar, 14-16 Church Yard Street, Galway on Friday, March 14th, 8pm.

Damian Smyth was born in Downpatrick, County Down in 1962. His first collection of poems Downpatrick Races (Lagan Press) appeared in 2000. His stage play, Soldiers of the Queen, played the Belfast Festival at Queen’s in 2002, followed by his acclaimed second collection of poems The Down Recorder (Lagan Press) in 2004. His work appears in The Ulster Anthology (2006) and The Blackbird’s Nest (2007).

Susan Lindsay was born in Dublin but now lives in Galway. She has attended poetry classes at Galway Arts Centre, and read her poems at the Over the Edge: Open Readings, the Baffle Festival, the Cuirt Poetry Slam and North Beach Poetry Nights. In December 2005 Susan won the RTE Carol of Our Times competition, and her work was put to music by the RTE Concert Orchestra. She was recently shortlisted for the Valentines Day Sonnet Competition sponsored by Tig Neactains’.

Frank Golden was born in Dublin and has been living in the Burren, County Clare, for almost twenty years. He has published four collections of poetry. In recent years he has worked on TV andand his novel The Two Women Of Aganatz, film projects and has had a number of solo exhibitions of his paintings. Frank’s most recent collection of poems, In Daily Accord, is just out from Salmon.

Alan McMonagle is originally from Longford but now lives in Galway City. He writes both fiction and poetry. His work has appeared in Southword, The Cúirt Annual, west47online and Crannóg. He took second place in the 2006 Sean O'Faolain short story competition and was also short-listed for the Fish Short Story award. He recently completed an MA in Writing at NUI Galway. His fiction was selected for inclusion in last year’s Windows anthology for emerging writers.

Tom Morgan was born in Belfast in 1943. He has published four books of poetry to date: The Rat-Diviner by Beaver Row Press, Nan of the Falls Road Curfew by Beaver Row Press, In Queen Mary’s Gardens by Salmon Publishing and Ballintrillick in the Light of Ben Whiskin by Lagan Press. Nan was nominated for The Irish Times/Aer Lingus literary awards. He lives in Belfast and Ballintrillick, Co Sligo.

There is no entrance fee. All are welcome. For further information contact 087-6431748.

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

'Boarding Cards, Homeland Security & the Gay Capital of England' by Miceal Kearney

Boarding Cards, Homeland Security and the Gay Capital of England

By Micéal Kearney (pictured far right)

Having won the 2007 Cúirt Poetry Grand Slam last April, with my poem Day Tripping in Amsterdam, I was all set, five months later, for Slovenia. I shared a seat on a bus, from the airport, with the American poet, Carolyn Forché. She told me she attended the second Cúirt Festival, when I was only seven and poetry not in my vocabulary.

Poets, writers, playwrights, translators and a partridge in a pear tree...every time we sat for breakfast, dinner or met for a cigarette outside, it was an observational poets’ wet dream: people from France, Italy & Switzerland talking German. Other nationalities waving the flag of broken English as they discussed dead Russian poets, living Swedish novelists, translation and comparative programmes run by Polish universities. Then, there was me: Michael Schmidt’s interloping grey squirrel with feck all coupla focal. It was an eye-opening experience to attend this festival for me. I met other Irish poets there such as Denis O’Driscoll, Cathal Ó Searcaigh, Celia de Fréine and Gabriel Rosenstock.

In December I flew to the other side of the globe: Chicago. Having filled out my Homeland Security form declaring I was not a terrorist, I landed in O’Hare. Snow everywhere; I’d never seen as much. A joy to me– but a pain in the arse I was told by everyone. One of my readings was in the Green Mill, birthplace of Slam Poetry, but once a famous speakeasy from back when Al Capone wrote the poetry. I also read at the Irish American Heritage Centre where I had a poem taken to appear in the Irish American News.

The previous year I had won the Cuisle Poetry Slam in Limerick and in October 2007, travelled with the Whitehouse Poets’ from Limerick to read at the Pulse Festival in sunny Brighton –an enriching experience and I made some good contact there.

Poetry has brought me around the world, but home is where it started: a Sunday in Autumn I wrote my first poem and haven’t stopped since. A sparkly diamond was once a dirty lump of coal. I kept chipping away for about four years until I had amassed a masterpiece manuscript and every one of them 24 carat. Every editor told me, each in his or her polite enough way, that it was toilet-paper.

A friend suggested I should take a creative writing class; where I learnt of the Over The Edge readings in the library and at Sheridan’s wine-bar – run by Kevin Higgins and Susan Millar DuMars. I attended my first poetry slam in November ’05, North Beach Poetry Nights organised by John Walsh. A month later I went to my first Galway Arts Centre poetry slam. It’s scary. At first you don’t know anybody; but that changes.

For all those poets just starting off: my only advice is, in no particular order– Read. Write. Workshop. Slam. And submit. Sure, rejections a bitch; but without the sour the sweet just isn’t sweet.

Micéal Kearney lives in Balindereen, County Galway. Since he took a creative writing class at Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology in September 2005 his work has appeared in The Shop, Orbis and elsewhere. He won the 2006 Cuisle Poetry Slam in Limerick, the 2008 BAFFLE competition; the 2008 Cúirt International Festival of Literature Poetry Grand Slam & The 2008 North Beach Poetry Nights Grand Slam. He was also shortlisted for the 2007 Cinnamon Press Poetry Prize. His first collection of poems will be published soon.

Springtime Creative Writing Classes at GTI

Creative Writing for Beginners with Kevin Higgins takes place one evening per week (Monday) from 7.00-9.30pm. (8 weeks) It commences on Monday, 7th April, 2008. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €110. Kevin Higgins will provide writing exercises for, and give gentle critical feedback to, those interested in trying their hand at writing poems, stories or memoir.

Intermediate Creative Writing with Susan Millar DuMars takes place one evening per week (Tuesday) from 7.00-9.30pm. (8 weeks) It commences on Tuesday, 8th April, 2008. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €110. This class is suitable for those who’ve participated in creative writing classes before or begun to have work published in magazines. Flexible exercises and work-shopping of assignments, together with the study of the works of published writers, will help each class member to find their own writing voice.

To book a place in either class contact GTI, Father Griffin Road, Galway. Telephone 091-581342 or go to http://www.gti.ie/

Launch of 2008 Cúirt Festival Programme: Tuesday March 11th, 5pm in The King's Head

Dave Lordan shortlisted for 'The Irish Times' Poetry Now prize

Dave Lordan's debut collection of poems, The Boy in the Ring, published by Salmon Poetry, is one of five books shortlisted for the prestigious Irish Times-Poetry Now prize for best collection of poetry published by an Irish poet during the past year.

Dave was a Featured Reader at Over The Edge in February 2006 and he was shortlisted for the 2007 Cúirt Festival/Over The Edge showcase reading. We were also delighted to host a Galway launch of The Boy in the Ring in Charlie Byrne's Bookshop last October.

