About Us
Founded in 1993, the Munster Literature Centre (Ionad Litríochta an Deiscirt) is a non-profit arts organisation dedicated to the promotion and celebration of literature, especially that of Munster. To this end, we organise festivals, workshops, competitions, and fellowships. Our publishing arm, Southword Editions, publishes Southword, an English-language biannual literary journal, Aneas, an Irish-language yearly literary journal, as well as poetry chapbooks, anthologies and translations. We actively seek to support new and emerging writers and are assisted in our efforts through funding from Cork City Council and the Arts Council of Ireland. Originally located in Sullivan’s Quay, the centre moved to its current premises in Frank O’Connor House (the author’s birthplace) at 84 Douglas Street, in 2003. We produce two festivals each year, The Cork International Poetry Festival in the spring and The Cork International Short Story Festival in the autumn.
Staff
Artistic Director
Patrick Cotter
Patrick Cotter is an Irish poet, born in Cork City where he still lives. His poems have been published in journals such as the Financial Times, The London Review of Books, Poetry and Poetry Review. He is a recipient of the Keats-Shelley Prize for Poetry. His poems have been translated into over a dozen languages and he has given readings of his work across the Northern Hemisphere. Sonic White Poise, his third full-length collection, was published by Dedalus in 2021.
Publications Officer
James O’Leary
James O’Leary is a poet from Cork. His latest chapbook is Sacrament of the Sick (Well Review Editions, 2023). His first chapbook is There are Monsters in this House (Southword Editions, 2018). His poetry-films have screened at festivals in Ireland, Scotland and Canada.
Operations Officer
Kate Moore
Kate Moore is a writer & playwright from Kerry now based in Cork City. She has previously been produced in the Everyman, Cork Arts Theatre, Siamsa Tire Theatre and by UCC Dramat. She has been published by the Irish Times and Wild Words Book Festival, and is currently under mentorship from Children’s Books Ireland.