I’m taking part in a day of workshops for the Big Smoke Writing Factory, organized by Claire Hennessy. It’s entitled ‘Speculative Fiction Workshop: Writing Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror’. It’ll take place in the Writing Factory’s regular venue at 7 Lower Hatch Street, Dublin 2. Here’s the info: Speculative fiction, encompassing the genres of science fiction, fantasy and horror,…
Ireland is famously proud of the number of high profile writers it produces. But given the ease with which a web resource can be set up, there is a shortage of professional-level sites offering down-to-earth, practical information for people in Ireland who hope to write for a living. I helped to develop one aimed at people who want to…
I’ve volunteered to have my head shaved as part of the World Record attempt taking place on the Ray D’Arcy Show, on Today FM. It’s for their Shave or Dye campaign, in aid of the Irish Cancer Society. Basically, they’re going to line up ten clipper-happy barbers and run a conveyor belt of heads under their blades, in an…
The run-up to the P-Con VIII – the eighth Phoenix Sci-Fi Convention – is now on. I’ve been going for a number of years and it always throws up some interesting talks and some great craic. Fans of all shapes and sizes will be descending on the Central Hotel in Dublin in March to talk, argue, heckle, laugh, buy…
Politicians. I have to admit, the very thought of them calling to my door to ask for my vote makes me grit my teeth. Not just the Fianna Fail ones, but all of the others who let them have their way for more than two decades, by offering too weak, too unimaginative and too divided an opposition. But it’s…
Here’s a first look at the cover of the French edition of ‘The Wisdom of Dead Men’. It’s going to be entitled ‘Féroces’, (‘Ferocious’), and I’m really pleased with the design. They’ve captured that ‘dark-gothic-mystery-and-violence-tempered-by-a-need-for-civilized-decorum’ feel very well indeed. You can see more versions of my book covers in my Cover Gallery. As I’ve mentioned before with the French…
I was contacted recently by researcher Milagros Torrado, from the University of Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain, who has been looking into the myth of the evil eye in different cultures. He’d found my book and was interested in getting an Irish viewpoint, particularly as the book was aimed at younger readers. Balor of the Evil Eye is, of…
My agent has just informed me that the French editions of three of my novels will be released as ebooks. ‘Small-Minded Giants’ (under the title, ‘Liberté Surveillée’) , ‘Ancient Appetites’ (under the title ‘Voraces’) and ‘The Wisdom of Dead Men’ (don’t know what they’re calling it yet) are to go digital, courtesy of my French publisher, Mango Jeunesse. I…
Christmas is over, the snow is gone (but threatens to come back) and I face the New Year after a great holiday several pounds heavier and many euros lighter. It was a lovely couple of weeks, centred round the family and doing sod all, though it included watching far fewer films than usual, and no lie-ins worth talking about….
On Saturday, I was in the Ark in Temple Bar for Story Spark. The Ark is Ireland’s only theatre set up especially for children. I was doing a ‘talk’ with Joe O’Brien for kids aged 6 to 9 years old – though it ended up with both of us doing more arsing around than any serious talking. Joe suffered…