Fact to Fiction

I'll be teaching a workshop at the end of August specifically for people interested in weaving fact and fiction. It would suit people who have already begun a project, or have a particular subject in mind. So this Autumn might be the time to tackle that story that's been brewing for a while :) This is an article I wrote on my own process for my first book The Herbalist.

And here are the course details....

Location: Athy Heritage Centre, Emily Square, Athy

Date: Sat 26^th August from 12.30- 3.30pm

Price: 45 Euro per person. (Limited numbers so booking is essential)

Email: niamhmboyce (at) eircom (dot) net
(p. s. If you've emailed and I haven't responded, you've probably forgotten the *m*)

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Course Title: Fact to Fiction

A practical writing workshop, exploring how true stories can inspire a work of fiction.

The workshop…

In this practical workshop, award winning historical novelist, Niamh Boyce will explore how true stories can inspire a work of fiction. She will discuss writing that first draft, revision and research. It is suitable for both beginners and those who have been writing for a while.

All you need is a pen and notebook…

Niamh has just finished her second novel, her first ‘The Herbalist’ (Penguin Ireland) won Newcomer of the Year at the Irish Book Awards 2013, and was long listed for the IMPAC Award. 'The Herbalist' was set in the 1930s, and inspired by a newspaper clipping. Her most recent work was also inspired by a true story - a medieval witchcraft trial, to be published in 2019.

Bio…

Winner of the Hennessy XO New Irish Writer of the Year 2012, Niamh’s poetry collection was highly commended in The Patrick Kavanagh Poetry Award 2013. Her novel, The Herbalist (Penguin Ireland) won Newcomer of the Year at the Irish Book Awards 2013, and was long listed for the IMPAC Award. Her stories have been adapted for stage, broadcast, published in literary magazines and anthologized, most recently in The Long Gaze Back- Irish Women Writers' and 'The Hennessy Book of Irish Fiction.

Training…

Niamh is a trained facilitator and tutor with a background in community development. She has devised and taught creative writing and novel workshops for many years. She has a Master in Women's Studies (Trinity) and an honors degree in English and History (UCG) Other qualifications include a Higher Diploma in Community Development Practice(NUIG) and a Community Arts Certificate.  

Helena Duggan & the specs that inspired a novel

Helena Duggan is a writer from Kilkenny, a medieval, haunted city in the south of Ireland.  A Place Called Perfect is her first book. I met Helena many years ago on a writing course. Our group got on so well, that we still meet regularly and hound each other to keep writing:) 

  

Hi Helena! What inspired you to write A Place Called Perfect?

the original glasses!

I always wanted a pair of round rimmed glasses. Most people think when I tell them that I must’ve loved John Lennon or Harry Potter, and while Harry Potter is definitely on my list of favorite people - neither is the reason for my love of round specs. It was actually James Joyce who sparked my interest. I’d love to say I'd admired Joyce’s work from an early age, but truth be told, I didn’t know who he was outside of the fact that he was a man in a painting my mother owned and he wore the coolest glasses. Years later I saw a similar pair in an antique shop in Australia and I bought them convinced I would change the lenses and wear them myself. That never happened. The more I carried the glasses the more I began to think about their last owner. I wondered if he or she were dead and surmised they were as I the glasses were antique. I began to think about that person and their life. Maybe their memories had become locked inside the lenses and if I got rid of them - I’d be throwing away the last pieces of that person. This idea set me on the path to Perfect.


Perfect is a fascinating place, is it based on anywhere in particular? What was it like creating a world?

It’s based on Kilkenny. I hadn’t started out basing it here, it just kind of happened organically. I needed a family name and I chose Archer. It’s prominent in Kilkenny’s history, and it lent itself to both good and evil characters. Then I needed a place where part of the town could be hidden inside the other part without anyone noticing. Kilkenny’s High street sits above Kieran’s Street and its stone walls. I began to play with the idea of extending few walls here and there and locking Kieran Street inside the rest of the Town. This worked well as did the underground passages, cobbled roads and medieval graveyards of Kilkenny and slowly Perfect began to take shape. It was never a concise decision just something that happened really and I wasn’t aware that I was creating a world until it was created, otherwise I’m not sure I’d be able to do it ;)

And, last question Helena! Who is your favorite writer?

I love Roald Dahl, I read his books loads when I was younger and loved his language and how he made up his own words. Most of what I remember while reading his books is laughter. I think I laughed a lot and that feeling has stuck with me. I also really love JK Rowling's Harry Potter books. I haven’t read any of her other works. I think Harry Potter has stuck with me because she created a totally believable story right from the beginning, none of the seven books feel contrived and the whole idea which was huge has very few plot holes. Her world feels real to me!

About A Place Called Perfect… Who wants to live in a town where everyone has to wear glasses to stop them going blind? And who wants to be neat and tidy and perfectly behaved all the time?

But Violet quickly discovers there's something weird going on – she keeps hearing noises in the night, her mum is acting strange and her dad has disappeared.

When she meets Boy she realizes that her dad is not the only person to have been stolen away...and that the mysterious Watchers are guarding a perfectly creepy secret!

You can buy your copy HERE  at Amazon - or all good bookshops

Beginners Fiction...

Beginners Fiction with Niamh Boyce

Starts: Tue 19 Sept 2017

Time: 6.30pm – 8.30pm
Duration: 10 Weeks
Cost: €280/€260 Members

Venue: Irish Writers Centre

                          No. 19 Parnell Square, Dublin

One of the (many!) great things about finishing a novel is being able to concentrate on short fiction, and having time to teach. I'm delighted to delivering this workshop at the Irish Writers Centre in September, its a place that's been good to me. The Writers Centre's inaugural Novel Fair was where I met my publishers Penguin, which led to the publication of my debut, The Herbalist.  The course is for beginners. No matter how long I've been writing, I find coming back to a beginners mind is essential (and exciting) - as Natalie Goldberg says  - " Each time is a new journey with no maps"... 

Course Description...

Suitable for those new to writing, and getting back to writing.

Fun but focused, the core of this course will be weekly writing exercises. Through these, participants will create, and shape new fictions. These might grow into flash pieces, short stories, monologues, rants or chapters. Each writer will work towards completing their piece over the course of the ten weeks. Basic character development, voice, point of view, story and setting will also be discussed. 

A Hennessy New Irish Writer of the Year 2012. Niamh’s novel, The Herbalist (Penguin Ireland) was an Irish Book Awards winner and shortlisted for an IMPAC Award.

 For more information on the course click - Here

For more about my Bio and training click - Here

The Irish Writers Centre - 01 872 1302