Also shortlisted this year are Out of Breath by Eamonn Grennan (Gallery Press); Secular Eden: Paris Notebooks 1994-2004 by Harry Clifton (Wake Forest University Press); Reality Check by Dennis O'Driscoll (Anvil Press) & Black Moon by Matthew Sweeney (Cape Poetry).

The winner of the €5,000 prize will be announced at the Poetry Now Festival, which takes place in Dún Laoighaire from April 3rd-6th/

Last year's winner was Seamus Heaney's District and Circle (Faber & Faber).

Michelle O'Sullivan to read with NUI Galway MA In Writing Poets

Michelle O' Sullivan
The next Over The Edge: Open Reading takes place in Galway City Library, St. Augustine Street, Galway on Thursday, February 28th, 6.30-8pm. The Featured Readers are Michelle O’Sullivan, and five students from this year’s MA in Writing at NUI Galway: Patricia Byrne, Aideen Henry, Cian Macken, Paul McMahon & Moya Roddy

Michelle O’Sullivan lives in County Mayo. She has an MA in Literature. Her poetry has appeared in a glittering variety of prestigious publications such as The Shop, Poetry Ireland Review, The Sunday Tribune & Agenda. She has work forthcoming in PN Review & The Southern Indiana Review. She is currently working on a collection of poetry as well as a collection of short fiction.

Patricia Byrne lives in Limerick. Her work has been published in The Stony Thursday Book, Southword, Revival, West 47 & The Cúirt Annual. She is currently a student on the MA in Writing at NUI Galway.

Aideen Henry lives and works in Galway. Her poems have been published in West 47, Crannóg, The Shop & The Stony Thursday Book. She is currently a student on the MA in Writing at NUI Galway.

Cian Macken lives in Galway City. His poems have appeared in the collection Full Colour Sound. He is currently a student on the MA in Writing at NUI Galway.

Paul McMahon has had his plays workshopped by Tinderbox and Fishamble Theatre companies. His play The Blueprint was given a rehearsed reading at this year’s Dublin Fringe Theatre Festival. He is currently a student on the MA in Writing at NUI Galway.

Moya Roddy is a well established Irish writer. The Irish Times described her novel The Long Way Home as “simply brilliant”. Her stories have been published by Penguin, Serpents Tail & Arlen House, among others. Moya recently started writing poetry. She is currently a student on the MA in Writing at NUI Galway.

As usual 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 contact 087-6431748.

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

Performance Poetry Workshop with Mags Treanor at Galway Arts Centre

Both teenagers and adults are invited to polish up on their performance skills in the lead up to this year’s Cúirt Festival of Literature’s Grand Slam and Youth Speak. Mags Treanor will cover all aspects of performance poetry, such as intonation and expression, breathing exercises, dealing with nerves and connecting with your audience as well as writing and feedback sessions.

The workshops commence on Wednesday 27th February and run weekly until Wednesday March 26th – teenagers’ workshop from 5.30-7pm and adult class from 7.15-8.45pm. Early booking is advised.

For more info or to book a place contact Victoria at Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street, phone 091-565886 or email victoria@galwayartscentre.ie


Course Outline

90 minutes per workshop

Workshop One
Welcome & Introductions
What is performance poetry?
Slam Competitions – How they work
Writing Exercise one

Workshop Two
Writing exercise two
Concrete vs. Abstract language
Individual pieces and feedback

Workshop Three
Working on performance
Intonation and expression
Breathing Exercises
Preparation

Workshop Four
Stagefright
Dealing with Nerves
Connecting with the audience
Involving the audience

Workshop Five
Performance as an Art Form
Body language and mood
Start and Finish with Flair

Workshop Six
Recap
Group Slam
Open Points
Putting it all together

Poetry Book Showcase Reading on Youtube

Paul Casey, organiser of the successful Ó'Bhéal reading series in Cork City, was there with his video camera at the 2008 Over The Edge Poetry Book Showcase Reading at Sheridan's Wine Bar, Galway on Friday, February 8th. He has posted the resulting footage of the poets reading on YouTube. To view them go to http://www.obheal.ie/blog/?page_id=43

Galway Poet Gerry Hanberry reads at City Museum

Galway Poet Gerry Hanberry reads at Galway City Museum on coming Saturday 1st March at 3 pm. Admission 5 Euro.

Rough Night, Gerard Hanberry’s first collection of poetry was published in May 2002 by Stonebridge Publications, Ebbw Vale, Wales. A second collection Something Like Lovers was published in October 2005 also by Stonebridge. Publications.

In summer 2004 Gerard won the Brendan Kennelly/ Sunday Tribune Poetry Award. He has been shortlisted for many of Ireland’s top poetry prizes including a Sunday Tribune/Hennessy Award in 2000, Strokestown 2003 and RTE’s Rattlebag Poetry Slam 2003. He was runner-up in the Firewords City Poetry Award (Galway) 2005 and in 2000 Gerard won the Originals Short Story prize in Listowel Writers Week.

His poetry has been published widely in literary journals and newspapers in Ireland and the UK including Orbis, Envoi, Poetry Ireland Review, The Shop, Cuirt Annual, ROPES, The Stinging Fly, The Stony Thursday Book as well as The Irish Times, The Sunday Tribune and The Galway Advertiser as well as http://www.laurahird.com/ and other on-line poetry sites. A sonnet has been accepted for publication in Measure 2008, a US publication for formal poetry associated with the University of Evansville Some of his work featured on ‘Poetry on the Dart’ (Dublin’s version of Poems on the Underground) during the summer of 2007. Gerard has a First Class Honours MA in Writing from NUI, Galway and is currently a teacher of English at Saint Enda’s College, Salthill, Galway, Ireland. He is a member of the advisory panel to the Cuirt Festival of Literature, Galway.

Upcoming Poetry Readings at Galway City Museum

April 5th Alan Jude Moore (Dublin)

May 3rd Michael D. Higgins (Galway)

June 7th Michael O'Loughlin (Galway City Writer-in-Residence)


Presented by North Beach Poetry
Info: John Walsh at 593290


North Beach Poetry gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the Arts Council and Galway City Council

Quincy Lehr wins Galway’s Tig Neactains’ Valentines Day Sonnet Competition

Congratulations to Quincy Lehr who won hotly contested English language section of the Valentine's Day sonnet competition sponsored by Tig Neactains’ pub in Galway.




Quincy will be reading for Over The Edge at Sheridan's Wine Bar on Friday, May 16th 8pm alongside fellow poets Emily Cullen, Billy Mills and Catherine Walsh.

Quincy Lehr was born in Oklahoma City in 1975. He was educated in the Oklahoma public schools, as well as at the University of Texas at Austin and Columbia University. A life-long reader of poetry, he began seriously writing it (aside from the inevitable dreadful verse one produces in adolescence) in 2003. Influences include W. H. Auden, Louis MacNeice, Thomas Hardy, E. A. Robinson, Ezra Pound, Gerard Manley Hopkins, T. S. Eliot, Philip Larkin, and W. B. Yeats. At present, he teaches history at NUI Galway. His first collection is forthcoming from Seven Towers.

