The 29th Writers' Week in Listowel, Co Kerry will open officially tomorrow night. And for five novelists who are short-listed for the major award, worth £5,000 this year, and sponsored by Kerry Ingredients, there will be much excitement. They are Catherine Dunne; Gretta Mulrooney; J.M. O'Neill; Peter Cunningham and Mike McCormack. The adjudicators are journalists and writers Bruce Arnold and Colm Toibin, who are said to be impressed with the dynamism, energy and confidence of the writing.
The festival has, over the years, brought together some of Ireland's finest talents. While it has a serious side to it in terms of literary content, it also espouses the social and fun side to literature. That is why writers of note, as well as those wishing to emulate them, get together in a friendly atmosphere each evening for chat, music and song.
The festival will be opened by Prof Brian Farrell and writer John B. Keane - one of Listowel's most famous sons - will also speak. To coincide with the opening, the Mercier Press in Cork has published The Best of John B Keane as well as three of his plays - Many Young Men of Twenty, Moll and The Chastitute.
It is anticipated that Listowel Writers' Week will attract almost 1,000 visitors and more than £13,000 will be awarded in prize money.
As well as competitions for the short story award, worth £1,000, the Eamonn Keane full-length play award, also worth £1,000, and a similar prize fund for the poetry competition, Kerry County Council has put up £1,000 as an award for young creative writing.
Those eligible include nine-year-olds to third-level students. There will also be a writing in prisons section sponsored by the prison education service and the Department of Justice.