Limerick Writers’ Centre

Information regarding events etc at Limerick Writers’ Centre is available from www.limerickwriterscentre.com

Beginners Playwriting Course

The Limerick Writers’ Centre present

A Beginners Playwriting Course with Eleanor McSherry

Sat May 17th to Sat June 11th (One day a week lasting two hours)

Course Fee €140.00/€130.00 concession.

Six sessions devoted to exploring the ins and outs of playwriting, geared towards those with little or no previous experience in the field. There …will be group discussions and exercises at the end of each session to get the creative juices flowing. This will hopefully create a context and atmosphere in which the participants can develop the bones of a one act play. The main objective of the course is to take the fear out of writing and to get the participant started!

The course will entail an introduction to the craft of playwriting – developing character, writing scenes, effective dialogue, format, structure, re-writing techniques and how to become an effective critic of your own work.

Having email is a requirement! The participants will be expected to email their exercises every week in order to participate in the group discussions!

For further information Tel 087 2996409 or email limerickwriterscentre@gmail.comSee more

A Haiku Workshop with Gabriel Rosenstock Sat April 30th

Limerick Writers’ Centre Present A Haiku Workshop with Gabriel Rosenstock Sat Morning April 30th from10.00am.

Those wishing to participate Will have read the two key text books, Haiku Enlightenment and Haiku, the Gentle Art of Disappearing. They either buy them from Amazon or email limerickwriterscentre@gmail.com for free electronic copies. Will have a list of questions prepared. Will have maximum 10 haiku each to be workshopped. With copies for all the participants. Haiku must be nature-centred and can be in classical five-seven-five syllables or free style. Workshop Fee €30.00. Please book in advance.

To book contact Dominic at 087 2996409 or email limerickwriterscentre@gmail.com

About Gabriel Rosenstock:

Gabriel Rosenstock (born Kilfinane, Co. Limerick, 1949) is the
author/translator  of over 150 books, including 13 volumes of poetry
and a volume of haiku, mostly in Irish. 

 A member of Aosdána, Rosenstock taught haiku at the Schule für Dichtung
(Poetry Academy) in Vienna. Two books on haiku as a way of life,
 Haiku Enlightenment and Haiku, the Gentle Art of Disappearing from Cambridge Scholars Publishing are available from Amazon.

Talk on Publishing by William Ryan

Sat 12 March · 10:00 – 12:00

@ the Limerick Writers’ Centre, 12 Barringhton Street, Limerick

William Ryan, a Limerick writer living in London, is the author of The Holy Thief (May 2010) and The Bloody Meadow (September 2011), novels set in Soviet Russia in the late 1930s following the investigations of a Moscow police detective. Before turning to writing full time, William worked as a lawyer although he has also been a cycle courier, lift operator, pizza chef and environmental finance consultant. The Holy Thief was a fi…nalist for The Crime Writer’s Association “New Blood” Dagger and was listed as a 2010 Crime Book of the Year by The London Independent, The Metro Newspaper and The Florida Sun Sentinel as well as a 2010 Book of the Year in the Irish Independent. Rights to The Holy Thief and The Bloody Meadow have been acquired by publishers in the UK, the US, Germany, France, Poland, the Czech Republic, Italy, Spain, Canada (French), Israel, Serbia and Greece.

William will lead a small informal discussion at the offices of the Limerick Writers’ Centre, for aspiring writers seeking to have their work published. The discussion will certainly cover novel-writing techniques but will probably focus more on preparing already completed work for publishers and agents and how the publication process works. Participants are invited to bring along a piece of work in progress and, if time permits, a selection will be discussed. Admission is free but you must book in advance to secure a place.

Contact Dominic Taylor at 087 2996409 or email limerickwriterscentre@gmail.com

LOVE ME SLENDER: The Genius of Elvis.

The Limerick Writers’ Centre present

LOVE ME SLENDER: The Genius Of Early Elvis & the Myth that he Ripped Off Black Music

The Loft Venue Fri 15th April 2011 8.00pm …Tickets €12/€10 concession, from Locke Bar or Tel 087 2996409

Michael Gray is British but he has more than once made the pilgrimage to Memphis, looked round Graceland and done the tour of Sun Studios – and remains an enthusiast for early Elvis. Gray evokes the turbulent history of Presley’s explosion onto the American music scene, celebrates Elvis’ revolutionary impact, and using loud records and rare footage, challenges the myth that Elvis ripped off black music. Michael Gray co-wrote The Elvis Atlas: A Journey Thru Elvis Presley’s America, published by Henry Holt in New York in the 1990s and now a collectors’ item. Michael Gray is also recognised as a world authority on the work of Bob Dylan and is the author of The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia and Song & Dance Man III. What the press says about Michael Gray’s performances: “Michael Gray is a witty, effusive, self-deprecating speaker. A wonderful eye-opener of an evening.” “Entertaining with wit and insight, Gray is clearly enjoying himself.” “A tremendously enjoyable evening.” “Clever, funny and fresh.” “A wonderful evening packed with information, insight and humour.” “Michael Gray is a masterful speaker.”

For for information: limerickwriterscentre@gmail.com

Call For Submissions

Issue 19 of Revival Literary Journal Revival Literary Journal is calling for submissions from local, national and international poets and writers for the next issue which will be published in Limerick, April/May2011.