Eva Bourke at North Beach Poetry Nights

North Beach Poetry Nights

presents

EVA BOURKE

Upstairs at Richardson's. Nr 1 on Eyre Square.

Thursday February 14th at 9.15 pm

Eva Bourke is a poet and translator. The most recent of her five collections of poetry, are Travels with Gandolpho (Dedalus Press 2000) and The Latitude of Naples (Dedalus Press 2005). Eva was editor of Writing in the West for six years and she has taught on the creative writing programs at the William Joiner Centre for the Study of War and Social Consequences at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, as well as at NUI Galway for many years. Her work has been translated into most European languages and she has been invited to give readings at festivals and universities in the US, Europe and Central America as well as Argentina.At the moment she is working on the sixth collection The Snow Gatherers as well as a comprehensive volume of contemporary German poetry in English translation for the Poetry Europe Series of the Dedalus Press. She has received numerous awards and bursaries and is a member of Aosdána.

PLUS

The North Beach Poetry Nights' 2 Round Slam

The winner of this month's Slam goes forward to the 2008 North Beach Poetry Nights' Grand Slam in December. The prize for the Grand Slam winner is publication of a collection of her/his work.

Next month's guest poet: Paul Perry (Dublin)

We look forward to seeing you upstairs at Richardsons!

Admission 5 Euro.

North Beach Poetry Nights gratefully acknowledges the support
of the Arts Council and Galway City Council Arts Office.

info: John Walsh @ 091-593290

2008 Poetry Book Showcase reading at Sheridan's Wine Bar

Moya Cannon

The 2008 Over The Edge Poetry Book Showcase featuring Moya Cannon, Jarlath Fahy, John Walsh, Sheila Phelan, Elaine Feeney, Mags Treanor, Knute Skinner, Stephen Murray & Neil McCarthy will take place at Sheridan's Wine Bar, 14-16 Church Yard Street, Galway on Friday, February, 8th at 8pm.

In this annual retrospective of the year just past, Galway-based poets who published a new collection of poems during 2007 will each read three poems from his or her collection.

In both 2006 & 2007 the Poetry Book Showcase was a big success and has now become an annual event in the Galway poetry calendar.

All welcome. For further details phone 087-6431748

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

Over The Edge features on Harvard University website

"When my friend Annie (Let's Go Ireland 2008) arrived in Galway for the last stretch of her research-writing route, we met up to attend a poetry reading at Sheridan's Wine Bar. The reading was presented by a local literary group, Over The Edge, and included poets from Limerick and Galway. My first-ever poetry reading! The second of the three poets especially struck a chord with me – he was an older man, new to writing from his biography, and recited all his poetry from memory." Julia Lam
http://HarvardUniversitywebsite.htm

New issue of West 47 online

The latest issue of West 47, Galway Arts Centre's online literary quarterly, which includes new work by Mike McCormack, Kerry Hardie Alan McMonagle, Clare Ryan, Tom Sheehan, Jackie Morrissey, Andrew Caldicott, James Martyn & Sheila Phelan is now available at
http://www.galwayartscentre.ie/west47/index.html

Gordon Hewitt at first Galway Arts Centre Poetry Slam of 2008

GALWAY ARTS CENTRE’S POETRY SLAM!
TUESDAY 29th January 2008 7-8 pm,
the Ruby Room,
The King’s Head

Galway Arts Centre’s first poetry Slam for the New Year takes place Tuesday 29th January at 7pm in The Ruby Room. What’s a Poetry Slam? It’s poetry with attitude: eight performers have three minutes each to wow the audience with their own original poetic creation. All subjects, styles and struts welcome. The overall winner goes forward to Cúirt Festival Grand Slam (April 2008).

Shake of those January Blues and come along and listen to the eight performers strut their poetic stuff; you may even be picked as one of our audience judges! Resident MC Pete Mullineaux sets the pace and the guest performer is Gordon Hewitt, winner of the December Slam. Admission is free and all are welcome.

For further information, please contact Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street, Galway 091-565886 or info@galwayartscentre.ie

INK National Writers Group Festival

The second National Writers Group Festival will take place in Longford from 15th to 17th February 2008.

This year sees an expanded programme with a greater choice of workshops which will begin on Friday afternoon, and continue right through Saturday. These will include historical and commercial fiction, memoir, the short story, and poetry at both intermediate and advanced levels. Facilitators include Sarah Webb, Martina Devlin, Leo Cullen, Brian Leyden, Pat Boran, Noel Monahan and Jean O’Brien. There will also be a seminar on the running of the writers group with Kevin Higgins and Sally Sweeney.

We have also significantly increased the social dimension of the festival with a number of receptions, launches, readings, a literary table quiz, an open-mic session, and a designated literature lounge. One of the celebratory highlights will be the presentation of the Writers Group of the Year Award to be made on Saturday evening, with the launch of “Petals on a Bough”, the anthology of winning entries in the competition.During the festival, we will be operating a “marriage bureau” at which writers groups from around the country can establish contact which can then be maintained through Longford’s literary website, http://www.virtualwriter.net/

For further details, contact Anne Collins, Longford Creative Writing Development Officer on 043 34906 or email acollins@longfordcoco.ie

Over The Edge Celebrates Fifth Birthday With Reading By Pat Boran

Pat Boran

The first ‘Over The Edge: Open Reading’ of 2008 takes place in Galway City Library on Thursday, January 24th, 6.30-8.00pm. The Featured Readers are Peter Guy, Jenny McCudden & Pat Boran. The reading is sponsored by Poetry Ireland. This is a very special occasion as it is now exactly five years since Over The Edge was born in Galway City Library in January 2003.

Peter Guy is a senior researcher and fellow of the National Centre for Franco-Irish Studies based in ITT Dublin. He has been published in a number of Irish and international periodicals, including The Cúirt Annual, Iota, Poetry Nottingham, Comstock Review, Quarterly West, Indiana Review and others. He happily divides his time between west Dublin, east Limerick and his native Connemara.

Jenny McCudden is originally from Naas in county Kildare. She now lives in Galway and works as Western Correspondent for TV3 News. Jenny began her career as a journalist working for the Sunday World and the Westmeath Offaly Independent. She spent five years in the UK, working for the BBC, before returning to take up her current position with TV3. She has always enjoyed writing fiction and poetry.

Pat Boran was born in Portlaoise in 1963 and currently lives in Dublin, where he is Director of Dedalus Press. Prior to taking over the press in 2005, he published four collections of poetry with Dedalus: The Unwound Clock (1990), which won the Patrick Kavanagh Award, Familiar Things (1993), The Shape of Water (1996) and As the Hand, the Glove (2001). His New and Selected Poems (first published by Salt Publishing in 2005) was reissued recently, with minor revisions, by Dedalus. A regular reviewer of new poetry and fiction titles in a number of Irish national newspapers and journals, he also presents The Poetry Programme on RTÉ Radio 1.

As usual there will be an open-mic after the Featured Readers have finished. New readers are always particularly welcome. The MC for the evening will be Susan Millar DuMars. For further details phone 087-6431748.

