Jessica Traynor
@JessicaTraynor6
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Not here anymore so won’t see DMs. Find me via my website or over at spéir gorm…
Joined October 2012
I suppose my 40th birthday is as good as any to make a little announcement….🥁🥁🥁. New Arcana coming from @BloodaxeBooks in September 2025. With cover art by the amazing @lisa_sterle .
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So, thoughts on delayed reopening. In the past few weeks, my uncle has died of Covid & my partner's aunt is on a ventilator. They both had their first shot. I am sorry for all the people whose livelihoods have been affected, but I think caution is wise.
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Dear English publishers posting me books for review: there is no such country as Southern Ireland.
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If you shared the untrue information about #GeorgeNkencho's prior convictions, or that he had a machete, or any of the other untruths spread by the far right trying to spread race hate, please take a moment to ask yourself why you were so quick to believe that narrative. 1/2.
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2 lads on the train chatting up 4 women heading to Dublin for a night out. One of the lads is doing card tricks, being funny& all-round delightful, but he has just started to talk about his podcast & the conversation has died so quickly I feel like the actual train has derailed.
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I’ve just heard on @rte ‘ironically the alcohol which drenched his life also fuelled some of his greatest songs’ about Shane McGowan and can we just fucking nip this toxic narrative in the bud please. Addiction does not create great art, great art is made in spite of addiction.
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@roryisconfused Catholic Mr Tayto’s entire body is a potato, symbolising the dream of a united Ireland, whereas Protestant Mr Tayto’s head is a potato, his body some other thing, symbolising a commitment to the division between the six counties and the republic.
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I was absolutely bowled over by this news. It's always a real privilege to have the work recognised, but I'm also really honoured to be in the company of the past winners 🏆 Will be celebrating this weekend!.
Huge congratulations to #JessicaTraynor, recipient of the 27th Lawrence O'Shaughnessy Award for Poetry. She will be presented with the award, which honours outstanding Irish poets, at the Center for Irish Studies @UofStThomasMN, USA, in early May 2023.
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Anyone else have very few intimate everyday moments like these? 😆
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Really delighted to have been appointed Writer-in-Residence @uniofgalway for 2023. The students there are amazing and I'll be working with some of the best colleagues. 🎉♥️.
We are pleased to share the Writer-in-Residence/Fellowships for 2023 🎉 . @FiontarGaeilge -Aifric Mac Aodha.@DCU -Sophie White.@MaynoothUni -Paul Lynch.@NUIGalway -Jessica Traynor.@tcddublin -James Harpur.@UCC -Lisa Harding.@ucddublin -Victoria Kennefick.
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Advance copies of #PitLullabies have arrived safely to the wilds of Artane! You can pre-order now from @BloodaxeBooks & I'll have signed copies up on the website soon
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In my theatre career I experienced aggression and bullying from many men that eventually led to me giving up. I've experienced similar in the poetry world & been reminded many times that not toeing the line will put my career at risk. Sick of it. #reawakenthefeminists.
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Those pointing out racism in our society and in the system are not the ones promoting division. They are pointing out problems we need to overcome so our society can heal. The racists posting falsified information are the ones tearing us apart. 2/2 #JusticeforGeorgeNkencho.
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Well honey I’m off out to protect the women and children of Ireland by (checks notes) setting the luas on fire and looting a footlocker.
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So very excited to be joining this amazing team as poetry editor. They've been so supportive of mine and others work since the start, and I can't wait to read the work that comes our way in future. 💫💫💫.
We're thrilled to announce an addition to the Banshee masthead: @JessicaTraynor6 as poetry editor ✨.
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@hazechu Again, hate to be negative, but so sorry to see the cobbles gone. Could they not have followed the example of Trinity and retained them while creating accessible pathways? This really is so grey and bland. Everything that made Temple Bar individualistic stripped away.
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The word is out! I am so excited that Pit Lullabies is shortlisted for the inaugural Poetry Prize from the @Yeatssocietyirl in the best company. Happy #YeatsDay to me & the other shortlistees! 🎉🎉🎉.
We're thrilled that @JessicaTraynor6's #PitLullabies has been shortlisted for #ThePoetryPrize by @Yeatssocietyirl. Thank you to @lcollins232 & her fellow judges! . More information on our website: #yeatsday
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My mum had a friend from the country who moved to Dublin, was walking down Leeson St, and spotted Paddy Kavanagh. 'Poets on every street corner!', she thought, just as Kavanagh shoved a melon from a stall up his jumper and legged it.
