Listowel Writers’ Week is hosting the biggest Children’s Festival to date, with lots of fun-filled events and workshops for young people of all ages. There will also be the launch of a new education programme for schools.
This year’s line-up will star Sarah Webb, who will bring audiences back to the time of Jane Austen and host a dress-up mother & daughter afternoon. Darren Shan, one of Ireland’s best known children’s authors, will be in the Fossett’s Circus Big Top as part of a Ghosties and Vampires Day. This will include a special effects make-up workshop as well as ghost story telling. UK author Steve Hartley visits Listowel with his alter-ego, Danny Baker Record Breaker, while Roisin Meaney, Alice D’Arcy and Lisa Fingleton will lead workshops in bookmaking, animation and creative writing.
Other events include a ride on the famous Lartrigue monorail, a literary treasure hunt with Billy Keane, teddy bear picnics, Fossett’s Circus performances and more.
Listowel Writer’s Week will present an expanded education programme that will bring the Festival experience to more students than ever before. Twelve well-known authors will visit thirteen schools across Kerry, including Maire Burke, Cathy Cassidy, Chris Judge and Maudie Smith. Operation Education will give secondary school students a dedicated series of events. John Montague will discuss his poems from the 2015 prescribed Leaving Cert English course, while poet Dave Lordan will perform The Freedom of Writing to encourage teens to use their words to understand themselves.
Multi-lingual author Ré Ó Laighléis will read from the current Leaving Certificate prescribed Gafa. There will also be a teen writing symposium entitles Inside the Teenage Mind with Geraldine Meade and Deirdre Sullivan.
Writers' Week has also teamed up with Fighting Words, a creative writing centre set up by Roddy Doyle and Sean Love, to host a series of creative writing workshops in the Cinemobile, for students of all ages.
To check out the Children’s Festival Programme, click here. Listowel Writer’s Week takes place from 29th May to 2nd June. Booking and information on www.writersweek.ie / +353 (0) 68 21074.
May 2013
