Blog
Polari Literary Salon comes to Belfast
Fri 16 June 8pm: Reading at Polari Literary Salon at Sunflower Pub
You catch me reading at The Belfast Book Festival this year as The Polari Literary Salon comes to Belfast for the first time! Polari was founded by author Paul Burston who also founded the Polari First Novel Award which I won last year.
Juliet Jacques, me & Paul Burston at Polari Prize ceremony
Paul and author Vg Lee will be flying over and will be reading from their work. Here’s a little but about the Polari Salon…
London’s award-winning LGBT literary salon. Now in its tenth year, Polari has been showcasing the best in established and emerging LGBT literary talent since 2007. Polari is curated and hosted by author Paul Burston and features a mixture of visiting and local guests.
Polari began in November 2007 in the upstairs room of a bar in Soho. Events are now held monthly at the Southbank Centre and feature the best in established and emerging LGBT literary talent.
“Always fun, always thought-provoking – a guaranteed good night out” – Sarah Waters
“Polari is a unique mix of voices that provokes the strongest responses from its audience – love, laughter, tears, but most of all, thought” – Val McDermid
“London’s most theatrical salon” – The New York Times
Hope to see some of you there.
My George Saunders Interview
I was lucky enough to interview George Saunders a couple of years ago. It was an amazing experience and a real ‘moment’ in my writing career.
George Saunders (c) Paul McVeigh
Recently I got to sit on a panel with for BBC Radio 3 thanks to New Writing North & Word Factory. We talked about the short story and read some of our work.
George was up for another chat and interview that day which we did thanks to Bloomsbury Books. You can read it over at The Irish Times where George talks about his debut novel, writing, Trump and his wife’s upcoming novel. I hope you enjoy it.
Talking Translation: International Literature Festival Dublin
I’m looking forward to my fist visit to The International Literature Festival Dublin.
I’m part of an event called Talking Translation – Writing and Rewriting: Writers and Translators in Conversation on May 27 at 10.30am – 12.30pm.
At this literary brunch in the fabulous Drury Buildings, broadcaster and presenter Sinéad Gleeson will interview me, Paul Fournel from France and Rasha Khayat from Germany about our work and experiences with translation and translators.
Also present to talk about their translating challenges will be Hans-Christian Oeser, who co-translated my novel The Good Son into German (Guter Junge ), and Sinead Crowe, who is working on the English translation of Rasha Khayat’s novel Weil Wir Längst Woanders Sind. The discussion will be followed by some short multilingual readings, after which the audience will have the chance to ask us questions and talk further with us over brunch.
From the website: Speakers: Rasha Khayat, German author and translator from Arabic and English. Paul Fournel, writer and member of the Oulipo movement. Paul McVeigh, author of The Good Son, published in 2015, and winner of the Polari Prize and the McCrea Literary Award. Hans-Christian Oeser, editor, critic and translator of Paul McVeigh and numerous other writers from Ireland and other English-speaking countries. Sinéad Crowe, German to English translator of authors including Rasha Khayat.
Moderator: Sinéad Gleeson, journalist and broadcaster who presents ‘The Book Show’ on RTÉ Radio, reports on RTÉ’s ‘The Work’s’ and writes for The Irish Times.
Organised by the French Embassy in Ireland, the German Embassy Dublin, the Goethe-Institut Irland and Literature Ireland within the framework of the French- German cultural funds.
I’m judging The Sean Ó Faolain Short Story Prize
I’m judging THE SEÁN Ó FAOLÁIN INTERNATIONAL SHORT STORY PRIZE 2017
The winner will get €2,000 and publication in the literary journal Southword. If that’s not enough they will also get a week-long residency at Anam Cara Writer’s and Artist’s Retreat AND If the winner comes to Cork to collect their prize, they will provide hotel accommodation, meals, drinks and VIP access to the literary stars at the Cork International Short Story Festival (September 13-16, 2017). WOW!
Cork Short Story Festival 2016 by legendary photographer John Minihan
Second Prize is £500 and publication in Southword. Four more shortlisted entries will be selected for publication in Southword and receive a publication fee of €120.
The Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition is an annual short story competition open to writers from around the world, submissions accepted from May to August annually. It is dedicated to one of Ireland’s most accomplished story writers and theorists, sponsored by the Munster Literature Centre. The Munster Literature Centre is a not-for-profit organisation; all moneys raised from the competition benefits writers and writing.