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My big news for the autumn 🍂🍂🍂. So delighted to be taking up this brilliant residency. @BloodaxeBooks.
Autumn 2021 sees poet @JessicaTraynor6 take up residence at @dlrLexIcon .Her residency will give her time to work on her upcoming collection Pit Lullabies as well hosting a poetry book club and develop more projects.Full information: @dlrcc @DLR_Libraries
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When I was 3 I had an imaginary friend called Alexander. I kept telling my parents he was telling me to get out of his room. Our house was old - yrs later we pulled out built in wardrobes in my room to find ALEXANDER carved into the wall plaster.
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@micknolan90 That's the lad who's been out painting all the postboxes green in that English village.
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Once I got stuck in the Abbey Theatre lift with Edna O’Brien when I was supposed to be bringing her up to a meeting with my boss & while we were waiting to be rescued she told me I had beautiful eyes 😭❤️.
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Oh wow, this ominous little poem from Pit Lullabies is one of this month's @PoemsOnTheTube!.*earnestness alert* I remember being a baby poet in London & really hoping I'd have a poem on the underground some day so I'm very very happy 💕 .@BloodaxeBooks
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With more in the news today about inhumane conditions in direct provision centres, I'm launching a call out for artists to feature in 'Correspondences: An Anthology to Call for an End to Direct Provision', a project from myself, Stephen Rea and Billy Hall.
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Wow what a lovely surprise! My poem Holidaying with Dad During the Divorce is Guardian poem of the week ✨. One for the early 2000s teens who remember the misery of giant denim flares + wet ankles. @BloodaxeBooks.
Poem of the week: Holidaying with Dad During the Divorce by Jessica Traynor
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Camped out by the gate at Salvador airport after an amazing few days in Brazil. With reports that Bolsonaro has Coronavirus, the country may go into lockdown in the next 24 hours. Looking forward to getting home. Cross your fingers for me!
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Myself and Declan realised last night, while slagging off the dishwasher, that we've been working from home for so long that we've started gossiping about our appliances instead of our work colleagues.
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Thought i was looking very trendy in my jumpsuit but an elderly man in the hotel has just asked me if he could have some extra towels
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I've a little announcement to make. proud to say my second collection 'The Quick' will be published by @dedaluspress in November of this year. Pre-order available now. And take a look at the gorgeous cover image by Denise Nestor!
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Hi all, taking a break from Twitter till the autumn. I've mostly been here to promote #Correspondences, but with the 2nd print run all distributed to bookshops, my work here is done. Happy to say since Nov we've raised c. 15k (some invoices still to be sent) for @masi_asylum 1/5
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The genius who is Bríd O'Donovan did some new portraits for me and I'm so delighted with them. I mean, who is this mysterious woman who sits on sofas draped in purple and stands near lovely plants??
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Very excited to be headed to Minnesota next week to accept the Lawrence O'Shaughnessy Award from @UofStThomasMN . As part of my visit I'm delighted to be reading @celticjunction - come say hi 👋 . @BloodaxeBooks.
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BOOK LAUNCH ALERT.Come join me for the in-person launch of Pit Lullabies from @BloodaxeBooks at @Hodges_Figgis on 30th March.@elainefeeney16 will be launching and there will be 🍷🍷🍷
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It was a pleasure to chat about #Correspondences tonight. Our anthology launches @DublinBookFest next Sat & preorders are available from @stingingfly
"Although this system is flawed, not welcoming people into our societies is not the answer". @JessicaTraynor6 speaks about direct provision in Ireland. #RayDarcyShow
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Braggy Friday - lovely to find that my poem The Artane Band is on the 2023-26 LC curriculum along w/marvellous poems by @FeliSpeaks & @Colm_Keegan 😍 The process of how this works is such a mystery, thanks to Felicia & Colm for letting me know! 🔥🔥🔥.
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'A woman leaves a courtroom in tears. A nation is rising to the light. History notes the second, not the first.' #EavanBoland
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'Fund artists not projects. i could do so much more if I wasn't filling out application forms' - Carmel Winters hitting the nail on the head @culture_ireland #cultureireland2025.
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TODAY'S THE DAY! Pre-sales of #Correspondences, our anthology to call for an end to direct provision & raise funds for @masi_asylum. now live via @stingingfly. website! Orders will ship on 18 Nov, after our launch @DublinBookFest. Share far and wide!
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My 3yo obviously overheard one of us saying ‘fuck sake’ and has taken to using it in conversation, ie when I was trying to pretend that getting her into the bath before running out for a book launch was fun and she looked at me and said ‘You happy, or you fucksake?’ 1/5.
