WORLD BOOK DAY IN SKERRIES MILLS!

The names of the people in this photo are:
Back row: Megan Wynne
Middle row, left to right: Sarah McKenna, Aidan Coleman, Eric Caroll, Sara Burs
Front row left to right : David Ewins, Shane Duffy, Lucy Brady, Gemma Keogh, Saorlaith Kelly, Ethan Shine.

What a wonderful bookie week I’ve had. It all began at the Gutter Bookshop in Temple bar on Tuesday evening, at the launch of Shirley Benton’s debut novel ‘Looking for Leon.’ Shirley has been working hard at her writing for years, and has been a great support to me. I was delighted to see her beat the odds and get published.

The next event in my bookie week was World Book Day, which I celebrated all week long (as did many other wise people). I asked students to bring their favourite book to class and also a book they no longer wanted (one student brought in about seven!) We then spent an enjoyable half hour listening to recommendations and swapping books. I went home with Yann Martel’s ‘Life of Pie’ (one of my favourite reads), Kate Kerrigan’s ‘Life of Grace’, and Roald Dahl’s ‘Georges Magical Medicine’. I was very pleased.

And I rounded up the week by attending the Dublin Book Festival in City Hall yesterday afternoon. It was such a treat! The hall has a very high-domed ceiling, decorated like the inside of a cathedral, grand columns and huge glass doors looking down onto Parliament Street. It’s a building to be proud of and so were the Irish books and writers inside. I had the pleasure of listening to Yvonne Cassidy and Nuala Chonchúir read from their novels ‘The Other Boy’ and ‘You’. The title of the session was ‘Be Inspired’. I was. I heard Ivy Bannister give hot tips on how to win Short Story Competitions. She has won a load. Her honesty was wonderful; she checks out the judges work and uses subject matter and language that they like. She even once used the same adjective ‘Spikey’ in a story that a judge had used- and it worked! Mary Malone told us how winning a short story competition helped launch her career as a novelist, and Kate Kerrigan told us she spent ten years writing short stories and failing miserably ( I found that very encouraging – Look where she is now!)

It was such a wonderful week and now we have Dublinswell to look forward to on 18th March, followed by the Dublin Literary Festival in May.

I love being a writer in Ireland. It’s THE place to be.

I hope you are well and settled into 2011, which is already going very quickly. I am writing to let you know that the booklet of short stories THE STORYTELLERS written by the children, teenagers and adults, who attend my creative writing classes, has made of a profit of €575 for St. Vincent De Paul! I am delighted.

Many thanks to all who bought a copy, the venues that sold them and, of course, to the writers who made the booklet possible.

It is now the time of year for planning holidays and the year ahead, so I thought it might be a good time to let you know about my courses and competitions coming up.

One Day Adult Workshops

Saturday 5th March:
One Day Novel Writing workshop on Writing Dialogue for Adults takes place in Skerries Mills. It runs from 10.30a.m – 3p.m and costs €45.
This course is particularly suitable to those who find writing dialogue challenging/interesting and want to learn how to make it believable and authentic. This day will be fun!

Saturday 7th May:
A second One Day Novel Writing Workshop for adults takes place in Skerries Mills. The topic for the day will be What Makes a Good Story? Submitting Work to publishers and agents.
It also runs from 10.30a.m – 3p.m and costs €45.

Teen EASTER Creative Writing Camp

This Easter, for the first time, I am running a Creative writing camp for 10 – 16 year olds in Skerries Mills from 26th – 29th April ( Tues – Fri).

It runs from 10.30am – 3pm and costs €120.

At the Mills we can go outside to the green to play games during the breaks and during the course we will cover the skills necessary for writing good stories – character creation, plot, dialogue, pace, description, endings, beginnings, twists in the tale and point of view. Like all of my courses, the group size will be limited to twelve.

SPRING / SUMMER 6 WEEK TERM OF CLASSES

A new six week term of summer classes begins the first week in May.

ADULTS:
There will be morning classes for adults in Skerries Mills on a Monday and Friday (10.30am. – 12.30p.m.),

CHILDREN:
After School classes in St. Oliver Plunkett school on Tuesdays 4 – 5pm,
and After School classes in Skerries Mills on Thursdays 2.55pm – 3.55pm ( 8 – 10 year olds) and 4 – 5pm ( 10 – 12 year olds).

Cost:
The adult six week term costs €105 if booked, and paid for, before 14th April or €120 thereafter (with the option to pay in two installments of €60).
The children’s term costs €72 if booked, and paid before, 14th April or €80 thereafter (with an option to pay in two installments of €40)

Paddy, owner of the Skerries Bookshop, collects fees for courses on my behalf, or you can post your booking to the address below.

SUMMER WEEKLONG COURSES FOR ADULTS, TEENAGERS AND CHILDREN

Creative Writing Summer Camp for 10 -16 year olds
takes place in The Grange, Ballyboghal from Monday 27th June to Friday 1st July from 10.30am – 3pm.

Intensive Creative Writing Summer Course for Adults
takes place in Skerries Mills from Monday 11th to Friday 15th July from 10.30am – 3pm.

Creative Writing Summer Camp for 10 -16 year olds
takes place in Skerries Mills from Monday 18th to Friday 22nd July from 10.30am – 3pm.

Intensive Creative Writing Summer Course for Adults
takes place in The Grange, Ballyboghal from Monday 22nd to Friday 26th August from 10.30am – 3pm.

Weeklong summer courses cost €130 if booked one month in advance of the course start date, or €150 thereafter.
Places are limited to twelve in each group.

WRITING COMPETITIONS THIS SPRING

Fish Publishing has a One Page Fiction story competition currently open and the closing date is 20th March.
Find out more [here]

FACEBOOK

You can find me on Facebook by clicking [here].
There are great photos of the Storytellers’ launch in December and I notice of my courses and writing competitions
Please share with your friends or suggest the page if you like it !

Finally, The Dublin Book Festival is coming up. You will find details [here] It is a good idea to check this website out, as you may want to attend an event between 2nd March – 6th March. There will be a lot going on – and you might get to meet your favourite writer!

Thanks for Reading !
Whether or not you attend a class with me this year, I hope you find the time to write by yourself at home. It is a wonderful gift. If you’ve got it, use it!

Best wishes,
Megan

The booklet of short stories THE STORYTELLERS, written by the children, teenagers and adults who attend my creative writing classes, is sold out and has made of a profit of €575 for St. Vincent De Paul! I am delighted.

Many thanks to all who bought a copy, to the venues that sold them and, of course, to the writers who made the booklet possible. Roll on next Christmas. We’re already hatching plans for the next collection!

I am looking forward to this year, despite having begun it with a sprained ankle. I have spent the last two days (since ‘the accident’) laid up on the sofa with Jilly Cooper’s latest novel ‘Jump!’. Being horse mad, I absolutely adored it – that is, once I had got to know all of the characters in the book. Jilly Cooper doesn’t go with the general advice to limit characters to make them manageable i.e. only one best friend. Instead, she takes the ‘true to life’ approach when casting characters and so our heroine has about fifteen friends, a collection of horrible family members and a whole load of acquaintances who live in the small village of Willowwood. Jilly Cooper also gives two fingers to the notion of ’rounded’ characters. Many of hers are demons or angels (with only a few in between). Nevertheless I adored this book – the champagne flows as does red wine and whisky. I now have a strong urge to get tipsy at the races or at least pat a few noses in my local stable. Thanks Jilly. You made my Christmas holidays!