Anam Cara Writer’s and Artist’s Retreat www.anamcararetreat.com is again awarding a week-long residency to the first prize winner of the Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition. Located just outside the colourful village of Eyeries on the Beara Peninsula in West Cork, Anam Cara is a tranquil spot structured to provide support and sanctuary for people working in the creative arts. It offers private and common working rooms as well as five acres of walking paths, thirty-four nooks and crannies, a river cascades and a river island, gardens, and a labyrinth meadow. Editoral consultation is also available. The prize is valued at €700.
Click here for submission guidelines.
Looking forward to reading your entries.
The Good Son in Short Story to Novel Essay
Congratulations to novelist Susmita Bhattacharya who wrote this essay for a competition and wasn’t longlisted BUT it has been published by the internationally prestigious LA Review of Books. Just shows you – never give up on a piece you know is good, it just needs to find the right home! And sometimes the new home is better than the intended one 🙂
The essay talks about the link between the short story and novel in specific work including my novel The Good Son which came from a short story as well as Virgina Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway.
Winner of The Polari Prize
“Both dancing and disquieting, complex and vivid, I devoured it in a day, but I’ve thought about it for many, many more.” Lisa McInerney
“It’s a triumph of storytelling, an absolute gem.” Donal Ryan
“Funny, raw and endlessly entertaining.” Johnathan Coe
Off to France I go!
Today I fly to Paris to begin my French trip. Tomorrow I will take the train to Nantes, on Wednesday to Quimper and back to Paris again on Thursday for my final event.
I’ll be discussing The Good Son and meeting French readers as part of the Prix du Roman Cezam which Un bon garcon (the French translation of The Good Son) is shortlisted.
I was in Paris recently for the New Writings, New Styles Festival at the Centre Culturel Irlandais reading from The Good Son. It’s lovely to return for Un bon garcon.
Wish me luck!
“Paul McVeigh has written a first novel of beautiful generosity, poignant in the delicate manner in which he evokes the brutality of an era. A striking fresco, mixing historical upheavals and hardships of a family shattered.” Le Monde
Belfast Book Festival: Interviews, Workshops & Reading
I’m at the Belfast Book Festival this year, starting with the first event of the fest… I hope to see some of you there.
Wed 7 June 12.45: Interviewing Cairan McMenamin about his debut ‘Skintown’
Sat 10 June 10am-1pm: Workshop – Turning a Short Story into a Novel
Wed 14 June 12.45: Interviewing Ethel Rohan about her debut novel ‘The Weight of Him’
Fri 16 June 8pm: Reading at Polari Literary Salon at Sunflower Pub
Sat 17 June 2-5pm: Workshop – Everything a Debut Novelist Needs to Know
Crossing Borders printed in Belfast Telegraph
My essay, commissioned by the Writers Centre Norwich for the International Literary Showcase ‘Crossing Borders’ was picked up by The Belfast Telegraph, Northern Ireland’s most popular newspaper. I thought it was just online but was shocked and honoured to see they had included the whole thing over two pages in their print issue.
There has been a terrific response in the North and the South of Ireland and also in the rest of the UK.
I hope you can read it. Let me know what you think.
I’m MCing Taking the Mic – Northern Takeover
I’ve MCed a fiction night with authors I knew. I’ve filled in once in an emergency at a Word Factory in London. I’ve never MCed an open-mic event – but there’s always a first time.
Here’s the details. Hope to see some of you there.
“This month we’ll be taking our much loved open-mic night to the Crescent Arts Centre Belfast for Takin the Mic – Northern Takeover (and read more here).
The event will be MCed by writer Paul McVeigh and we’ll be curating a number of fantastic spoken word performers including Abby Oliveira as well as the usual open mic performers.
We want to bring as many people with us to Belfast and to facilitate this we’ll be organising a free bus which will departing from the Irish Writers Centre at 5pm on Friday 26 March.”
Details
Bus from Irish Writers Centre
Date: Friday 26 March
Time: 5pm
Takin the Mic – Northern Takeover
Time: 7.30pm
Location: Crescent Arts Centre, Belfast
A few things to note:
– Five mins per performer – poetry and fiction
– BYOB
– Slots are on a first come, first served basis
– Performers should sign up in advance via Eventbrite (free) – or contact Kate at events@irishwriterscentre.ie
Paul McVeigh 