Welcome to the Munster

Literature Centre

Founded in 1993, the Munster Literature Centre (Tigh Litríochta) 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, readings and competitions. Our publishing section, Southword Editions, publishes a biannual journal, poetry collections and short stories. We actively seek to support new and emerging writers and are assisted in our efforts through funding from Cork City Council, Cork County Council and the Arts Council of Ireland.

Originally located in Sullivan's Quay, the centre moved to its current premises in the Frank O'Connor House (the author's birthplace) at 84 Douglas Street, in 2003.

In 2000, the Munster Literature Centre organised the first Frank O'Connor International Short Story Festival, an event dedicated to the celebration of the short story and named for one of Cork's most beloved authors. The festival showcases readings, literary forums and workshops. Following continued growth and additional funding, the Cork City - Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award was introduced in 2005, coinciding with Cork's designation as that year's European Capital of Culture. The award is now recognised as the single biggest prize for a short story collection in the world and is presented at the end of the festival.

In 2002, the Munster Literature Centre introduced the Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Prize, an annual short story competition dedicated to one of Ireland's most accomplished story writers and theorists. This too is presented during the FOC festival. The centre also hosts the Cork Spring Literary Festival each year.

Workshops are held by featured authors in both autumn and spring, allowing the general public to receive creative guidance in an intimate setting for a minimal fee. In addition, the centre sponsors a Writer in Residence each year.

We invite you to browse our website for further information regarding our events, Munster literature, and other literary information. Should you have any queries, we would be happy to hear from you.

THE FOOL FOR POETRY CHAPBOOK COMPETITION

Unfortunately we are no longer able to continue the 'Fool for Poetry Competition.' There will, however, be a prize for a single poem this year in the Gregory O'Donoghue International Poetry Competition. Click here for more information.

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HISTORY

The Munster Literature Centre hosted the Fool for Poetry Chapbook Competition annually. The competition offered writers the opportunity to have their poems published in a high quality production from the Munster Literature Centre's publishing branch, Southword Editions. The winner also received a cash prize and travel expenses to Ireland for the book launch. The competition began accepting entries in late summer and closed at the end of October each year. Although this competition has been discontinued, the Centre is pleased to announce the Gregory O'Donoghue International Poetry Competition for a single poem. More details can be found here.

2009 Winner Jennifer Minniti-Shippey

DONE DATING DJS BY JENNIFER MINNITI-SHIPPEY

Done Dating DJs by Jennifer Minniti-Shippey is the winner of the 2008 Fool for Poetry Chapbook Competition published by Southword Editions, Cork. Minniti-Shippey’s Done Dating DJs contains poems with precursors as varied as William Carlos Williams and Rita Ann Higgins. A wry sophisticated humour is invested in these crisp confident poems by a young poet who has found her voice. If Sex and the City were aimed at a higher brow level and written inverse, this could be it.

Jennifer Minniti-Shippey studied Creative Writing at Randolph-Macon Women’s College, and is a graduate of the MFA program at San Diego State University. Her work has appeared in Tar River Poetry, Web Del Sol Review of Books, and her chapbook, Less Whiskey, was published through Poetry International’s New Poets of America Series. She grew up in Oregon, and since then has lived happily in the southern United States, Spain, and Ireland. She now lives in San Diego, California where she teaches creative writing and horseback riding, although not at the same time.

Jennifer Minniti-Shippey appeared at the Munster Literature Centre's Éigse 2009 festival on Thursday, 19th February 2009.

Buy Done Dating DJs here.

Read Southword Journal Online

Issue 18 now online.

Sean Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition

now closed. Thanks to everyone who contributed.

Best Irish Poetry in English 2010

Visit our bookstore here.

Poetry International.org

The Munster Literature Centre produces the Irish section of this prestigious poetry site. Current featured poets are from Landing Places, the new Dedalus anthology of immigrant poets. For further information, please visit the site at www.poetryinternational.org.

Festivals

The Munster Literature Centre hosts two annual festivals. The larger Cork City - Frank O'Connor International Short Story Festival takes place each September, while the Cork Spring Literary Festival, with varying themes, is presented each spring. Further information is available on our drop down menus.

Workshops

Workshops in poetry and fiction run in Spring and Winter at MLC. Contact Jennifer for more information.

Munster Literature Centre

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Frank O'Connor House, 84 Douglas Street, Cork, Ireland.

Tel. (353) 021 4312955 Email munsterlit@eircom.net