Writers Unmasked

By Ron Carey

Within these pages you will find the beautiful and the magical, the strange and the wonderful. And all brought to you without an agenda or a political program. Some of the submissions to this Anthology reflect the times we live in, others deal with the universal lot of us all, loss and love, loneliness, and gratitude. In all cases the participants had to grow as writers in order to reach higher than ever before. And how well they succeeded you can read here.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Limerick Writers Centre
• Release date: Nov 10, 2020
• ISBN: 9781005078461

Ron Carey

Ron Carey was born in Limerick and lives in Dublin. He is a poet and a creative writing facilitator. Ron only started writing poetry seriously in his sixties. Since then he has been a prize winner and finalist in many international poetry competitions. He received Special Commendation in the Patrick Kavanagh Awards. He has a Diploma in Creative Writing from the Open University and was awarded a Masters in Creative Writing at the University of South Wales. His poetry collection DISTANCE was a shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection UK and Ireland 2016. His second book of poetry Racing Down the Sun (Revival Press) was launched in 2018. Since 2016 he has been running creative writing courses in Limerick and Dublin.

Book preview

WRITERS UNMASKED

Stories and poems from the Limerick Writers Centre

Creative Writing Course

INSIGHT 2020

Editor: Ron Carey

Copyright © Limerick Writers’ Centre 2020

Copyright of individual poems and stories remains with their authors

First published in Ireland by

The Limerick Writers’ Centre

12 Barrington Street, Limerick, Ireland

www.limerickwriterscentre.com

www.facebook.com/limerickwriterscentre

All rights reserved

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review

Book and Cover Design: Lotte Bender

E-book Formatting: Máire Baragry

Managing Editor: Dominic Taylor

A CIP catalogue number for this publication is available from The British Library

We acknowledge the financial support of The Limerick Writers’ Centre’s Community Publishing Project.

"Putting a voice to your soul helps you to let go of the

negative energy of fear and regret."

Shannon L. Alder

Editors Preface

Insight 2020 Creative Writing Course – (Or how I learned to stop worrying and love the Internet).

When the Limerick Writers Centre asked me to lead an online course in the middle of a pandemic, I ran for the hills. I’m not especially tech savvy, and my particular way of working feeds off the energy and stimulus of a live workshop.

But the more I thought about it, how other writers in the same position were feeling, with the same restrictions of movement and the sheer tedium of the pandemic, I decided to see if it were possible.

First off, I began to write the modules that would cover different aspects of the course. I worked to make them as interesting and as fresh as possible. Then, when I was sure I could at least offer a course worthy of the reputation of former courses at the centre, I contacted Dominic Taylor at LWC, and we were up and running. Meanwhile, I had to get onboard with Zoom, and online meeting platform.

I had my fingers crossed when news of the course went out on Facebook, Twitter and on the LWC website. Would anyone be interested? Would everyone be as doubtful as me about online, Zoom and the rest of the brave new digital world?

Apparently, I’m on my own on that one, the course booked out immediately. Though not everyone needed the fix of a weekly Zoom meeting, it seems that the writers of Limerick and surroundings wanted just such a course.

As usual with my creative writing courses, I learn from the participants. Working with writers and poets of all sorts of abilities and experience has given me a better understanding of what it takes to be a real writer/poet in these difficult days. It is their kindness and wisdom that is at the core of what makes these courses so worthwhile.

So here is the result of all their hard work – Writers Unmasked. Poems and stories that are for the enjoyment of you, the reader, to make you feel and think, question, and cheer.

The feedback from Insight 2020 course participants has been excellent. The whole experience seems to have been as positive for the participants as it has been for me.

So, once again huge thanks to Dominic Taylor and Limerick Writers’ Centre for all their support and for publishing this fine collection. I hope we all meet again in the future, hopefully in the flesh or if not then once again in this pixelated, creative world. Stay Safe.

Ron Carey

November 2020

Contents

To Bee Or Not To Bee

Barbara Hartigan

The Book Club

Celia Donoghue

Falling Apart

Claire McGrail Johnston

Dinner At Seven

Elaine Doyle

The Meadow

Hazel Espey

Margaret, I’ve Brought Tom Home

Hazel Espey

Bleak November

Helen Simcox

The Three Piece

John Kennedy

Smoked Coley

Joseph O’Connor

Little Teddy – The Toy Santa Forgot

Kathleen Dwyer

Back In Time

Linda Reale-Horvat

The Fourth In Line

Maeve Meany

Uncle Joe

Maggie Enright

The Sun Will Come Through

Margaret Corr

October Garden

Nessa Breen

Nursery Rhyme

Nodlaig O’Grady

At One With The World

Olive O’Sullivan

Butterfly

Olive O’Sullivan

2020 Vision

Pat McLoughlin

Courtbrack Terrace

Peter MacNamara

Grandson

Raylene O’Loughlin

Choice

Rita Cichorz

Transplant

Roisin Bugler

Perception

Tom Fitzgerald

A Clarity Of Light

Veronica Molloy

The Ancestral Graveyard

Yvonne O’Callaghan Stephen

Preface

Contributors

About The Editor

About The Limerick Writers’ Centre

To Bee or Not to Bee

Barbara Hartigan

It was a hot sunny June bank holiday Monday, 2000 and there was a frantic knock on our door. Our neighbours, Betty and Eileen Joyce had arrived to tell us that the road outside our house was full of thousands of bees, all clustering on a beech tree at our gate. The place resembled Armageddon!

Himself, contacted a beekeeper friend from Adare, fifteen miles away, who said if we set up a fine mist spray, simulating rain, then there was a good chance that the swarm would remain on the tree for a couple of hours, to give him time to get here and to collect them.

The spray was duly set up and we waited, watching the huge black, ever expanding heaving ball of bees clustered with wings all pointing downwards as protection against the rain. The beekeeping friend arrived complete with