 | We aim to raise standards of Literary Appreciation and Participation in Offaly |
Youth Literary Project
Creative writing workshops for 12 - 18 year olds. Further information on this can be found on our Youth Literature Page.
Arts Office and Literature
Literary arts activity is currently based around active writers groups, one of which, the Offaly Writers Group has been active for 15 years and seen the work of many of its members published. Other literary activity exists in the context of festivals such as the Shinrone Poetry Awards and the Slievebloom Storytelling Festival and on a more periodic basis on the programmes of other festivals
There is also a major interest among young people and adults in creative writing, which has become evident in enquires to the Arts Office.
It is acknowledged that there is a need to raise standards of literary appreciation and participation in the county therefore Offaly County Council Arts office aims to work with the local literary sector and with national agencies such as Poetry Ireland and the Irish Writers Centre to;
- Develop a number of master classes in line with needs identified by members of writers groups in the county.
- Publish an anthology of work by writers of all ages and genres in the county.
- Encourage the invitation of high profile writers into the county for events and occasions so as to create a greater public focus on literature.
Offaly Writers Group
The long established Offaly writers group meets fortnightly, alternatively in Birr Library and Tullamore Library. New members are always welcome. For further information contact Malcolm Ross Macdonald on 057 912 0895 rossmacbooks@eircom.net, www.malcolmmacdonald.org
Support to Writers
Writers living in or from Offaly are eligible for funding under the Support to Artists Scheme.