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My article on data centres in Ireland is today’s Guardian Long Read. Featuring digressions on Ireland’s civil war & our patchy memories, the burning of the public records office, & the environmental cost of our tech industry.
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*NEW EVENT ADDED TO IRISH WRITERS FOR PALESTINE SERIES*. Join us @projectarts for an evening of poetry & music to raise funds for @MedicalAidPal . With some of Dublin’s finest poets, music by Farah Elle & special guest reader Stephen Rea 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸. @_IAFP .
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I'm so delighted to be the new poet on residence @Yeatssocietyirl! It'll be tough to follow in the footsteps of the wonderful @alicelyons22, but looking forward to the challenge! #PoetryDayIRL.
And then there’s the wonderful @JessicaTraynor6 our new poet in residence at #Yeats Society #Sligo. So delighted to have you join in this role. And thanks to @DanMulhall for introducing Jessica. And to @alicelyons22 our outgoing poet in residence!
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Finally living my dream of being a woman in a kitchen holding a mug of tea & staring into the distance #lifegoals
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When Shakespeare wrote whatever the hell he was supposed to have written during the plague, he definitely wasn't looking after a toddler. 😬😂.
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My first official issue as poetry editor ⚡ send me your work for Banshee 14!.
Pssst . subs for Banshee issue #14 (autumn/winter 2022) are open until Saturday 30 April. Guidelines here:.
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A short poem for the solstice from my forthcoming collection Pit Lullabies from @BloodaxeBooks, originally published in @poetrybusiness The North. #Solstice
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Tomorrow night! Join me and the marvelous @elainefeeney16 for the Dublin launch of Pit Lullabies @Hodges_Figgis.All welcome! 💫💫💫. @poetryireland @PoetryProgRTE @IrishWritersCtr @dlrArts @artscouncil_ie @BloodaxeBooks
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If these academics want us to focus on ‘what’s said and what’s not said’, let’s all be sure to remember this line in their despicable letter & remind them of it: ‘We disagree with those who regard Israel’s current actions as genocide.’ 10,000 dead in Gaza. #BDS.
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Delighted to see Pit Lullabies has hit the number two spot in @Hodges_Figgis in great company with @adrian_duncan_ whose The Geometer Lobachevsky is next on my TBR pile. @BloodaxeBooks
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Today, on #Bloomsday I was honoured with the Tundish Award by @FieldDayCompany for contributions to the arts in Ireland. I’m deeply humbled to join the ranks of past recipients. A day of conversations with wonderful people. I spoke about art, activism, Joyce & Palestine. 🇵🇸
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I've an essay called Arcana in the latest @tolkajournal which is ostensibly about the tarot. but at its heart is a story about my grandad, who was abused at Blackrock College by Archbishop John Charles McQuaid, one of the architects of the Irish constitution. 1/2
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Last winter as I was getting into the late stages of pregnancy, I wrote a book - racing against the oncoming birth & maternity leave. So gratifying to have it longlisted for #DRFWritersAward. Essays from it have appeared already in @tolkajournal @TheDublinReview & @bansheelit.
"There was a genuine excitement in finding these new voices, these different and ingenious ways of approaching narrative. What was apparent in each of the 12 longlisted writers was an energy in the way characters and events were dramatised." Colm Tóibín on the longlist. (2/3)
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Thanks so much to everyone who came to the launch of Pit Lullabies tonight @Hodges_Figgis & all of you who couldn't make it but have been so kind as to support the book. I'm so gratef, especially to the luminous @elainefeeney16 who launched with such generosity ❤️
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I'm so proud to have been part of this. It's been a wild ride!.
€15k+ was raised through sales of Correspondences: An anthology to call for an end to Direct Provision. Thank you to Stephen, @JessicaTraynor6 & all the contributors (see pic 2) for putting this together. A special thanks to the young people for speaking out #EndDirectProvision
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We're open again for submissions! Send me your poems!. Delighted to welcome JP and Marie to the Banshee team too 💫.
Submissions are open until 31 October for issue #17 (spring/summer 2024), & we have some exciting news – John Patrick McHugh is joining us as Fiction Editor, while Marie Gethins will guest-edit the flash fiction for issue #17. @johnpamchugh @MarieGethins .
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These are not protests. It’s a riot by people who have no concern for justice, or the victims of today’s stabbing - if they did, they wouldn’t be destroying the crime scene.
