Fighting words website is now live

Fighting Words will be operational in January 2009 and the website is now up and running with some more details about class visits and volunteering.

Coincidentally over on TED.com they have added a summary of the Dave Eggers presentation that explains the genesis of 826 Valencia which in turn is the genesis of Fighting Words.

There is a longer version of the Dave Eggers presentation below – well worth the 24 mins.

teenagers and tiredness and tonight in Cork

Cathy Hopkins and Jenny Valentine were excellent on Monday night in Pearse Street. They both shed considerable light on their own journeys as authors and how they both found a voice writing for young adults and teenagers. Sarah Webb has some great notes from the session here. Cathy also appeared with Oisin McGann on The Arts Show on RTE radio 1 on monday evening. You can listen back here -

Flip Flop slam in DunLaoghaire was also a resounding success – a remarkable level of talent on show not least fellow bloggers David Maybury and Monster Kids Rampage.

Yesterday was the day of launches with Cois Life launching Dialann Sar Runda, Amy ni Chonnchur by Siobhan Parkinson and O’Brien launching Move by Conor Kostick. Both good fun and well attended.

A reminder for everyone that Joe Craig is speaking in Cork Libraries this evening -

Author of the popular Jimmy Coates series Joe Craig will be visiting Cork city libraries to advise parents and teachers on ways to encourage boys to read books. Joe believes that as much emphasis should be placed on when boys read as what they are reading. Joe will recommend ways to embed books into a routine.

Cork City Libaries, Grand Parade, 7.30pm – All welcome and admission free www.corkcitylibraries.ie

VHG will be there with matchsticks propping my eyes open!

new blog on the block – kind of

Irish Times journalist Fiona McCann has renamed her fringe blog and it’s set to continue as a general arts blog on the IT site. Good move all round, I think, and certainly a good companion to Jim Carrol’s blog. McCann has been busy in the print editions too with recent interviews with Joe Woods to mark all Ireland Poetry Day and  more recently McColgan about the Gate among other things.

Is the next step an IT book blog?

Niamh Sharkey on Radio 4

Fresh from a very successful exhibition at The Illustration Cupboard – Niamh Sharkey will be discussing picture books this Sunday on Radio 4-

Niamh says

I am on Radio 4 this Sunday evening with Author and Illustrator Mini Grey talking about our picture books on Go For It. Don’t miss it!

budget blues

David has some quick off the draw analysis of what the budget means for the Arts sector. Its not cheery.

But even worse and what may have slipped under the radar is the fact that €7.5m has been taken off aid for books in DEIS schools and €2.1m is gone from school library grants. That €2.1m is 100% of the department of education contribution to school library grants. It’s shocking that despite all the evidence about the importance of school libraries DES have withdrawn all of their funding.

The implications of the budget for the public library sector are not so easy to see currently but it is clear that any cut in library funding usually hits the book budget hardest of all.

Here’s a post I wish I’d written

Festival fatigue setting in so posting sloooooowdooooown continues.

In place of a proper posting – follow link to fascinating post I wish I’d written

Monday Monday mirth

Hello to everyone I met at the Irish Pen event last week – I really enjoyed it.  Host Sarah Webb has a good rundown of the event over on her blog. My fellow panelist Helen Carr from O’Brien Press discussed how to prepare submission letters for publishers and very good advice it was to. Coincidentally over on stony river there is a brilliant and funny list of submissions don’ts and do’s for anyone needing more info.

An awfully big blogging adventure

VHG is still in the first flush of blogging love – that is enjoying it and not yet feeling too overwhelmed by the need to keep the blog updated. However, I know for some bloggers – most notably Twenty Major, Sinead Gleeson and Shane Hegarty maintaining a blog over a number of year became too much.

It’s exactly this that has prompted Scatted Authors Society to get together to develop a collaborative blog. Apparently a rota system means the blog is updated regularly, often daily, and yet no one author gets burned out too quickly. SAS functions as a networking and support group for authors scattered across Britain and the blog is one outcome of their connections.

Thanks for John Dougherty for the nod in their direction and also for the good conversation over dinner last night – yes I know shameless name dropping – did I mention my afternoon tea with Cornelia Funke last week, lunch with Jon Berkley, launching with Derek Landy and dinner with Kevin Crossley Holland?

Jenny Valentine and Cathy Hopkins, Writing for Teenagers

A reminder that Jenny Valentine and Cathy Hopkins will be speaking at special event later this month

Monday October 20th 2008 – 6.30pm
Pearse Street Library, 138-144 Pearse Street Library Dublin 2

CBI, Piccadilly Press, Harper Collins and Dublin City Libraries are very excited to announce this unique author event as part of the 2008 Children’s Book Festival. Cathy Hopkins (whose best selling series include Mates, Dates and Truth, Dare) and Jenny Valentine (author of Finding Violet Park, winner of the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize, and Broken Soup) will debate their very different approaches to writing for teenagers with Dr Patricia Kennon, co-editor of Inis magazine. This event promises to be one of the highlights of the CBF programme and is open to both interested adults and young fans alike.

Please Note: Entry to all of these events is free but numbers are limited. To book please email:
info@childrensbooksireland.ie, including your name, telephone number and the number of places you require for each event.
Monday October 20th 2008 – 6.30pm
Pearse Street Library, Dublin 2

Irish Pen event this Thursday

Festival fever wll and truly established and the dark circles have taken up residence under all CBIers eyes. First week has been a blast and also a blur – proper posting will resume next week hopefully. In the meantime a reminder that Irish Pen are hosting a special evening about Writing for Children this Thurs 9th October. (VHG will be there!)

- Irish Pen Presents ‘Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Writing for Children (and more!) Speakers: Helen Carr of O’Brien Press, uber editor.Also:  Mags Walsh, Director of Children’s Books Ireland, the national organisation for children’s books and reading. Mags will talk about what children really want from their books. And the heroic Oisin McGann, author and illustrator. Oisin is always full of good, honest sense and will be talking about making a living from writing for children, writing for different age groups and many other writerly things.

Irish Pen Presents ‘Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Writing for Children (and more!)

Venue: United Arts Club, 2 Upper Fitzwilliam Street (off Baggot Street), Dublin

8.00pm Thursday 9th October euro3 members, euro 5 non members
Booking irishpen@ireland.com

As Sarah Webb says – Be there or don’t be Dr Seuss or Judy Blume – eva!