Over The Edge acknowledges the generous financial support of Galway City Council, Poetry Ireland & The Arts Council

Creative Writing Classes with John Corless resume at GMIT-Castlebar

John Corless


A new course of night classes in Creative Writing will commence in GMIT-Castlebar for the winter/spring.







The course runs one night a week for twelve weeks and each class lasts two hours. The tutor is John Corless, organiser of the Claremorris-based Mayo Writers Block

The classes will suit beginners and improvers and will cover poetry, short fiction, memoir, drama, etc. At the end of the course, students should have an impressive body of work compiled. Further information on the course may be had by dialing 087 9843900. Enrolement for the classes will take place on Monday January 21 between 6 pm and 9pm, and the classes will commence the following week. Anyone wishing to enroll who can't attend on that night should contact the college directly, on 094 9025700.

Creative Writing Fiction (Intermediate) with Geraldine Mills

Creative Writing Fiction (Intermediate) with Geraldine Mills

Mondays 7-8.30pm(10 weeks) €100/90 (8 places)

This course will build on the basic elements of short fiction explored in the beginner’s course. It is suitable for those who have some experience in writing fiction. Classes will concentrate on developing ideas, exploring voice, style, breathing life into characters. Using various prompts to liberate ideas, each session will include a writing exercise so participants need to bring paper and pen. In-class review of work will also be part of each session.

The workshops starts on Monday, January 21st.

The cost to participants is €100, with an €90 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

Memoir Writing Class with Mary Mullen at Galway Arts Centre

Memoir Writing with Mary Mullen

Wednesdays 12-1.30pm (10 weeks) €100/90 (8 places)

Memoir Writing Class: There is only one you! Come learn how to get started on your own memoir. This course will explore the concept of memoir and your own memories from many angles. You will learn how to focus in on a few parts of your life that have been particulary meaningful to you and how to get a few gems of your own personal history down on paper. All ages cordially welcomed, all writing levels catered for in this workshop-based course.

The workshops starts on Wednesday, January 23rd.

The cost to participants is €100, with an €90 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

Readings by Galway Arts Centre poetry workshop participants at Westside Library

On Wednesday, January 9th & Wednesday January 16th at Westside Library, Seamus Quirke Road, there will be reading by participants in the pre-Christmas poetry workshops facilitated by Kevin Higgins at Galway Arts Centre.

Both readings start at 6.45pm.

The next round of poetry workshops facilitated by Kevin Higgins at Galway Arts Centre commence the week of January 21st. To book a place contact victoria@galwayartscentre.ie phone 091-565886 or call in to Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street, Galway.

Below is a poem by Deirdre Kearney, a participant in the Thursday afternoon Advanced Poetry Workshop.


Omagh 1971

Competing steeples vie for Godliness
on the hilltop of the sacred plain.
French Gothic spires overshadow
the Church of Ireland’s single steeple.
Not one, but two, straining skywards
for the greater honour and glory of almighty God.

Nearby, Camowen and Drumragh merge,
Forcing the Strule swiftly towards the Fairy Water.
Freshwater trout thrust their way up the Salmon Leap
evading eager anglers at the Lovers’ Retreat
where pearls, once prised from mussels’ jaws
equalled those of the Orient.

On Corradinna Hill the Mass Rock still guards the faith
where Penal Laws were flouted on moor and bog
till Drumragh stone and thatch were blessed
by the ridge of the ring-fort nestled in the drumlins.
Buinne Buí’s stone altar now Italian marble
and the Gortmore pewter chalice restored.

Tricolours fly over O’Kane Park with matching kerbstones
and the Union Jack responds from McCain Close.
The Ancient Order of Hibernians hosts Saturday night dances
under the watchful eye of the Sacred Heart Church,
while the poppy-strewn War Memorial glares down
as rival revellers emerge from the Orange Hall.

At closing time The Highland chipper reverberates
with the Geordie accents of sappers in civvies
ordering “Two fish suppers, mate”.
Castle Street and Campsie disgorge their foot soldiers
and the Battle of the Boyne is re-enacted
to the baffled bemusement of the boy soldiers
who only ever wanted to play Action Man.

Gallows Hill sighs in its sleep
as ghosts of Cromwellian soldiers
set up their artillery once more on Cannon Hill
sun rises over muralled ramparts
as the hum of the helicopters hovering
lulls lovers back to sleep

Deirdre Kearney

First North Beach Poetry Nights of 2008. Guest Poet: Jarlath Fahy

North Beach Poetry Nights' first 2008 Slam Upstairs at Richardsons. Nr1 on Eyre Square.

Thursday January 17th at 9. 15 pm

MC: Kevin Higgins



Guest Poet: Jarlath Fahy whose first collection The Man Who Was Haunted By Beautiful Smells was published in November 2007 by WordsontheStreet.

Jarlath Fahy joined the Focus Theatre Group in 1984 where he studied the Stanislavski Method of Acting under Deirdre O'Connor. From acting and directing with Focus he relocated to Berlin where he joined the Berlin English Language Theatre. On his return to Ireland he got involved with the Gung Ho Theatre Company at The King's Head, Galway staging Lone Star and with the Taboo Theatre Company, touring with Willy Russell's Stags and Hens. When a student in NUIG his poetry appeared in Criterion, the Arts Society Magazine and in Outlet, the journal of the Philosophical Society. He completed a poetry masterclass with Ian Duhig and his poetry has since been published in Crannóg Magazine, WOW! and in the collection during which nothing happens – the Writers Writing Live event of Galway's Project '06 Festival.

He is a dramatic reader of his work and has read at the Voices from The Tower lunchtime readings in Galway's Fisheries Tower and at an Over The Edge Reading in Galway City Library and other venues. He has been compared to both Paul Durcan and Pat McCabe for his darkly comic content and to ee cummings for his typographical style. He is a native of Tuam Co Galway. The Man Who Was Haunted By Beautiful Smells is his first published collection.

The winner of the 2-round Slam will go forward to the 2008 North Beach Grand Slam in December 2008. Prize for the Grand Slam Winner is publication of a collection of her/his work. Admission 5 Euro.

North Beach Poetry Nights gratefully acknowledges the support of the Arts Council and Galway City Council Arts Office. info: john walsh @ 091-593290

Creative Writing Classes & Poetry Workshops starting in January

In January Susan Millar DuMars & Kevin Higgins will be facilitating a wide range of creative writing classes & poetry workshops for all levels. Full details below.

Galway Technical Institute presents range of creative writing classes

Creative Writing for Beginners with Kevin Higgins takes place one evening per week (Monday) from 7.00-9.30pm. (8 weeks) It commences on Monday, 14th January, 2008. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €110. Kevin Higgins will provide writing exercises for, and give gentle critical feedback to, those interested in trying their hand at writing poems, stories or memoir.

