Grace Wilentz
Grace’s father ran a beatnik bookstore in Greenwich Village, so shegrew up around ageing poets. “Ted Jones used to visit my family, and he asked me about my dreams – then he made up poems for…
Mel O’Doherty
Mel became interested in writing when he was introduced to the novels of Thomas Hardy– but he was in his late twenties when he decided to take action. “I joined a writing course run in…
Seamas O’Reilly
One of 11 children, Séamas has always loved reading and music. He played the flute as a child. “There were 2 cellos in our house,’ he says. “2 pianos, 4 violins and 3 flutes.” He…
Stephen Walsh
A shy child, Stephen spent his time reading, playing computer games and playing the guitar. He also wrote. “At nine, I told my mother I wanted to be a writer, and she said, ‘well do…
Trev Burke
Badly dyslexic, at a time this wasn’t fully recognised, Trev struggled at school. “I loved drawing in primary school, but that skill disappeared when I was a teenager.” During and after college, Trev worked in bars…
Anamaría Crowe Serrano
Brought up bilingual in County Meath – Anamaría has a Spanish mother and Irish father – she moved to Dublin for college and has lived there since. Straight after getting her MA, Anamaría worked in the…
Harriet Kline
Becoming a writer has been a long-held ambition for Harriet. But being, also, interested in the analytical side of theatre, she chose to study drama with English. “I liked getting inside people’s heads through drama improvisation,…
Megan Nolan
Megan was a bookish child from an artistic background. “My father was a playwright and theatre director,” she says. “He founded Red Kettle Theatre Company. I had social anxiety, so I buried myself in books because…
Nicole Kennedy
Nicole was born in England to Irish parents. “I have lots of family in Mayo, and my mum lives in Boyle.” She won prizes for English at school but went on to study law. “After my…
Kevin Doherty
An academic child who loved music and reading, Kevin wanted to be a doctor. He loved the science of it, but when, after studying it for three years, the training became more practical, he realised that…
Liza Costello
Lisa always loved reading, but having made a mistake on her CAO form, she studied Social Research instead of English Literature, and that led to a career in the subject. “I did qualitive studies for the…
Kirsty Capes
Kirsty was taken into care aged two. She had a positive experience, staying with the same family until she ‘aged out’ at 23, but she’s aware of the system’s downside. “There are always social workers…