Paddy Kavanagh embodies something essential about the Irish experience. Homer’s Iliad, he claimed, sprang from a local row on a par with those he had witnessed in Monaghan . . . “Gods make their own importance”.
His raw material, the “stony grey soil” and petty feuds of Monaghan is by implication as valid as those of the classics. Breathe in the restrained beauty of the county on a weekend of literary activity. The short-story workshop is structured around writing exercises, examination of classic short stories, and discussion on various elements of fiction, from language and setting to characterisation and theme, the workshop will also look at the various “seeds” of fiction and the importance of finding one’s own voice. It will run from August 1st to 2nd at the Patrick Kavanagh Centre in Inniskeen. For more information, call 042-9375860, or see www.patrickkavanaghcountry.com.