Fiction Writing Workshop, the Governor’s Room, Linen Hall Library, Belfast
Linen Hall Library, Belfast 17 Donegall Square North, Belfast, United KingdomA practical afternoon workshop on the everyday craft of writing with the aim of sparking ideas for new work. All levels of experience welcome. Come with writing materials and be prepared to write. Bernie McGill is the author of two novels: The Watch House and The Butterfly Cabinet (named by Julian Fellowes as his novel of the year in 2012), and Sleepwalkers, a collection of short stories, shortlisted for the Edge Hill Prize in 2014. Book online at the Linen Hall or Tel. the Box Office on 028 9087 2219. The Linen Hall Library is a truly unique institution. Founded in 1788, it is the oldest library in Belfast and the last subscribing library in Ireland. It has a radical and 'enlightenment' foundation, and ever since has prized its independence and has maintained the principle that its resources are owned by the community for the community. It is renowned for its unparalleled Irish and Local Studies Collection, ranging from comprehensive holdings of Early Belfast and Ulster printed books to the 250,000 items in the Northern Ireland Political Collection, the definitive archive of the recent troubles. The Library also boasts the Northern Ireland Theatre and Performing Arts Archive, a unique collection reflecting our rich […]
Dropping Your Gaze: A Day of Mindfulness and Writing with Michelle Gibb and Bernie McGill in the Festival Yurt, Bangor Castle Walled Garden
Festival Yurt Bangor Castle Walled Garden, Valentine Road, Bangor, United KingdomMindfulness is the practice of learning to be present. It is also beneficial for calming the physical state of the body and quietening the mind. Whether you’re new to writing or have been writing for a while and are looking for a way to rejuvenate your approach, this day of guided mindfulness and writing exercises, led by two experienced facilitators, will refresh and enhance your writing skills and leave you with a simple toolkit that you can use in your everyday practice. Alongside focused writing exercises, you will learn: the importance of breath work and how to calm your breathing; how reducing the mind chatter can help centre your writing focus; a fifteen second calming technique; visualisation guidance and advice; short and simple brain gym exercises. All levels welcome. Please bring a packed lunch. Bernie McGill is the author of two novels: The Watch House and The Butterfly Cabinet and of a short story collection, Sleepwalkers. She has worked for twenty-five years as a creative writing facilitator, is a Writer in Schools with Poetry Ireland and a Professional Mentor with the Irish Writers’ Centre. www.berniemcgill.com Michelle Gibb is a poet, life coach and yoga teacher whose work has been published locally by A […]
Pordenone Legge Book Festival, Italy
Auditorium Istituto Vendramini Via Beata E. Vendramini, 2 33170, Pordenone, ItalyThe Italian translation of The Watch House is published by Bollati Boringhieri on 30th August 2018. Translated by Simona Garavelli, it appears under the title Le parole nell'aria (The Words in the Air). On 22nd September, Bernie McGill will be interviewed by Mary B. Tolusso at Pordenone Legge Book Festival, Italy. È l’estate del 1898 nella piccola isola irlandese di Rathlin. La giovane Nuala Byrne, non vede altra possibilità per garantirsi la sopravvivenza se non sposare l’anziano sarto del paese. Ma sull’isola sbarca uno scienziato italiano, collaboratore di Guglielmo Marconi, cui sono affidati i primi esperimenti del telegrafo senza fili. E quando Nuala verrà arruolata come apprendista, il mondo della scienza le aprirà nuovi, inimmaginabili orizzonti.
Victorian Mavericks at Red Line Book Festival, Dublin
Pearse Museum Saint Enda's Park The Hermitage Grange Road, Rathfarnham, Dublin 16, IrelandIn the Victorian era, women were forced to endure many inequalities in terms of marriage, finances and social status. Viewed as belonging to the domestic sphere, they were expected to provide their husbands with a clean home, food on the table and children. In this special event for Red Line Book Festival, Nuala O’Connor (Becoming Belle), Bernie McGill (The Watch House) and Caroline Busher (The Ghosts of Magnificent Children) explore the lives of Victorian female characters in their novels and the ways those women and girls defied the conventions of the time. Booking information here.
