Fingal libraries to host literary event 

IN September, Fingal Libraries will present its second annual Write Time Festival celebrating the written and spoken word in the county.  

Library branches will host writing workshops and author talks to spark the imagination and inspire creativity.

Whether you are beginning to write or would like to develop your work, the Write Time programme offers a range of helpful workshops.  

Shauna Gilligan, who writes and teaches short and long fiction, will facilitate

‘Creating Something from Nothing’, an interactive workshop for writers at all stages of their writing career.   Author Kevin Curran will explore the key features of good writing and answer your questions about what it takes to get your ideas on a page and in shape. 

Author Fiona O’Rourke will facilitate creative writing workshops for beginners and writers who want to develop their work. 

Autobiographical writing is the subject of author Rob Doyle’s workshop. Rob will use examples of autobiographical writing as a spur for participants to try out new ways of writing about their life experience. 

The Write Time features events that will appeal to everybody who enjoys reading or writing poetry. Poet and performer Máighréad Medbh will explore

‘The Poem as a Puzzle and a Quest’ in her talk and workshop. If you’ve found a poem that puzzles you, bring it along. 

Poet Christodoulos Makris will facilitate a workshop on found poetry which is the literary version of a collage. Poets select their source material and use words and phrases from these texts to create new pieces.

Digital self-publishing and e-books have changed publishing, opening up new paths between writer and reader. Catherine Ryan-Howard will explore the options available to today’s authors in her talk,

‘The Digital Author’, and share her best practice tips on self-publishing e-books, marketing and promotion.

The Write Time also features talks to appeal to readers who enjoy a good story. Writer, documentary-presenter and mountaineer Dermot Somers will present

‘Adventures Far and Wide’, a selection of his journeys among mountains, deserts and nomadic cultures.  

Dermot has presented many travel and adventure programmes for TG4 and RTE, including a series on great nomadic journeys of the world. 

Poet, playwright, screenwriter, translator and librettist Celia de Fréine writes in Irish and English. Celia will read from her work and discuss the challenges faced by today’s poet/playwright writing in a minority language. 

Frankie Gaffney will explore often neglected visual elements of novels, such as typography, punctuation and spelling. He will discuss the work of Irvine Welsh, Roddy Doyle, and others and his approach to including unusual visual elements in his own novel,

‘Dublin Seven’.

Admission is free to all events but booking is essential. To reserve a place, please contact the library hosting the event. 

For the full programme of talks and workshops, contact your local library branch or visit www.fingal.ie/libraries/ or Facebook page: @FingalLibraries.