Launch of The Watch House by Bernie McGill, in conversation with Eimear O'Callaghan, author of Belfast Days: A 1972 Teenage Diary. In association with the John Hewitt Society. Admission free but please reserve a place by phoning Flowerfield at the number provided, or email reception@flowerfield.org.

Reading from The Watch House with David Park, author of The Truth Commissioner and The Poets' Wives, introduced by writer and broadcaster Malachi O'Doherty. An Aspects Festival event.

Reading from The Watch House, in conversation with Jan Carson, author of Malcolm Orange Disappears and Children's Children. A Belfast International Festival event. Book here for the event. Watch the book trailer, filmed on Rathlin. ‘Beautiful and lyrical, tender and fierce; one of those rare novels, with the power to break you clean in two.’ Guinevere Glasfurd, author of the Costa shortlisted The Words in My Hand. ‘McGill writes about life, love and telegraphy with a poet’s clarity’ The Sunday Times ‘McGill proves once again she is a masterful storyteller . . . historical fiction at its absolute best’ The Lady ‘A novel to haunt you’ Sunday Mirror ‘Totally absorbing and full of unexpected twists’ Sunday Business Post 'Endlessly intriguing and exhilarating' Dublin Review of Books ‘An evocative novel that’s brimming with suspense… reels you in and keeps a grip on you until the very end’ The Incubator ‘ assured style and eye for detail make The Watch House a pleasure to read, a fast-paced tale that rarely flags, with a complex and beguiling heroine at the helm’ Irish Times ‘Hard to put down, this atmospheric book will stay with you long after the final heart-rending denouement, setting McGill firmly into the […]

The Celtic Festival of Samhain traditionally marks the end of the lighter half and the beginning of the darker half of the year. It was believed that at this time, the division between this world and the otherworld was at its thinnest, allowing spirits to pass through. As we head into the darker weeks of the year, this one-day writing workshop will use as its theme that idea of passing between the lights. Open to all from experienced writers to first-timers, poets and prosers alike, the workshop will be fully participative with attendees taking part in writing exercises throughout the day. Maximum numbers 12. (One hour break for lunch. Lunch not provided.) To book, phone: 028 7776 0650 or email: information@rvacc.co.uk

In 1985, The Female Line: Northern Irish Women Writers was published, edited by Ruth Carr. A pioneering anthology at the time, it gave many Northern Irish women writers their first opportunity for publication. Now, over thirty years later, Female Lines: New Writing by Women from Northern Ireland – a stunning mosaic of work by some of the best contemporary women writers from Northern Ireland – acts as both a new staging post and a sequel to its vibrant feminist predecessor. Trans-genre in contents and including both experienced and newer women writers, this landmark anthology features women writers playing with different modes, forms, and innovations – from magical realism and surrealism to humour and multi-perspective narratives – and celebrates fiction, poetry, drama, essays, life writing, and photography. It considers how much has changed or stayed the same in terms of scope and opportunity for women writers and for women more generally in Northern Irish society (and its diaspora) in the post-Good Friday Agreement era. Northern Irish women’s writing is going from strength to strength and this anthology captures its current richness and audacity. Edited by Linda Anderson and Dawn Sherratt-Bado and featuring work by: Linda Anderson, Jean Bleakney, Maureen Boyle, Colette Bryce, […]

Author Carlo Gébler hosts an event which will explore the crucial narrative element of developing a sense of place during the writing process. He will be joined by Billy O’Callaghan, author of short stories and his first novel The Dead House (The O’Brien Press), comic strip writer Arja Kajermo – who is debuting her novel The Iron Age (Tramp Press), Bernie McGill, author of The Watch House (Headline) and Ciaran McMenamin, a stage and screen actor who is introducing his first novel Skintown (Doubleday Ireland). Together the authors will discuss and share their keen insights on effectively establishing a strong theme of place throughout their work, and how doing so enriched their storytelling. Free event. Booking advised. Book here. IN ASSOCIATION WITH BELFAST BOOK FESTIVAL

In 1985, The Female Line: Northern Irish Women Writers was published, edited by Ruth Carr. A pioneering anthology at the time, it gave many Northern Irish women writers their first opportunity for publication. Now, over thirty years later, Female Lines: New Writing by Women from Northern Ireland – a stunning mosaic of work by some of the best contemporary women writers from Northern Ireland – acts as both a new staging post and a sequel to its vibrant feminist predecessor. Trans-genre in contents and including both experienced and newer women writers, this landmark anthology features women writers playing with different modes, forms, and innovations – from magical realism and surrealism to humour and multi-perspective narratives – and celebrates fiction, poetry, drama, essays, life writing, and photography. It considers how much has changed or stayed the same in terms of scope and opportunity for women writers and for women more generally in Northern Irish society (and its diaspora) in the post-Good Friday Agreement era. Northern Irish women’s writing is going from strength to strength and this anthology captures its current richness and audacity. Edited by Linda Anderson and Dawn Sherratt-Bado and featuring work by: Linda Anderson, Jean Bleakney, Maureen Boyle, Colette Bryce, […]

  Topics covered include: Building Characters; Creating a sense of place; Selecting point of view. Suitable for both beginners and experienced fiction writers, short story writers and novelists. Participants will be invited to take part in writing exercises in order to develop their work and practice. You're welcome to bring a packed lunch and we have a tea/coffee machine and some snacks available at reception.

Starts: Tues 27 Feb 2018 Time: 7.00pm – 9.00pm Duration: 8 Weeks Cost: €88*/£80 Location: Verbal Arts Centre, Derry  *Please note this cost is based on the currency exchange rate of £80. In this 8-week course, we will look at: structuring work; writing openings with impact; developing setting; creating credible characters; selecting point of view; writing dialogue; editing and redrafting; outlets for completed work. You will be invited to take part in writing exercises to further develop your work and to share your writing with other class members. Suitable for committed writers. Participants should come with a 250 word outline for a novel. Works-in-progress are welcomed. Bernie McGill is the author of two novels, The Watch House and The Butterfly Cabinet, both published by Tinder Press, and of a short story collection, Sleepwalkers, published by Whittrick Press. To book, please contact The Irish Writers' Centre (organiser) by phone on (+353) 1 872 1302; by email at info@writerscentre.ie or book online here: https://irishwriterscentre.ie/products/northern-ireland-begin-your-novel-with-bernie-mcgill  

Join Bernie McGill, Claire Savage and Margot McCuaig as they explore the ways in which landscape - particularly the North Antrim coast, Rathlin Island and its surrounding areas - presents a power and an influence in creative writing. Margot McCuaig is a storyteller and published novelist. She writes, produces and directs award-winning documentary feature films. She also makes live television programmes as a producer and executive producer. She’s a mother and grandmother, sitting at the centre of an amazing family, and she lives in Glasgow, Scotland and Rathlin Island, Ireland; a beautiful city and an inspirational island. Claire Savage published her debut children’s novel, Magical Masquerade, in April 2017, officially launching it at the Belfast Book Festival in June. Chosen as one of Lagan Online’s 12NOW (New Original Writers) for 2016/17, Claire also writes short stories and poetry, with various work published in literary journals. Claire has just received a grant from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland’s National Lottery funding as part of its Support for Individual Artists Programme (under the General Arts Award Scheme). This will support her in her artistic production and promotion, drafting a second novel, and creating a support structure for the first. Bernie McGill’s first novel, The Butterfly Cabinet, […]