Panel Discussion on The Glass Shore & The Long Gaze Back at Omagh Literary Festival
Strule Arts Centre Town Hall Square, Omagh, United KingdomThe 2018 Omagh Literary Festival will feature a panel discussion on The Glass Shore and The Long Gaze Back Award-winning collections of Short Stories by Women Writers from Ireland, with Sinéad Gleeson, Bernie McGill, June Caldwell and Fiona O'Rourke. Writer, broadcaster and critic, Sinéad Gleeson, is the guest speaker on a lively discussion panel about the significant role played by Irish female writers. She has edited two collections of short stories, namely The Long Gaze Back and The Glass Shore, both of which have been awarded the Best Irish Published Book at the Bord Gais Energy Irish Book Awards (in 2015 and in 2016). These stories run the gamut from the heartbreaking to the humorous, but always leaving a lasting impression. Sinéad Gleeson reviews books for The Irish Times and presents the Book Show on RTE 1. Sinead is the judge of the Benedict Kiely Short Story Competition 2018 and will announce the short list and winner at the end of the discussion. Bernie McGill is the author of the short story collection Sleepwalkers, shortlisted for the Edge Hill Short Story Prize in 2014, and of novels The Butterfly Cabinet and The Watch House. Her work has been anthologised widely, and appears in both The […]
Dropping Your Gaze: A Day of Mindfulness and Writing with Michelle Gibb and Bernie McGill at Seamus Heaney HomePlace, Bellaghy
Seamus Heaney HomePlace 45 Main Street, Bellaghy, United KingdomMindfulness is the practice of learning to be present. It is also beneficial for calming the physical state of the body and quietening the mind. Whether you’re new to writing or have been writing for a while and are looking for a way to rejuvenate your approach, this day of guided mindfulness and writing exercises, led by two experienced facilitators, will refresh and enhance your writing skills and leave you with a simple toolkit that you can use in your everyday practice. Alongside focused writing exercises, you will learn: the importance of breath work and how to calm your breathing; how reducing the mind chatter can help centre your writing focus; a fifteen second calming technique; visualisation guidance and advice; short and simple brain gym exercises. All levels welcome. Please bring a packed lunch. Bernie McGill is the author of two novels: The Watch House and The Butterfly Cabinet and of a short story collection, Sleepwalkers. She has worked for twenty-five years as a creative writing facilitator, is a Writer in Schools with Poetry Ireland and a Professional Mentor with the Irish Writers’ Centre. www.berniemcgill.com Michelle Gibb is a poet, life coach and yoga teacher whose work has been published locally by A […]
Of This and Other Worlds – an Evening of Literature and Music at the C.S. Lewis Festival, Belfast
Campbell College, Belfast Belmont Road, BelfastC.S. Lewis Festival Curator Jan Carson hosts a bespoke evening of two halves. During the first half of the performance, poet Damian Smyth, novelist, Bernie McGill and Bangor-based folk duo, The Darkling Air, playing alongside The Arco String Quartet, will tell stories and sing songs exploring real world experiences. In the second half, the performers will delve into the more magical elements of their work. To book tickets visit Belfast Welcome Centre, 9 Donegall Square North, Belfast, BT1 5GB Tel. 028 9024 6609 We’ve chosen, “Of This and Other Worlds,” as our theme for this year’s CS Lewis Festival. In the essay collection of the same name Lewis focuses his attention upon speculative writing: fantasy, science fiction and the recently emerged genre of magic realism. Lewis throughout his career was always a great champion of imagination and this year’s festival theme gives us the opportunity to explore and exercise our imaginations as we focus on non-realist art across a range of different forms and expressions. Imagination isn’t just essential to creative practice, imagination helps us to envisage what the future could look like, to find creative solutions to ongoing problems and empathise with those who see the world a little differently from us. Through […]
One Day Writing Workshop at Ballyeamon Barn, Cushendall
Ballyeamon Barn 127 Ballyeamon Road, Cushendall, Ballymena, Antrim, United KingdomA practical one day workshop led by Bernie McGill in the beautiful surroundings of Ballyeamon Barn, Cushendall on the everyday craft of writing and with the aim of sparking ideas for new work. All levels of experience welcome. Come with writing materials and be prepared to write. Bernie McGill is the author of two novels: The Watch House and The Butterfly Cabinet, and Sleepwalkers, a collection of short stories, shortlisted for the Edgehill Prize in 2014. She is Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow based at the Seamus Heaney Centre, Queen’s University, Belfast. Fee includes lunch. To book please email: liz@lizweir.net
Dropping Your Gaze: A Day of Mindfulness and Writing with Michelle Gibb and Bernie McGill at Flowerfield Arts Centre, Portstewart
Flowerfield Arts Centre 185 Coleraine Road, PORTSTEWART, Northern Ireland, United KingdomMindfulness is the practice of learning to be present. It is also beneficial for calming the physical state of the body and quietening the mind. Whether you’re new to writing or have been writing for a while and are looking for a way to rejuvenate your approach, this day of guided mindfulness and writing exercises, led by two experienced facilitators, will refresh and enhance your writing skills and leave you with a simple toolkit that you can use in your everyday practice. Alongside focused writing exercises, you will learn: the importance of breath work and how to calm your breathing; how reducing the mind chatter can help centre your writing focus; a fifteen second calming technique; visualisation guidance and advice; short and simple brain gym exercises. All levels welcome. Please bring a packed lunch. Bernie McGill is the author of two novels: The Watch House and The Butterfly Cabinet and of a short story collection, Sleepwalkers. She has worked for twenty-five years as a creative writing facilitator, is a Writer in Schools with Poetry Ireland and a Professional Mentor with the Irish Writers’ Centre. www.berniemcgill.com Michelle Gibb is a poet, life coach and yoga teacher whose work has been published locally by A […]
On the Same Page at the River Mill Writers’ Retreat with Sheena Wilkinson & Bernie McGill
River Mill Writers' Retreat 43 Ballyclander Road, Downpatrick, United KingdomA day-long intensive fiction writing and editing workshop for committed writers facilitated by two of Northern Ireland’s most acclaimed fiction writers. Come prepared to write, share your work and learn how to take your skills to the next level. From the first spark of inspiration to sending your work out into the world, Bernie and Sheena will guide you through the process, drawing on their own experiences in publishing and offering practical advice for the submission process. The workshop fee includes lunch and refreshments. To book, contact Paul Maddern at inforivermill@gmail.com. Bernie McGill is the author of Sleepwalkers, a collection of stories short-listed in 2014 for the Edge Hill Short Story Prize, and of two novels: The Watch House and The Butterfly Cabinet. Her stories have been widely anthologised, in the award-winning The Long Gaze Back, The Glass Shore and, most recently, Female Lines. She is the recipient of a number of Arts Council of Northern Ireland Awards, is a creative writing facilitator in the community and with Poetry Ireland’s Writers in Schools Programme as well as a Professional Mentor for the Irish Writers’ Centre. She is Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow at the Seamus Heaney Centre, Queen’s University, Belfast. Sheena Wilkinson […]