Some upcoming deadlines in November and December

Wow, the winter seems to be here now in Donegal, heavy rain tonight. Wait a minute, don't we get that in summer too. I shouldn't complain really, we'd a great Donegal summer this year.

Well, to cheer ourselves up, what about a few approaching deadlines, and ideas for submitting over the rainy season (no snow, please!). Here are some upcoming submission dates.

My story Fallout is in Number Eleven

I'm very pleased to say that I've a story included in issue 3 of Number Eleven, an online literary journal. It's available here For further details of the journal see its Facebook site  and its website 

Number Eleven is edited by Graham Connors and publishes short story, flash, graphic novel artwork and illustraion, all quarterly. Submission details from the website here

Storytelling in Ramelton (8th - 10th November)

There's a very interesting looking storytelling festival upcoming soon in Ramelton, Co. Donegal (8th-10th November). The details are below, and there's a facebook page for updates here

Halloween musing

Some Halloween fun over at the website of  'The Penny Dreadful', that literary magazine of repute, who have announced the winners of their competition to tweet a seasonal horror story. You can read the top ten here  (including one from yours truly) and many congratulations to the worthy winner, Laura Jane Cassidy.
I was travelling back from a trip to England today, so I'm not joining the fun at tonight's North West Words event in Letterkenny. Instead, I indulge a Halloween habit and re-read the prologue of John Burnside's stunning memoir, 'A Lie About My Father'.
Burnside is a staggeringly gifted writer of poetry, short stories and novels. His first volume of memoir opens with a haunting reflection on Halloween:
'I was brought up, not necessarily to believe, but to allow for the possibility that the dead come back at Halloween; or rather, not the dead, but their souls: whether as individual wisps of fading consciousness or some single aggregated mass, it didn't matter. All I knew was that soul was there, in one of its many guises: ghost or revenant, breath of wind, figment of light or fire, or just some inexplicable memory, some snapshot filed away at the back of my mind, a picture I didn't even know I possessed until that moment.'
This is perfect prose for the season, and I never tire of reading Burnside, and then reading again more slowly and with appropriate attention. It is always a rewarding experience. If you would like to know more, the Scottish Poetry Society have some background and poetry on their website.
Happy Halloween...

My story Helpless in Crannog 34

My copies of Crannog arrived today. That’s always good news, but this time I’m excited to say that one is a contributor's copy, so I’ve a story published in Crannog 34. It's called Helpless. I’m so sorry to miss the launch in The Crane Bar, Galway. I hope everyone has an enjoyable evening of fabulous readings.

North West Words Arts Night Next Thursday

Halloween with North West Words - you could bring out the horror fiction for the open mic. Or, horror poetry, is there such a thing? We might find out next Thursday in Cafe Blend, Letterkenny 8pm onwards.

No Jury No Prize and the Garden Room Writers

   
GARDEN ROOM WRITERS ENTRY INTO THE
   
NO JURY NO PRIZE EXHIBITION

in the London Street Gallery, Derry.

23rd October until 6th November 2013




     Our envelope designed by Nick Griffiths



                      Sample page


   
 To view the entries from the other members of the group,
 why not call into the Gallery and also see lots of other exhibits
 from all over Ireland.

 The Turner Prize exhibition is now open at Ebrington Barracks
 until January 2014. See here

Just published poem (and its companion)

This poem is published in the latest Poetry Bus, launched last Monday at O'Bhéal in Cork. I still haven't seen a copy of it, I have a feeling its going to cost me a tenner to do so. Teach an Fhile was written a few summers ago in Gréagóir O'Dúill's house at Gortahork. I'd signed up for the first weekend workshop I did at the Poets' House in Falcarragh. Saturday was spent on a writing exercise in the morning out of which I got Googling Cottages, subsequently published in the Stony Thursday Book in 2010. Saturday afternoon we workshopped poems. At the end of that long and productive day we went to visit Gréagóir's house. It is an old cottage with a flag floor and a grassy street, I came away with a head full of stories and the smell of turf smoke in my hair and I wrote Teach an Fhile when I got home and put my wee'uns to bed.

The power of lists in short story writing

I read an article from Brain Pickings recently on Ray Bradbury's thoughts about the value of lists to creativity here. It reminded me that I'd read a similar idea on the Irish Writer's Centre blog a few month's back from Emma Leavy here. I've used the idea since in a short story. In particular, I thought about what might be present in the main character's handbag, a list of items that would be revealing. The story isn't published yet, but I'll keep you posted. Fingers crossed for lists.

The Story Lizard - who could resist it?

I came across this link recently from The Poetry Divas Daily. It's an article called 8 Tips For Creating Great Stories From George R.R. Martin, Junot Diaz, And Other Top Storytellers. It's full of great advice on storytelling, and I love the illustrations. Have a look here