It is understood that a number of gardaí have been attacked and a garda vehicle set alight during protests near Parnell Square in Dublin following a knife attack on a woman and children in the area
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Signing off soon for Xmas and beyond soon, but before I do. I got asked to write an Irish books of the year for a paper which then got cut for ads (happy capitalismas babies) but here it is anyway just for you all 💕
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Very excited to be guest editing the winter 24 issue ❄️❄️❄️.
Poetry Review Editors announced for 2024!. Mary O’Donnell, Mícheál McCann and Jessica Traynor will each take up editorship of an upcoming issue of the highly-regarded poetry journal. Read more: @JessicaTraynor6 @maryodonnell03
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So delighted to have four new (slightly deranged & devastated) poems in the latest issue of @berlinlit in fabulous company ✨. With huge thanks to Matthew for giving them a home in this gorgeous journal.
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Saying goodbye to my beautiful office @dlrLexIcon where I've had a residency for the past year thanks to @dlrArts .It's been an exciting, inspiring year. Thanks to all my co-conspirators! @poetryireland @artscouncil_ie @CreativeIreland
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Soooo. I've written a libretto!!! 🎆 #PaperBoat commissioned by @musicforgalway.as part of @galway2020 is composed by Elaine Agnew, conducted by @sineadhayesmuso, dir. @ConorHanratty, in assoc w/@IrishNatOpera. A community opera celebrating 700 years of St Nicholas's Church!
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Here's a small poem from Pit Lullabies, forthcoming from @BloodaxeBooks in 2022, featured in the latest issue of @stingingfly in brilliant company.
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A few shots from the Lawrence O'Shaughnessy Award ceremony on Friday at Minnesota History Centre. It was such a pleasure to be hosted by @UofStThomasMN. 💕
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For your consideration, my 18 month old's outfit for today's lunch in a Wexford pub. No, she would not take off the sunglasses.
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Lol Twitter u bunch of weirdos, wtf is wrong with this painting? Some nipples? How many hate crimes have these nips committed? Couldn't appeal as link was broken. Maybe if u stop fainting over anatomy u can spend some time addressing rampant transphobia & racism on this hellsite.
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I'm really happy to have a poem from Pit Lullabies highly commended in the @ForwardPrizes this year. but equally delighted that @cli_bhreatnach's Aughrim Street Doomscroll that we published last year in @bansheelit is here too! Loved this one, have a read ⚡️✨️⚡️
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Delighted to be an ambassador for the Dublin Arts and Human Rights Festival again this year. I can’t think of a more important focus this year. Check out the programme, launching on Friday.
Meet our 2024 #DAHRF Festival Ambassadors! 🧵. 🟥 @JessicaTraynor6 is a poet, essayist, librettist, and poetry editor at @bansheelit. Her debut collection, Liffey Swim (Dedalus Press, 2014), was shortlisted for the Strong/Shine Award. 🔸 Read more:
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'If you're not full citizens, then we can't be citizens' - Stephen Rea at the launch of #Correspondences @masi_asylum
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In our thousands, in our millions, we are all Palestinians. As Israel ramps up its illegal actions in the West Bank, the city of Dublin stands with #Palestine . 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸
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Very excited to be guest editing the poetry for @bansheelit Issue 12! Send us your work - subs open in March! Here's a little emoji hint as to the nature of my poetic preferences: .🎃🦉🧙♀️👻🦈🍂☠👹💀💫🕸🐈.
We are delighted to announce that the brilliant writers @JessicaTraynor6 and @johnpamchugh are guest-editing Banshee issue 12. Read what JP and Jess are looking for when submissions open in March:.
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Absolutely floored to be able to say that Pit Lullabies is a @PoetryBookSoc Spring Recommendation in the most amazing company. 🎉🎉🎉. Big thanks to @Anthony1983 & @luckyflowerhowe for giving it your time and attention. Can't wait to read the rest of these books. @BloodaxeBooks.
The world is getting worrying again but here's some good news - the 2022 PBS Spring Selections! 🥳There's so much great poetry to look forward to in the New Year! Join now for Emily Berry's Unexhausted Time & these incredible books in our Spring mailing >
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Here’s the link to my essay on nightmares, the genocide in Gaza, the limits of language to describe horror, & troubling historical echoes in Berlin. With reference to the important work of @wizardbisan . 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸.
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Seeing some absolutely horrible anti-trans sentiment masquerading as feminism on the timeline at the moment. Won't link to any of it to give it air but solidarity with my trans friends who are just trying to live their lives without other people deciding what's best for them.