Intermediate Creative Writing with Susan Millar DuMars takes place one evening per week (Tuesday) from 7.00-9.30pm. (8 weeks) It commences on Tuesday, 15th January, 2007. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €110. This class is suitable for those who’ve participated in creative writing classes before or begun to have work published in magazines. Flexible exercises and work-shopping of assignments, together with the study of the works of published writers, will help each class member to find their own writing voice.

To book a place in either class contact GTI, Father Griffin Road, Galway Telephone 091-581342 or see http://www.gti.ie/

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Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology Presents Creative Writing for Beginners with Susan Millar DuMars

The course takes place one evening per week (Wednesday) for 8 weeks from 7.30 p.m. – 9.30 p.m. It commences on Wednesday, January 30th, 2008. Advance booking is essential. Places cost €120.00. During the eight weeks Susan Millar DuMars will give support, instruction and feedback to students who are interested in writing either fiction (short stories, novels) or poetry. For further details or to book a place contact GMIT, Dublin Road, Galway. Telephone 091 753161 or see http://www.gmit.ie/
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Poetry workshops for beginners & advanced with Kevin Higgins at Galway Arts Centre

In January 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, will be published in the new year by Salmon Poetry. Kevin is an experienced workshop facilitator and several of his students have gone on to achieve publication success.

Each workshop will run for ten week, commencing the week of January 21st.They will take place on Tuesday evenings, 7-8.30pm; Wednesday afternoons, 2-3.30pm; and on Thursday afternoons, 2-3.30pm.

The Tuesday evening and Wednesday 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 €100, with an €90 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
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Creative Writing for Beginners with Susan Millar DuMars at Galway Arts Centre

Galway Arts Centre presents a daytime class for all those beginner writers out there, facilitated by Susan Millar DuMars. Susan Millar DuMars writes both poetry and fiction. A collection of her stories, ‘American Girls’, was published by Lapwing Press in April; her first collection of poetry, ‘The Wellspring Wife’, is forthcoming in 2008 from Salmon Poetry. Susan is a renowned creative writing teacher, and with her husband Kevin Higgins co-organises the Over The Edge readings in Galway City Library.

The class runs for ten weeks, commencing on Monday January 21st, 2-3.30pm. It will be a gentle introduction to fiction, poetry and autobiographical writing. Through in-class exercises, homework assignments and work-shopping of pieces, participants will be encouraged to discover and refine their own voices and material. An atmosphere of mutual support and fun will be encouraged.

Places cost €100 and must be paid for in advance. There is a concession price. For booking please contact Vicky at reception at Galway Arts Centre, 47 Dominick Street. Phone Vicky on 091 565886 or email victoria@galwayartscentre.ie

World Poetry Slam Champion at Town Hall Theatre, Galway TUESDAY, DECEMBER 18th, 9pm

North Beach Poetry Nights finishes 2007 with a bang

THIS THURSDAY North Beach Poetry Nights at Richardson’s, Eyre Square

Featured poet: Billy Ramsell

Upstairs at Richardsons on the Square.
Thursday 20 Dec. at 9. 15 pm (Adm. 5 Euro)

with

Billy Ramsell (Cork)

Billy Ramsell was short-listed for a Hennessy award in 2005.
In May 2007 his first collection, Complicated Pleasures, waspublished by the Dedalus Press.
and

The last North Beach Poetry Nights' 2 - Round Slam for 2007.
----------------------------------------------
THIS FRIDAY Lunchtime with Billy Ramsell at Galway City Museum

Billy Ramsell will also be the guest reader at the Lunchtime Reading
in Galway City Museum

on Friday 21 December at 1 pm.
Admission 5 Euro

North Beach Poetry Nights gratefully acknowledges the support
of the Galway City Council Arts Office

info: john walsh @ 593290
------------------------------------------
AND ON SATURDAY EVENING
Probably the VERY last poetry event IN IRELAND for 2007.


North Beach Poetry Nights

Upstairs at Richardsons on the Square.
Saturday 22 December at 9 pm
Admission 7 Euro

THE FIRST EVER NORTH BEACH POETRY NIGHTS' GRAND SLAM !!!!
TWELVE of the VERY BEST PERFORMANCE POETS in IRELAND
- winners of Slams, Grand Slams, Cúirt Grand Slams, All-Ireland Slams, BBC Slams -
go before a top panel of Judges:

Trish Casey
Lucy English
Neil McCarthy
Billy Ramsell

in a 2 Round Slam
to find a WINNER for the North Beach Poetry Nights' Publication Prize.

Don't miss it!

North Beach Poetry Nights gratefully acknowledges the support of Galway City Council.
Info: John Walsh 091- 593290

Final 'Over The Edge: Open Reading' of 2007 with Anne-Marie Fyfe, Aidan Hynes & Val Nolan

Anne-Marie Fyfe

The final ‘Over The Edge: Open Reading’ of 2007 takes place in Galway City Library on Thursday, December 13th, 6.30-8.00pm. The Featured Readers are Anne-Marie Fyfe, Aidan Hynes & Val Nolan.

Anne-Marie Fyfe was born in Cushendall, County Antrim. She lives in London and is Chairperson of the UK Poetry Society (2006-2009). She organises both the Coffee-House-Poetry reading series at London’s Troubadour and the John Hewitt Spring Festival in the Antrim Glens. Her third collection of poems The Ghost Twin was published by Peterloo in 2005. She won the Academi Cardiff International Poetry Competition in 2004.

Aidan Hynes has published short fiction in a wide variety of magazines, anthologies & newspapers, including Ireland In Exile, Summer In The Story, The Irish Times, Whispers & Shouts magazine, The Connaught Tribune, The Tuam Herald & Delo (Slovenia's national daily). Aidan was a recent runner up in Over The Edge New Writer of The Year competition. He has a Masters in Creative Writing from Trinity College, Dublin. A native of Co. Mayo, Aidan lives and works in Dublin.

Val Nolan was born in Limerick. His poems have most recently been published in the anthology Che Guevara in Verse, (London) and in Mobius (New York). His work has also appeared in Southword, Revival, ROPES, Criterion, and he contributed to the Document writer/artist collaboration at Cúirt 2007. He has read for Poetry Ireland’s prestigious Introductions series and is a regular book reviewer for The Sunday Business Post, The Stinging Fly and Poetry Ireland Review. He teaches Creative Writing at NUI, Galway.

As usual there will be an open-mic after the Featured Readers have finished. New readers are always particularly welcome. The MC for the evening will be Susan Millar DuMars. For further details phone 087-6431748.

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

Over The Edge & North Beach Poetry Nights receive Arts Council funding for 2008

Over The Edge was pleased to be notified that our Arts Council grant for 2008 is up on what we received in 2007. We have an exciting programme lined up for 2008 which includes our fifth anniversary reading in January at which Pat Boran will be one of the Featured Readers. Other readers lined up so far for 2008 include Dennis O’Driscoll, Colette Bryce, Roddy Lumsden, Rita Ann Higgins & Michael S. Begnal.

We are also delighted that North Beach Poetry Nights, organised by John Walsh, with whom we always work very closely, will also for the first time receive Arts Council funding in 2008 under the Small Festival's Scheme.

