Chairperson: Thomas Morris

“uniquely contemporary, often wildly funny and always visionary”
David Means on Mike McCormack’s Forensic Sons

“Over the past decade, Nuala Ní Chonchúir has proven herself a prolific and diverse talent.”
The Irish Examiner

The short story has enjoyed a resurgence in recent years, spurred on by the support of leading journals like The Stinging Fly. But what makes the short story such a unique form? How do you create a character, a plot and a whole universe in so few words? Thomas Morris, editor of The Stinging Fly, talks to two acclaimed short story writers to uncover the secrets of what William Trevor calls “the art of the glimpse”. Mike McCormack is a short story writer and novelist. His collection Getting it in the Head won him the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature, while his novel Notes from a Coma was described as “the greatest Irish novel of the decade” (The Irish Times). His new collection, Forensic Sons, is published in July. Nuala Ní Chonchúir is a novelist, poet and short story writer. She has published four collections of short fiction, including Mother America, which was longlisted for the Frank O’Connor International Short Story Prize. Her short stories have won numerous awards. Her new novel, The Closet of Savage Mementos, was published in April. Presented in association with Dublin Book Festival.