Poetry – From Initial Spark to Finished Poem! with Siobhán Campbell
“This workshop, for more advanced writers, will focus on work-in-progress, looking at how we can generate that initial sizzling idea and develop it into a revised and polished poem. We will look at the importance of titles, and of beginnings and endings. We will also consider how linking themes can help you to group poems, which helps to draw out new meanings. Through reading, discussion, feedback and re-drafting, we will hold onto the joy of creativity while also honing our craft.”
Siobhan Campbell is the author of six collections of poetry and holds awards in the National, Troubadour and Wigtown international competitions. Siobhan is Senior Lecturer in in Creative Writing at the Open University.
Introduction to Screenwriting with Daragh Carville
Join playwright and screenwriter Daragh Carville for an introduction to the craft of writing for the screen, covering essential elements including characterisation, scene construction and story structure. He is best known for creating and writing the ITV crime drama The Bay. First broadcast in 2019, The Bay is now in its fifth season and has been sold to over 140 countries worldwide.
Daragh’s other TV credits include Being Human (BBC3, 2013), 6Degrees (BBC NI, 2013/15) andThe Smoke (Kudos/Sky One, 2014). His films are Middletown (dir. Brian Kirk, 2006) starring Matthew McFadyen, Eva Birthistle and Daniel Mays and Cherrybomb (dir. Lisa Barros d’Sa / Glen Leyburn, 2008) starring Rupert Grint, Robert Sheehan and Kimberley Nixon.
Poetry and Responding to the Image with Anne Caldwell
These workshops will focus on finding inspiration in the image, responding to an image and exploring form, and finishing and editing your poetry and finding outlets. The sessions will look at starting to write poetry in response to artworks and photographs and consider how a writer begins to get beyond a description of another artwork and create something new and exciting that takes the starting point off in a new direction.
Dr Anne Caldwell is based in Yorkshire and currently works for the Open University as an Associate Lecturer in Creative Writing, She has published four collections of poetry including Painting the Spiral Staircase (2016) and Alice and the North (2020).
Writing Young Adult Fiction with Sue Divin
A creative writing course for adults interested in writing for teenagers and/or writing young characters in adult novels. What defines YA? How do you write a convincing teen protagonist? This course will explore some generic fiction writing skills including character, voice, plot, pace, dialogue and self-editing. It will also consider common YA pitfalls, handling sensitive topics, age-appropriateness and the importance of inclusion.
Sue Divin has written two YA/crossover novels (and another out in 2026): Carnegie shortlisted Guard Your Heart won the Great Reads Award Ireland, and Truth Be Told, was shortlisted in the Irish Book Awards. Her writing often touches on diversity, reconciliation, borders and the legacy of the Troubles today.
Memoir: Writing Your One Wild and Precious Life with Maureen Boyle
Maureen Boyle is a Poetry and Memoir mentor with the Irish Writers’ Centre. She is the author of three collections of poetry, the most recent of which, The Last Spring of the World, was published in 2022.
“In our workshops we will explore ways to access memory using a range of triggers and writing techniques.We will read examples of memoir writing and think about the issues that arise in any memoir project:consideration of those whose lives intersect in our stories; how research might help the project; the options we have in terms of form and voice; issues of truth and fictionalisation. You may work in prose or poetry, and you do not need to have written memoir before, or you may be in the midst of writing one.“
Short Story Writing Workshop with Bernie McGill
Join writer Bernie McGill in an investigation of the short story and the ways in which short story writers can make one thing seem to cause the next. This course will offer exercises, prompts and discussion that will help you to develop and revise your work within a community of fellow writers. Come with an open mind, prepared to write.
Bernie McGill was the 2023 winner of the prestigious Edge Hill Prize for her short story collection This Train is For, published by No Alibis Press. Her first collection, Sleepwalkers, was shortlisted for the prize in 2014 and will be re-published by No Alibis Press in 2025.
Writing Your Novel with Emily Bullock
For those just setting out on the journey and those already developing work, these workshops will look at ways to find inspiration and develop ideas, discussion of some popular genres, editing tips, and submission routes. Along the way there will be sharing of work produced in the workshops; these exercises will include experiments with point of view, ways of developing characters, writing to evoke time and place, and techniques for dealing with those difficult scenes.
Emily Bullock’s debut novel, The Longest Fight, was shortlisted for the Cross Sports Book Awards. Her second novel Inside the Beautiful Inside was published in 2020, and her collection of short stories, Human Terrain, was longlisted for the Edge Hill Prize 2022. She won the Bristol Short Story Prize with her story My Girl, which was also broadcast on BBC Radio
- Workshop course is delivered over three days.
- Workshop lasts two hours.
- Participants should attend all three sessions.
- Tutors are experienced creative writing facilitators and published authors.
- All levels are welcome.
Spaces are limited – advance booking is essential.
- The Market Place Theatre & Arts Centre, 9 Market St, Armagh BT61 7BW
- Monday 28, Tuesday 29 & Thursday 31 July
- 2.45pm – 4.45pm
- Cost: £75 for three-day workshop course