The final 'Over The Edge: Open Reading' of 2007 takes place on Thursday, December 13th, 6.30-8pm, in Galway City Library. The Featured Readers are Anne-Marie Fyfe, Aidan Hynes & Val Nolan. As usual there will be an open-mic afterwards. All welcome.

The 2007 North Beach Nights Poetry Grand Slam takes place on Saturday December 22nd, 9pm in Richardson's, Eyre Square.

January Creative Writing Classes with Dave Lordan in Bray

Poet Dave Lordan will be facilitating three different creative writing classes after Christmas in Bray, on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights. The Classes kick off at the end of January and each will be of ten week duration, classes of two hours each. The classes are in association with the adult education departments of St Killian's Secondary School and the Bray Institute of Further Education. The classes will cost participants €100.

Find below a course outline. If you or anyone you know is interested contact Dave Lordan through myspace, or at dlordan@hotmail.com.

COURSE OUTLINE FOR TEN WEEK CREATIVE WRITING COURSE

* THE OVERALL AIM OF THE COURSE IS TO GIVE STUDENTS THE CONFIDENCE IN THEIR OWN WRITING VISON, ALONG WITH THE METHODS TO CARRY THAT VISION OUT.

* THE MAIN FOCUS WILL BE ON LOOKING AT AND IMPROVING THE STUDENTS’ OWN WORK

* STUDENTS WILL BE GIVEN REALISTICALLY ACHIEVABLE GOALS AND SHORT, BUT USEFUL, CREATIVE WRITING EXCERCISES TO COMPLETE EACH WEEK.

* AT THE END STUDENTS WILL HAVE THEIR OWN SMALL AND WELL-WORKED CREATIVE WRITING PORTFOLIO.

* THE COURSE CAN BE TWEAKED TO SUIT DIFFERENT LEVELS AND ABILITIES.

WEEKS 1-4 BASICS OF WRITINGINTRODUCTION TO CREATIVE WRITING- WHY WRITE. Using quotations and short texts from experienced and successful Creative Writers we allow each individual student to come to establish and express their own particular motivations for writing.

WHAT TO WRITE- A LOOK AT GENRE AND SUB-GENRE. The decision to begin writing creatively is the first step in a huge and sometimes bewildering journey. One of the first questions we will need to provide an answer for is what should we write? Films? Poetry? Horror? Aphorisms? Comic strips? Invent a completely new genre to suit ourselves? The answer depends on personal circumstances, as well as ON the individual talents, goals and insights of the students. This session will look at students bringing to bear their talents and insights on the particular genre/s of writing most suitable to them.

HOW TO WRITE-INSPIRATION AND ROUTINE.The focus is on finding the space, time and method, in the light of each students individual personality, goals and circumstances to write. Keeping notebooks. Regular writing sessions. Personal deadlines. Short, medium and long term goals.

READING AND WRITING-LEARNING FROM THE MASTERS.A look at the work and techniques of some of the great masters of past and present. The supreme importance of wide and constant reading to improving one's own writing. The focus here is on the infinite variety of writing masks and voices, with the aim of building up each student's belief in their own individual vision and powers of expression.

WEEKS 5-8 INTO ACTIONBUILDING A CREATIVE WRITING PORTFOLIOIn this central part of the course we will take turns to provide group feedback and constructive criticism on each other's work. The aim is to build up student's ability to be objective in analysing and bettering their material. Over the course of the four weeks the students will build up a small portfolio of work in at least two genres. The students will realise through this that consistent work and genuine criticism improves their writing. They will also have the basics of a portfolio needed to apply to undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Creative Writing.

WEEKS 9-10 KEEPING GOINGSTICKING AT IT 1- EDITING AND PERSEVERANCE.How to be ruthless in applying the editor's pen to your own work. Drafting, redrafting and proofreading. How to bring work to a satisfactory completion. This session will also look at Writing as a life-long journey and at how to make a long term space for writing in your life.

STICKING AT IT 2- OUTLETS FOR YOUR WRITING.This session looks at how to find an appreciative and responsive audience for your writing. Publishing and self-publishing. Magazines and online journals. Creative writing groups. Publishers and agents. Teaching students finally that the most important audience for their writing is themselves.

Catherine Phil MacCarthy, Elaine Feeney & Sheila Phelan to read at Sheridan's Wine Bar on Friday, December 7th

Over The Edge in association with Poetry Ireland presents a reading by Catherine Phil MacCarthy, Elaine Feeney & Sheila Phelan at Sheridan’s Wine Bar, 14-16 Church Yard Street, Galway on Friday, December 7th, 8pm.


Catherine Phil MacCarthy was born in County Limerick in 1954 but now lives in Dublin. She is a poet, novelist & creative writing teacher. Her most recent poetry collection, Suntrap, was published this year by Blackstaff Press. Her novel, One Room an Everywhere, was published by Blackstaff in 2003 and nominated for the Sunday Independent/Hughes and Hughes Novel of the year Award. She has received Arts Council bursaries for poetry in 1994, 1998, and 2007/8. She was Writer in Residence for the City of Dublin in 1994, and at the Dept. of Anglo Irish Literature, University College, Dublin in 2002. She was Editor of Poetry Ireland Review in 1998.

Elaine Feeney was born in Galway in 1979. She teaches English at St. Patrick’s College, Tuam. She has performed and read her poetry at various readings and festivals, including the Cuirt Festival Poetry Slam. Elaine’s poems have appeared in both The Shop and Nthposition.com. Her work most recently featured in Indiscipline, a joint collection with Patrick Kavanagh Award Winner Dave Lordan, published by Galway-based Maverick Press.

Sheila Phelan was born in Dublin in 1971 and now lives in Galway. She has worked with the Baboro Childrens Festival and with Galway Civic Trust. She was awarded an Arts Council Bursary in 2002 and was runner up inthe Patrick Kavanagh Competition in 2005. She is a graduate of the NUI, Galway MA in Writing. Sheila read at the inaugural Over The Edge/Cúirt Festival showcase reading in April 2006. Washington, D.C., Sheila’s first collection of poems was published by Lapwing in September.

There is no entrance fee. All are welcome. For further information contact 087-6431748.


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

Galway launch of SALMON: A Journey in Poetry 1981-2007, edited by Jessie Lendennie

The Galway launch of SALMON: A Journey in Poetry 1981-2007 facilitated by Galway City Council's Writer-in-Residence, Michael O'Loughlin, will take place in Galway City Museum on Wednesday, December 5th, 6.30pm. ALL WELCOME.

There will be readings by contributors Patricia Burke Brogan, Vicki Crowley, Frank Golden, Mickey Gorman, Kevin Higgins, Mary O'Malley & Olaf Tyaransen‏.

Salmon magazine, edited by Jessie Lendennie, published its first issue in 1981. Salmon Poetry's first two books were debut collections by Eva Bourke (1985) & Rita Ann Higgins (1986). Jessie Lendennie of Salmon Poetry in a very real sense pioneered the open and inclusive approach to poetry which Over The Edge now continues in Galway, where Salmon Poetry was born more than a quarter of a century ago.

