July 2022 Newsletter – Munster Literature Centre

Plain text version of our newsletter sent on 25 July 2022. To keep up to date on future news about festivals, competitions, workshops and more:

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The dates for the 2022 short story festival are October 12th to 15th

6 Days to Go Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Prize

Alan McMonagle 2022 Judge

Alan McMonagle has written for radio and published two collections of short stories (Psychotic Episodes and Liar Liar, with Arlen House). Ithaca, his first novel, was published by Picador in 2017, and longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Award for first novels, the Dublin Literary Award, and shortlisted for an Irish Book Award. His second novel, Laura Cassidy’s Walk Of Fame, also from Picador appeared in 2020. He lives in Galway. The competition is open to original, unpublished and unbroadcast short stories in the English language of 3,000 words or fewer. The story can be on any subject, in any style, by a writer of any nationality, living anywhere in the world. Translated work is not in the scope of this competition. Entrants may enter more than one manuscript. Once entered, no alterations can be made to the submission. Simultaneous submissions are accepted but please notify us immediately should your work be accepted elsewhere.

1st Prize — €2,000

— Residency (one week) at Anam Cara Retreat
— Featured reading at the Cork International Short Story Festival with accommodation at a four star hotel.
— Publication in Southword

Details on entry Enter Here Deadline July 31st

Southword Poetry Podcast

The Southword Poetry Podcast, produced by the Munster Literature Centre, will be a regular series with ten episodes slated for release before the end of the year. The podcast is presented by Sarah Byrne of the Well Review. Each episode features a scintillating discussion with a poet reading from their most recent collection and also another poet reading a poem of theirs from a recent issue of Southword. Featured poets were selected by Sarah Byrne, Patrick Cotter and James O’Leary and include Paul Muldoon, Jenna Clake, Ishion Hutchinson, Ciaran O’Driscoll, Shangyang Fang, Molly Twomey & others. Among the poets reading from issues of Southword will be Dermot Bolger, Dante Micheaux and Amy Woolard. The trailer is already available and you can subscribe through wherever you get your podcasts from this page. The inaugural episode with Victoria Kennefick will drop August 1st.

Fool For Poetry Competition Open for Entries

Our annual poetry chapbook is currently open for entries with a deadline of August 31st. Go here for details.

Great New Issue Available Now

Southword is a journal becoming increasingly common in the acknowledgements pages of some of the world’s greatest poets and short story writers. Poems from Southword have been featured in Best American Poetry and The Forward Anthology. Southword 42 features the winning and shortlisted short stories from the Sean O’Faolain Competition judged by Simon Van Booy. First prize went to UK writer Shelly Hastings, an author who has yet to publish her first book. The prizewinning and shortlisted poems for the Gregory O’Donoghue Competition judged by Thomas McCarthy are also in this issue. First prize went to Timothy MacBride of North Carolina. There is also new work by gifted Irish poets such as Gerard Smyth and Breda Spaight and American Jodie Hollander, and New Zealander Wes Lee. Featured too are poems and flash fiction selected through our annual free-to-enter subscribers-only competition. Southword 43 will be published in November 2021 You can subscribe or purchase single issues here.