The 32nd Listowel Writers' Week, a showcase of great and upcoming Irish writing, begins tomorrow.
This year's event offers a packed programme of competitions, workshops lectures, readings, literary tours, plays, art exhibitions, film and musical events over the five days.
A new playwright event offering a close scrutiny of Irish theatre is set to become a hardy annual.
This year's panel discussion chaired by Phelim Donlon with theatre directors Garry Hynes and John Breen, joined by Enid Reid Whyte, drama adviser to the Arts Council, and Liz Culloty, manager of the Belltable, will focus on the lack of a cohesive touring policy for professional theatre.
Staying with drama, a one-act play by John B. Keane which has not been seen in 30 years will be staged this year. One Way Ticket goes on stage at St John's Theatre at lunchtime on Thursday.
It will be directed by Keane's childhood school friend, Danny Hannon, of the Lartigue company.
The € 10,000 Kerry Ingredients Irish Fiction Award is always a talking point.
The shortlist of five from over 50 entries, which were read by Eileen Battersby and Eugene McCabe, includes John McGahern's That They May Face the Rising Sun, Eoin McNamee's Blue Tango, Seán O'Reilly's Love and Sleep, Fergus O'Connell's Call the Swallow and Monica Tracey's Unweaving The Thread.
Back from a stint in Monaco, McNamee will read from The Blue Tango on Thursday morning.
The winner will be announced on Wednesday.
Old friends of Writers' Week are out in force and these include Prof John A. Murphy, Emeritus Professor of Irish history at UCC and a former senator, who will lecture on "The Political Song in Modern Irish History" on Friday.
Michael Coady, the Tipperary poet and writer, is back this year with a reading in the Seanchaí Literary and Cultural centre also on Friday.
Writers' Week has always had a strong journalistic strain with workshops in journalism for many years.
The journalistic strain continues in 2002 with a debate on sports journalism.
"The sports desk is the toyshop of the newspaper business", a lively discussion with sports journalists Tony Ward, Eugene McGee and Munster rugby captain Mick Galwey takes place on Saturday.
The discussion will be chaired by P.J. Cunningham.
Yvonne Ridley, the journalist who was held in Afghanistan will speak of her experiences in the Tim Danagher Memorial Lecture on Friday.
The input of the late Michael Hartnett to Writers' Week since its earliest years will be remembered in a memorial poets symposium on Sunday, featuring poets Michael Davitt, Gabriel Fitzmaurice, Tony McMahon and Rosemary Canavan.
An anthology of recent Kerry writing, Breacadh, edited by Rosemary Canavan will be launched by Kerry arts officer, Kate Kennelly, during the tribute at St John's Theatre and Arts Centre.
This year's international event will focus on Canadian literature. Ontarian poet and novelist Jane Urquhart will join fellow poet Diane Keating and publisher Clyde Rose along with Dr Pat Byrne from the Memorial University of Newfoundland for Canada in Focus on Saturday afternoon.
There is plenty more at this year's Writers' Week - there is even a smart new format programme.