Top tier authors at "biggest ever" West Cork Literary Festival
Jung Chang, Ian Rankin, Louise O’Neill, Miriam O’Callaghan and Karl Henry, among the 120 authors coming to West Cork Literary Festival in Bantry from July 10-17.
Getting to read the latest books fresh off the presses and meeting famous authors sounds like an interesting job. For Eimear O’Herlihy, director of the West Cork Literary Festival (WCLF), it’s just as exciting as it was when she started in the role twelve years ago.
The Bantry-based festival (July 10-17) is now in its 28th year, and when O’Herlihy says it’s bigger than ever this year, she is not just trying to hype the eight-day literary fest. It really has surpassed previous years with over one hundred events taking place and 120 authors involved.
O’Herlihy, who has worked as executive director of the Everyman and was festival manager of the Cork International Film Festival, says her current programming role “is all about getting the most interesting mix across the week. Big names are marvellous because they bring excitement to the festival and they attract the attention of people who might not necessarily be tuned into the festival.”
From Cork city, O’Herlihy attended the festival as a punter before she ever started working on it, lured by big names. “When I was in Bantry, I would have popped along to other events and discovered some incredible writers that I’d never have otherwise come across.”
She says that holiday makers, keen to have an activity lined up, often come to Bantry to attend a writing workshop or an author interview.
Famous names associated with the festival over the years include Graham Norton, who has a holiday home in West Cork and does an event at WCLF when he has a new book out.
“He would be a regular fixture in the town during the festival, as one of the locals.” (His latest novel won’t be out in time for this year’s festival.) Other well-known names at the festival have included Richard E Grant, Michael Parkinson, Zadie Smith and her husband Nick Laird who have a home in West Cork, Annie Proulx and Miriam Margolyes.
This year’s roll-call includes Jung Chang whose new book, ‘Fly Wild Swans’ is a follow-up to her international bestseller, ‘Wild Swans’. Other popular authors coming to Bantry include Karl Henry, Miriam O’Callaghan, Dearbhla Mescal, Jonathan Coe and Louise O’Neill. There’s the acclaimed crime writer, Ian Rankin, who is coming to read at the festival as well as Katriona O’Sullivan.
With Ireland holding the presidency of the Council of the EU from July to December, each county has been paired with an EU state and will be doing events focusing on the individual states. Cork has been paired with France. French author and journalist, Nolwenn Le Blevennec, will be representing France at the festival where she will read from her novel, ‘Friends and Lovers.’
There has always been a strong international aspect to the festival.
“Since it started, there has always been a strong cohort of international authors. That’s something I’m trying to build on, particularly featuring work in translation. We work with a number of embassies to make that happen. It’s a question of trying to balance that with the environmental and economic realities of international travel and the ease with which people can get to West Cork.”
O’Herlihy has programmed a multifaceted festival.
“It’s not just evening events. Our first events start at 10am, with the last event at 10pm. It’s a jam-packed festival. I really want it to be like a festival as opposed to just a series of readings.
"The range of events we offer has widened. There are so many different ways of people creating work, whether it’s through theatre, zines, podcasts, graphic novels, storytelling, and spoken word. We’re trying to represent that across the festival. There’s just so many incredible people out there creating work. I wanted to include as many of them as I reasonably can within the number of programming slots and within our budget. It’s about making the festival as busy and as vibrant as we possibly can.”
With her antennae tuned to all things literary, O’Herlihy has “a rolling spreadsheet of ideas. If I see something interesting, I put it on my spreadsheet. If I read of an interesting issue being written about, I take note of it. Sometimes, if I can’t fit somebody in, I’ll keep them for next year.”
Publishers as well as writers contact O’Herlihy directly. “Other times, it’s me approaching them.”
A visit by the Laureate for Irish Fiction, Éilís Ní Dhuibhne to Bantry is perfect for the WCLF programme. She is undertaking a nationwide tour over the course of her tenure of the role with her ‘The Island of Imagination’ event. In each county, she will talk to authors from that county. When she comes to Bantry, Ní Dhuibhne will be in conversation with Mary Morrissy (who is from Dublin but a long-time resident of Cork) and Danielle McLaughlin who is from Donoughmore.
Locally-based writer Sara Baume’s latest book, ‘Opening Night’ published by Granta, is hotly anticipated, says O’Herlihy. “We also have crime fiction events with Cork author, Catherine Ryan Howard and two other leading Irish crime writers, Jane Casey and Andrea Mara.”
On behalf of the Irish Writers Centre, John Banville and Victoria Kennefick will be in conversation exploring the poetics of prose, passions and the impossibility of doing anything else other than writing. There will also be an event called ‘Beyond the Rainbow’ featuring three writers from the LGBTQ community in Ireland.
O’Herlihy says that while Bantry is a small town, it has everything.
“When writers come over from the UK, they’re really impressed with the vibrant bookshop and library in a town of this size. When you’re in Bantry during the festival, you really know it’s happening. There is no red carpet or VIP section. The writers and audience are all in it together. You’ll see famous names wandering down to Ma Murphys for a drink.
"Everyone goes for a swim together, chatting about the festival. Bantry is really the perfect-sized town for it. There is so much to do in the town and in the surrounding areas, all along the Wild Atlantic Way. It’s big enough for the festival but small enough for everyone to feel part of it. Audiences and authors can connect with each other.”
The library and bookshop events are free. For families wanting to partake of the festival, children’s authors are all part of the festival with this year’s line-up, all free of charge, including Sarah Bowie, Sarah Webb, Paddy Donnelly and Gerry Daly.
The WCLF is one of three festivals that are run under the West Cork Music (WCM) umbrella, established in 1995. The other two festivals are the West Cork Chamber Music Festival and Masters of Tradition. Funding comes from the Arts Council, Fáilte Ireland and Cork County Council – as well as box office. For every Euro invested by these three agencies in WCM, €12.30 is generated in economic activity.
Last year, the festivals generated an economic impact of over €7.67m for the Bantry and the West Cork local economy.
O’Herlihy is already working on the 2027 festival. “The day after this year’s festival, I start reading for next year. I don’t get everything read before the programme goes to print but I try to have everything read before I meet the authors. It’s a wonderful part of the job.” www.westcorkliteraryfestival.ie
@westcorkliteraryfestival
