Tag Archives: short fiction

Winner – Irish Short Story of the Year

I was genuinely delighted to win Short Story of the Year at the Irish Book Awards for my story This Small Giddy Life about two daughters and their wandering, wonderful mother who gets dementia. My own mother is living with this curious condition, so it is a close-to-my-heart story. You can read the story in the New Island anthology, A Little Unsteadily Into Light, available here.

Thanks so much to An Post (awards sponsors) and writing.ie (short story award sponsors), especially Vanessa O’Loughlin. Thanks to New Island books and editor Jan Carson, for commissioning the story. We had a lovely night of celebration last night at the Convention Centre in Dublin. See my insta for (not many more) pics here.

Shortlisting – Short Story of the Year

Shortlisted! My dementia story *This Small Giddy Life* from the New Island Books anthology A Little Unsteadily Into Light is up for the writing.ie Story of the Year at the An Post Irish Book Awards 2022. We had a lovely shortlisters’ event at the GPO last night. This story is meaningful to me as I took elements of my mother’s dementia to fictionalise. She’s still with us, and doing well, TG.

Voting is open now, see all shortlistees below: Vote here.

Thanks to editors Jan Carson & Jane Lugea and all at New Island & Vanessa of Writing.ie. This is my fifth Book Awards shortlisting, maybe this year I’ll take something home other than memories of a great, chat-filled, glammy night. The big event is the 23rd November and I can’t wait!

Neil Paul of Tertulia Books, Mayo, and Nuala
The 2002 Story of the Year shortlist

SHORT STORY OF THE YR – LONGLIST

One of my short stories – can’t say which for now – has been longlisted in the An Post Irish Book Awards Short Story of the Year category, run by writing.ie, which is lovely.

Shortlist will be announced 20th October. So crossing fingers!

Here are the longlisted writers:

Roisín O’Donnell
Eamon McGuinness
Wendy Erskine
Nuala O’Connor
Tim MacGabhann
Sheila Armstrong
Danielle McLaughlin
David Butler
Neil Tully
Colin Barrett
Twist Phelan
Rebecca Miller

Roddy Doyle interview

I’m interviewing Roddy Doyle, online at Politics and Prose in Washington, about short fiction. This event celebrates the USA publication day for Roddy’s book Life Without Children, which is a warm, funny, poignant collection of ten stories. Join us! 5pm USA, 10pm Ireland. More here.