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🧵. ;. Some photos from our Irish Writers for Palestine event @projectarts on Thurs. Thanks to all who turned out in solidarity. Delighted at funds raised, but more than anything, visibility is important right now. 📸Photos courtesy of the wonderful @GHollandPhoto . @_IAFP
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@RTERadio1 again uncritically platforming this guy with far right links who they featured on @rteliveline on Playback this morning, despite all of the backlash they've had about not doing any basic research? This is starting to look less like ineptitude, more like bad faith.
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Isn’t this a thing of beauty? Can’t wait to share this issue with you all.
COVER REVEAL for Poetry Ireland Review Issue 144. Artwork is 'Dealán Dé' by Denise Nestor, artist and illustrator originally from Mayo, now based in Dublin 🦋. Check out her work at Available December 2024
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A belated post to say our Poets for Palestine event raised €2.4k for @MedicalAidPal - huge huge thanks to our artists, audience & @projectarts . This genocide has to stop. #BDS #CeasefireNOW .@_IAFP .🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸.
🧵. ;. Some photos from our Irish Writers for Palestine event @projectarts on Thurs. Thanks to all who turned out in solidarity. Delighted at funds raised, but more than anything, visibility is important right now. 📸Photos courtesy of the wonderful @GHollandPhoto . @_IAFP
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So my big announcement tonight is that, with bookshops shut, many festivals cancelled, & with yesterday being the 20th anniversary of the disgrace that is direct provision, I want to make sure #Correspondences is available. If you'd like to order a copy for €10+P&P. 1/3
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I may be biased, but these issues of @bansheelit are just getting more and more beautiful - I took a break poetry editing for this issue, so relishing diving into guest ed @RosamundTaylor’s excellent poetry choices alongside lots of fantastic stories, essays & flash.
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So sorry to hear about Derek Mahon. One of my favourites and my biggest inspirations as a writer. I go back to this poem often for its restraint and resonance.
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Oh it’s me! . My day has been absolutely made by this wonderfully generous & insightful reading of poems from Pit Lullabies. What an absolute privilege, thank you Frank!!. Please do have a listen 👇🏻❤️.@BloodaxeBooks.
In this week’s Poetry Podcast, the Irish poet, @JessicaTraynor6, explores one of Frank’s favourite subjects – ageing performers who don’t know when to quit. Download it now! 📚 .
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A reminder that #Correspondences, an anthology to call for an end to direct provision, is available from @BooksUpstairs @ByrnesBooks & @alanhannasbooks with all proceeds going to @masi_asylum #EndDirectProvision #BlackLivesMatter
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Thinking this morning of those that died in the channel, & friends who have recently got their papers after life threatening journeys & intolerable years-long waits in the Irish direct provision system. Thinking of the adults I know who spent their entire childhoods in DP 1/6.
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A proud day for Ireland. I hope this and the recognition of other states will make even a small difference to the people in Palestine enduring unbelievable suffering while the world looks on.
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Lovely to be invited to talk about my favourite books (and to give a little plug to Running Feet, Sharp Noses) by @Independent_ie .@BloodaxeBooks
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Due to demand & the support of wonderful bookshops, #Correspondences is available again from @ByrnesBooks @BooksUpstairs & @alanhannasbooks - place an order to help support @masi_asylum!
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I'm excited to be on the judging panel for this year's @ForwardPrizes best collection prizes🎉. Subs are open now - we're dying to read your work.
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Good morning from St. Paul’s, Minnesota, where I have managed to find both both the Mississippi and a decent flat white on a Sunday morning.
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This is so true. The youth of the inner city have been abandoned- neighbourhoods built over with hotels and offices by vulture funds & developers who provide no amenities for the locals. The government does nothing for them either.
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Walked past the NY portal & it was just a bunch of dubliners staring wistfully through at absolutely no one on the other side
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This poor child and her family & the medics who tried to rescue her. To think of a child in fear, surrounded by the bodies of her family in her last moments. It’s unbearable. My daughter is six too. I am horrified by the world we are living in.
BREAKING: 12 days after being missing following an Israeli shelling on her family car, the body of the six-year-old girl Hind Rajab, along with the bodies of five of her family members, have been found in the Tal Al-Hawa neighborhood of Gaza City. Medical sources reported that
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A reminder to everyone in Ireland who is against apartheid and genocide not to buy Nick Cave tickets this Friday.
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Heartened by Irish efforts to welcome Ukrainian refugees, but chilled to the bone by the qualifier I keep hearing on the radio: 'they look just like us'.
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