Submissions, poetry and short fiction or extracts (500 words) now being sought for the next issue (April 2011). Also Review and Criticism pieces.  We are also  interested in receiving black and white images/line drawings for inclusion.

Please Note: Submissions for short fiction/extracts, review and criticism must be sent by email only.

The deadline for submissions is: Issue 19 is Friday 11th March 2011 Send to: The Editor, Revival, Moravia, Glenmore Ave., Roxboro Rd., Limerick. Email: revival1@eircom.net Submission guidelines: www.revivalpress.com

Poetry/Songwriting Workshop Thurs 3rd Mar 2011

The Limerick Writers’ Centre Presents

A Poetry/Songwriter Workshop

Thurs 3^rd March 2011 4.30pm

UK Poet Keith Armstrong and internationally acclaimed songwriter Gary Miller will present a 2-3 hours workshop on Thursday 3rd March from 4.30pm at The Loft Venue, Locke Bar, Georges Street, Limerick. Keith and Gary will demonstrate from and talk about the poems, songs and projects they have worked on together and what inspired them. There will also be space for local songwriters to perform and work on new pieces with advice from Gary and Keith. They derive a lot of inspiration from their roots in NE England and from its local history, as well as from their extensive travels.

KEITH ARMSTRONG

Keith Armstrong was born in Heaton, Newcastle upon Tyne, where he hasworked as a community development worker, poet,librarian and publisher.

GARY MILLER

Gary Miller, internationally acclaimed songwriter, performer and recording artist, first rose to international prominence during the mid eighties and throughout the nineties as principal songwriter, lead singer, guitarist & mandolin player with The Whisky Priests, the internationally renowned folk-rock band with a worldwide cult following that he founded in 1985 and fronted with his twin brother Glenn (“the Jimi Hendrix of the accordion”) – “the Joe Strummer and Mick Jones of the Folk World”.

 Fee for the workshop is €12/€10 concession. Further details contact Dominic at 087 2996409 or email: limerickwriterscentre@gmail.com

The Winning Short Story in the LWC Flash Fiction Slam 2010 by Barry Finegan

Two of the five  by Barry Finegan

It all started with the flambéed Christmas pudding. Appearing innocent enough, it did possess two of the five ingredients most common to domestic disaster, fire and alcohol. Things could have turned out quite different.

 It was one of those typical white hot, furnace bright, clear sky, sluggish wind, African Christmas days. On such days every manner of creature finds the deepest shade it can and rests; all but homo sapiens. For us it was a day for friends and family; lots of friends, necessary family. A day for trestle tables on the back lawn struggling under the weight of turkeys, hams, steamed vegetables, Christmas puddings, buckets of ice bearing bottles of stein, and sweating cans of lager; many cans of lager. It was a day for streamers, and crackers, and silly little whistles, and short jokes printed in microscopic font onto tiny bits of paper, and crêpe hats that bleed blue, red, yellow and green onto dripping foreheads. Uncle Albert had his own hat; a bright red and crisp white Santa hat, 100% acrylic, made in China.

If Uncle Albert had not got distracted when Ted’s new girlfriend slopped half a glass of wine into her cleavage he would have noticed the pudding being prepared and lit. If it wasn’t so bright he maybe would have seen the almost invisible flames as he reached across the table for the last morsel of stuffing. If he wasn’t eight lagers into Christmas day he would have remembered the warning on the hat to keep away from flame. Had the unfortunate event not occurred I wouldn’t know now just how many people visit the casualty department on Christmas day, nor would I know what to get him for Christmas this year, but I do; a wig.

Barry Finegan was born of Irish descent and raised in Africa, he moved to Ireland late 2008. He is currently working on his first novel and also writes poetry as a form of ‘mind gym’ to hone his creative writing skills.

Limerick Writers’ Centre. Writing courses offsite @ Leamy Gallery & Art School, Hartstonge Street, Limerick.

Memoir Writing Course (Start Tues 18th Jan 2011 8 weeks) day and evening course available.

What is memoir writing? Memoir writing is a creative, non-fiction medium for any individual who wishes to tell a story from their life. The act of life writing has evolved over the last thirty years and continues to evolve each time someone decides to write, creatively, about their life. The creative possibilities for memoir writing are as endless as the originality of the individual story and personal style of the author. Memoir is a unique form of life writing that allows the author to confront and contemplate a significant period in their life and through the creative process share their experience and insights with others. If you have a life story that you have been waiting to write, and if you would like to learn more about memoir genre this is the course for you. Join this creative supportive environment and begin the journey of writing the stories from your life. Throughout the eight week course theory will be translated into practice as each participant begins the writing process. Each two hour session will include a creative writing exercise specifically aimed at developing skills for life writing. 

Facilitor for the six weeks is Sheila Quealey.

Places must be paid for in advance. Course fee €130.00 concession €120.00 Booking essential contact Dominic 087 2996409 or email limerickwriterscentre@gmail.com for further details.

Finalists of the LWC Flash Fiction Competition.

The Limerick Writers’ Centre announce the ten finalists for the LWC Flash Fiction Competition sponsored by O’Mahony Booksellers, they are:

Michael Gallagher
Pat O’Connor
Catherine Coffey
Mary Healy
Eleanor Gormley
Terri O’Mahony
Vincent McDonnell
Barry Finegan
Gaius Coffey
Marian Riley

The final will take place in The Loft Venue @ The Locke Bar. Thurs 2nd Dec 2010 8.00pm.