Salmon: A Journey in Poetry 1981-2007 celebrates 26 years of innovative and exciting Irish and international poetry. The organization of the volume is simple: two poems from the poet’s Salmon collection (or collections) and one uncollected poem. Detailed biographical notes for each poet, and a complete bibliography of Salmon's publications, are also included. For more information or, even better, to buy a copy see http://www.salmonpoetry.com/anthology.html

The poets featured are: Nadya Aisenberg, Nuala Archer, Leland Bardwell, Marck L. Beggs, Michael S. Begnal, Marvin Bell, Eva Bourke, Ray Bradbury, Rory Brennan, Heather Brett, Patricia Burke Brogan, Simmons B. Buntin, Sam Burnside, Catherine Byron, Louise C. Callaghan, Seamus Cashman, David Cavanagh, Jerah Chadwick, Patrick Chapman, Mary Coll, Roz Cowman, Vicki Crowley, Theodore Deppe, Mary Dorcey, Carol Ann Duffy, Michael Egan, Mícheál Fanning, Gabriel Fitzmaurice, Mélanie Francès, Philip Fried, Erling Friis-Baastad, Paul Genega, Frank Golden, Michael Gorman, Mark Granier, Robert Greacen, Angela Greene, Maurice Harmon, Clarinda Harriss, Anne Le Marquand Hartigan, Michael Heffernan, Kevin Higgins, Michael D. Higgins, Rita Ann Higgins, John Hildebidle, Ron Houchin, Ben Howard, Gerald Hull, Fred Johnston, John Kavanagh, Anne Kennedy, Thomas Krampf, Jessie Lendennie, James Liddy, Dave Lordan, Catherine Phil MacCarthy, Joan McBreen, Jeri McCormick, Stephanie McKenzie, Ethna McKiernan, Ted McNulty, Máighréad Medbh, John Menaghan, Áine Miller, Patricia Monaghan, Noel Monahan, Alan Jude Moore, Tom Morgan, Jude Nutter, Jean O’Brien, Clairr O’Connor, Hugh O’Donnell, Mary O’Donnell, Ciaran O’Driscoll, Mary O’Donoghue, Desmond O’Grady, Sheila O’Hagan, Tom O’Malley, Barbara Parkinson, Mary O’Malley, Gwyn Parry, Angela Patten, Paul Perry, Mark Roper, Tom Sexton, James Simmons, Janet Shepperson, Janice Fitzpatrick Simmons, Robin Skelton, Knute Skinner, Jo Slade, R.T. Smith, Olaf Tyaransen, Eithne Strong, Jean Valentine, Breda Sullivan, Richard Tillinghast, John Unrau, Peter van de Kamp, Michèle Vassal, Eamonn Wall, Emily Wall, Gordon Walmsley, Gary J. Whitehead, Sabine Wichert, and Ann Zell.

Over The Edge 'New Writer of The Year', Kevin Lavelle to read at next Over The Edge: Open Reading

The next ‘Over The Edge: Open Reading’ takes place in Galway City Library on Thursday, November 22nd, 6.30-8.00pm.

The Featured Readers are Kevin Lavelle, Danny Denton & Margaret Irish.

Kevin Lavelle lives in Barna, Co. Galway and works as a freelance film and television editor. He is the 2007 Over The Edge New Writer of The Year. His winning story, Bury Me In The Garden, is published in the current issue of Galway Arts Centre’s online literary magazine West 47. It is Kevin’s first published work.

Danny Denton completed his MA in Writing at NUI Galway in 2006. He is a short-story writer, originally from Cork but now living in Galway. He has published fiction in The Stinging Fly, Southword, and The Sharp Review, and continues to work on his first collection of stories.

Margaret Irish is a native of Co. Kilkenny and writes short fiction and plays. She has had stories published in Ireland, England and Canada and won the PJ O'Connor Award for radio drama in 2003. Five of her stories and two of her plays have been broadcast on RTE/BBC. After many years of wandering she is back living in Kilkenny again.

There will be an open-mic after the Featured Readers have finished. New readers are always welcome. The MC for the evening will be Susan Millar DuMars. For further details phone 087-6431748.

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

North Beach Poetry Nights in association with Poetry Ireland presents John McNamee

North Beach Poetry Nights at New VENUE!!!

Upstairs at Richardsons on Eyre Square

with John McNamee

Thursday 22 Nov. at 9. 15 pm

Admission 5 Euro

John McNamee, Director of the long established "Out to Lunch" poetry reading series in the Irish Writers' Centre in Dublin and veteran of many poetry events and publications takes time out to give one of his memorable performances. John's first volume of poetry Flight was published in 1977. Since then he has had up to 10 publications, as well as many appearances on television and radio. He has read in Toronto, California, Las Vegas, New Orleans, New Jersey, New York and at many venues here in Ireland.

also

The North Beach Poetry Nights' 2 - Round SlamPoets wishing to enter the Slam are requested to bring along 2 poems, max. 3 minutes each.The winner of the Slam receives a bottle of red wine courtesy of North Beach and automatically goes forward to the North Beach Poetry Nights' Grand Slam in Richardsons on December 22nd.The prize for the winner of the Grand Slam is the publication of a collection of the winner's poetry.

This is the penultimate slam evening. heck out the NEW!!! North Beach Poetry Nights MySpace for all the news and winning poems.

www.myspace.com/northbeachpoetrynights

Info: john walsh at 091-593290

Lunchtime with Kevin Higgins at Galway City Museum

The Friday Lunchtime Reading Series in Galway City Museum

Poetry in the Right Place

presents

Kevin Higgins

introduced by Mags Treanor

on Friday November 16th at 1 pm.
Admission 5 Euro


Kevin Higgins' first collection of poems The Boy With No Face was published by Salmon in February 2005. The Boy With No Face was short-listed for the 2006 Strong Award. It has recently gone to its second printing. A second collection of his poems, Time Gentlemen, Please will be published by Salmon in 2008. Kevin has read his work at most of the major literary festivals in Ireland and at a wide variety of venues and festivals in Britain, France and the United States.

This is the penultimate reading in this now successfully established event in the relaxed atmosphere of the museum reading room, with its striking views over the heart of Galway. The final event will take place on Friday 21 December with Cork poet Billy Ramsell.

Info. John Walsh at 593290

North Beach Poetry Nights at NEW VENUE!! Celeste Augé to read

North Beach Poetry Nights at New VENUE!!! Upstairs at Richardsons' on Eyre Square
with Celeste Augé Thursday 8 Nov. at 9. 15 pm

Admission 5 Euro



Celeste Augé was born in Canada, but moved to Galway when she was twelve years old. Her poems have appeared in a wide variety of literary journals. She has read her work as part of Poetry Ireland's Introductions and also at the Cuirt Festival/Over The Edge showcase reading in 2006.In 2006 she was awarded the Publication Assistance Grant by Galway County Council. Tornadoes For The Weathergirl, a chapbook of her poems, was published last year.

