Galway's Cuirt Festival of Literature which begins on April 21st will feature a host of readings from internationally acclaimed writers such as Jeanette Winterson, Bernard MacLaverty, Frank McCourt and Irina Ratushinskaya. The popular event isn't just about readings, though, says Paul Fahy, of Galway Arts Centre, which organises Cuirt. One of its most important roles is to encourage creative writing among young people. This is done through the Writing in Schools project in which established writers share their experience with students at secondary schools throughout Galway for five weeks before Cuirt begins.
This year poet Louis de Paor and novelists Mike McCormack and Eamonn Sweeney have visited schools in Oughterard, Galway city and the Aran Islands to discuss what's involved in creative writing and to assist those students who want to try their hand at poetry, drama or fiction.
For schools in the city and county these workshops have involved five weekly sessions of 80 minutes each. In the case of Inis Mor, they took place over an intensive two-day period and the students' work will be followed up via video conferencing facilities and ISDN facilities made available
???????uirt by Digital in Galway. At the end of the project, almost 100 young people will read from their work at the Cuirt festival. All three writers agree that they cannot make the youngsters into writers, but they can encourage creative thinking, teach language skills and in the case of stories, develop techniques for character and plot development.
The Writing in Schools project has been running for over four years now and Louis de Paor has participated in the last two. He works with students in Irish and English and feels the programme gives young people a different perspective on literature than they normally receive when studying texts. The only criterion for selecting participants is that they express some interest in creative writing "A project like this, which is about access in education, should be open to everyone," he says. "This inclusive policy works because you get interest from people of all ability, not just academic".
Among Louis' groups is the Leaving Cert class of St Paul's Secondary School in Oughterard. Teacher Mary Nihill says his lively approach to literature has sparked great interest among the students. One of his poems is on the Leaving Cert Irish course, which helps make young people realise that literature is a living process, she feels. For the students of Inis Mor, the project has been a revelation. "We thought we'd be writing all the time and were worried that might be boring," explain some of Eamon Sweeney's and Mike McCormack's groups. "But because they began by explaining how they begin a story and how they develop the plot, we were learning how to write in a different way."
Paul Fahy of Cuirt regards the writing in schools as a vital aspect of the festival. "Even if the students don't continue with writing, as long as it encourages them to become active readers, it has achieved many of its goals".