IRELAND and the Frank O'Connor Festival

Here beginneth the first of two trips to Ireland this autumn.

I leave today for Cork where I am participating in the Frank o'Connor Festival, and will be staying until Monday.

Three days stay, flights etc were a gift from the Festival. I have extended it by a day as I wanted to hear Clare Wigfall read this evening. (Her story The Numbers won The National Short Story Prize recently)

So much to look forward to: I hope to hear Adam Marek, Tania Hershman and the Southword writers at their session, I hope to meet Nuala Ni Chonchuir at last. Jen my publisher will be there, talking on the short story. Salt Publishing have a platform - Carys Davies and I read on Saturday. I will meet up again with US writer Julia Van Middlesworth who won the Fish prize this year. (I wonder.... she's shortlisted for the Sean O'Faolain... watch this space) and hopefully meet many more.

And the highlight .. seeing Jhumpa Lahiri being awarded the Frank O'Connor Award on Sunday. I hope I might get the chance to say hello. We have been in touch via a mutual friend talking about a multicultural short story project.

Who knows? Some of her talent might follow her around in the air. So I shall breathe deep.

The whole programme is detailed on Women Rule Writer's Blog HERE

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Monday, I fly back and straight into leading a discussion on the short story for a very scary serious reading group. They have read Chekhov's The Bet and Lawrence Sargeant Hall's The Ledge.

Look forward to that immensely.