Also the North Beach Poetry Nights' 2 - Round SlamPoets wishing to enter the Slam are requested to bring along 2 poems, max. 3 minutes each.The winner of the Slam receives a bottle of red wine courtesy of North Beach and automatically goes forward to the North Beach Poetry Nights' Grand Slam on December 22nd.The prize for the winner of the Grand Slam is the publication of a collection of the winner's poetry. Thursday Nov. 8th at 9.15 pm

Check out the NEW!!! North Beach Poetry Nights MySpace for all the news and winning poems. http://www.myspace.com/northbeachpoetrynights
Info: John Walsh at 091-593290

Launch of 'Love's Enterprise Zone' by John Walsh

North Beach Publications
and
Doire Press invite you
to the launch
of Love’s Enterprise Zone
39 New Poems by John Walsh


In the Foyer, Galway City Museum
on Thursday, Nov. 8th at 6.30 pm.
The book will be launched by Gerry Hanberry
and there will be readings from it by
all five previous winners of the Cúirt Festival Poetry Grand Slam:
Trish Casey, Kevin Higgins, Miceál Kearney,
Brendan Murphy and Stephen Murray.

The evening will be MCed by Susan DuMars

Love's Enterprise Zone has been awarded the Galway County Council Assistance Towards Publication Grant

Barbara Smith, Megan Buckley & Jean Folan for November 1st Over The Edge: Open Reading

The next ‘Over The Edge: Open Reading’ takes place in Galway City Library on Thurs., November 1st, 6.30-8.00pm.

The Featured Readers are Barbara Smith, Megan Buckley and Jean Folan.

Barbara Smith lives in Drogheda. Her debut collection Kairos is published by Doghouse Books. She is pursuing an MA in Creative Writing in Queens University. Her work has been published widely in journals in Ireland and abroad. Barbara’s blog is http://intendednot2b.blogspot.com/

Megan Buckley is a Doctoral Teaching Fellow in the English Department at NUIG, where she also received her M.A. in Writing. Her poetry has been published in the US, the UK, and Ireland, and she is the author of two books on wine and cocktails. Before moving to Ireland in 2004, she worked as a literary agent in her native New York.

Jean Folan is a Galwegian now living in west Sligo. She has returned to writing after many years. Her first poems were published in Criterion in the early 1970’s. She featured in Sunday Miscellany in 2005 and has recently published in Crannog, West 47online and in the Cuirt Annual. She has participated in poetry workshops in the Galway Arts Centre.

There will be an open-mic after the Featured Readers have finished. New readers are always welcome. The MC for the evening will be Susan Millar DuMars. For further details phone 087-6431748.


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

Micéal Kearney & Neil McCarthy Take First & Second Place in 2007 B.A.F.F.L.E Festival Competition

Micéal Kearney has won this weekend's 2007 B.A.F.F.L.E Festival performance poetry competition with his poem Multi-cultural ethnic diversity and all that other stuff. http://www.baffle.ie/








Micéal also won this year's Cúirt Festival Poetry Grand Slam. As part of his Cúirt prize he recently read his poetry at Slovenia's premier literary festival; and he will soon be off to read in Chicago's Green Mill, the birth-place of Slam poetry. Micéal was a Featured Reader at the September 2006 Over The Edge: Open Reading. He began writing seriously after taking a creative writing class with Susan Millar DuMars at G.M.I.T in the Autumn of 2005.


Neil McCarthy took second place.












Neil's work has been widely published. He was a Featured Reader at the October 2004 Over The Edge: Open Reading in Galway City Library. Neil also read at this year's Cúirt Festival/Over The Edge Showcase reading. http://www.galwayartscentre.ie/west47/west47-27/over.html

Alan McMonagle awarded Arts Council Literature Bursary

Congratulations to Galway-based writer Alan McMonagle who has just been awarded a Literature Bursary by the Arts Council.

Alan is originally from Longford but now lives in Galway City. He writes both fiction and poetry. He recently completed an MA in Writing at NUI Galway. He was a Featured Reader at the March 2007 Over The Edge: Open Reading in Galway City Library.

http://www.artscouncil.ie/en/news/news.aspx?article=ee4f31b0-aa57-4904-b09b-c893337510f5

Lunchtime with Melanie Frances at Galway City Museum

The Friday Lunchtime Reading Series in Galway City Museum
presents

Melanie Frances (Montreal)

To celebrate the Launch of "Anatomy of a Love Affair" (My Life in the Movies) Melanie Francis' latest collection, published by Salmon Poetry on Friday Oct. 26th in the Galway City Museum at 1pm.

Contribution: 5 Euro

Mélanie Francès was born in Paris on October 18th, 1972, with Canadian and French origins and grew up in France. As a young girl, she lived for four years in New Delhi, India, where she learned English and started a lifelong love story with the language. As a college student, she discovered her gift for writing and developed an interest in the arts and American literature. She later moved to Montreal, Canada to pursue her graduate studies at Concordia University and obtained an M.A. Degree in English and Creative Writing. In 2001, she published her first chapbook of poetry, The World is in your Head, with Ginninderra Press in Australia. She lives in Montreal where she works in communications and public relations and is currently working on her first novel about the immigrant experience and the birth of the movies at the beginning of the century in the USA.

COLLECTION DESCRIPTION
The poems of Anatomy of a Love Affair (My Life in the Movies) explore the constant interaction between everyday life and art and the imaginary space it provides all of us. In the first section which gives its title to the collection, a poetic sequence retells a real-life love affair from beginning to end, from the encounter to the break-up, through memories of love as it is remembered by the author and through the lens of pivotal and memorable movie scenes that seem to mirror her own experiences. With ritualistic cadence and use of the long line, the poems in this collection weave a web of stories that illustrate the ongoing interplay of personal experience and art, photographs, music and films that haunt us and make us who we are.

Rita Ann Higgins at North Beach Poetry Nights

Rita Ann Higgins reads at BK's.

A rare opportunity to hear Galway poet Rita Ann Higgins read as guest poet at North Beach Poetry Nights in BK's Winebar, Spanish Parade.


Ever since the publication of Goddess on the Mervue Bus and Witch in the Bushes in the early 1980's, Rita Ann has become one of the foremost poetic voices in Ireland. She has read in most countries and at most of the famous universities in the world. Gerry Ryan and Pat Kenny have also had the pleasure of her "on-air" company.

Rita Ann's poetry is straight-talking and hard-hitting.
Her poetry readings are always memorable.

also

The North Beach Poetry Nights' 2 - Round Slam

Poets wishing to enter the Slam are requested to bring along 2 poems, max. 3 minutes each. The winner of the Slam receives a bottle of red wine courtesy of BK's Winebar and automatically goes forward to the North Beach Poetry Nights' Grand Slam on December 22nd.

The prize for the winner of the Grand Slam is the publication of a collection of the winner's
poetry.

Thursday 25 October 9 pm
BK's Winebar
Spanish Parade, Galway

Info: john walsh at 091-593290