Poetry Masterclasses with Jessica Traynor

Seamus Heaney HomePlace is delighted to welcome Jessica Traynor as our Poet-in-Residence for this autumn season.

Jessica is an experienced poet and creative writing teacher who will lead a series of writing masterclasses. Taking inspiration from the works of Seamus Heaney and other contemporary poets, participants will develop new work and workshop existing poems over the course of three workshops. The final workshop will focus on preparation for a public reading which will take place in December to celebrate the work of the participants. We will also launch a new pamphlet of poems, which will include work by the participants alongside new poems by Jessica Traynor.

The masterclasses are open to new, emerging and existing writers who want to develop their writing voice and produce new work.

Jessica Traynor is an award-winning poet, creative writing teacher and dramaturg from Dublin. Her debut collection, Liffey Swim (Dedalus Press, 2014), was shortlisted for the Strong/Shine Award. It has recently been translated into Portuguese and published in Brazil. Her second collection, The Quick, was an Irish Times poetry choice of 2019.

Jessica has worked as Literary Manager of the Abbey Theatre and Deputy Museum Director of EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum and a Creative Fellow of UCD.

In 2019, she co-edited Correspondences: an anthology to call for an end to direct provision with actor Stephen Rea, bringing together asylum seekers in Ireland’s direct provision system with Irish writers. The book was a best-seller, with all proceeds going to MASI (Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland).

Jessica is currently Poet in Residence at the Yeats Society, Sligo

The masterclasses will take place on:

Saturday 16 October from 11am – 2pm

Wednesday 27 October from 7pm – 9pm

Saturday 13 November from 11am – 2pm

Public Reading in the Helicon on Sunday 5 December at 2pm

Places are limited to 12 and cost to attend is £75/ £50 Book here

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This project has been supported by the EU’s PEACE IV Programme, managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) in partnership with Mid Ulster District Council and Sligo County Council.