Writerly News Nuggets: Workshops and Literary Events

I'm busy with workshops and tasty literary and artistic events - not a bad way to be.

SpeakEasy Tomorrow Night

SpeakEasy is tomorrow night, and that's worthy of an exclamation mark! It's the first SpeakEasy of 2025 and I cannot wait. Come and join us on Friday 7 February at 8pm in Phil Grimes Pub. Feast your ears on the words of poet Eleanor Hooker and the music of Eva St Maria. Strut your stuff in the open mic session; let us hear your fine words. Or simply come along and listen. Entry is €5 on the door, cash only.

Here are all the details repeated on the poster, since the marketing gurus say you need to use more than one medium to get your message across.

Photo Description: This is our SpeakEasy Poster, which contains all the details included in the nugget above. It also contains logos for our sponsors, Waterford City and County Council, Granville Hotel and Phil Grimes Pub.

Writing Workshop for Celebrants

Last year I gave a creative writing workshop to budding celebrants who were taking a course in Dungarvan, Co. Waterford. The course is run by celebrant and teacher Aodhnait Flynn of The Hive, and she's now asked me to deliver my workshop again – apparently it went down well last time.

On Saturday 15 February, I'll be doing a two-part workshop, to show the celebrants-in-waiting how to create a wedding love story and a eulogy for a funeral. It'll be delightful, not least because I will be able to sample one of Dungarvan's array of fine eating establishments.

Waterford Music Gathering Pace

You might also remember that I have a PR and content creation role with a classical music organisation called Waterford Music. That role has been quiet in recent months, but the spring concert season is now kicking off, so I'm busy spreading the word through press releases, social media posts and newsletters. I'm very pleased to immerse myself in that musical world again, and hope my words will attract some new concert-goers.

Robin Houghton Poetry Website

I got an email from the mailing list created by British poet Robin Houghton, who supplies links to poetry magazines on a quarterly basis. Her website is worth looking at, not just for its valuable information, but for its warm, caring tone. You can subscribe to her mailing list to get her poetry submissions info too. Here's her website.

Waterford Council Arts Consultation Process

On Saturday, I took part in a lively meeting to gather ideas for Waterford Council's Arts Plan. It was interactive, which made it a more engaging process and stopped the meeting from turning into a rant.

You sat at a table with other artists and wrote your ideas onto big sheets of paper under different headings. It's hard to know what the outcome of this will be, but I do think it's a promising sign that we'll be able to access an online portal, where we can see how the process evolves and add our thoughts.

And finally… the Grammar Grouch nearly made an appearance at this arts consultation, when the host invited us to avail of 'cookies' along with tea and coffee. 'Do you mean biscuits?' said the Grammar Grouch in my ear. But in the face of the host's warmth and enthusiasm, those words melted away. Still, there's no way custard creams could ever be described as cookies.