Nuala Ní Chonchúir (born 14 January 1970) is an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

writer and poet.

Biography

Born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

in 1970, Nuala Ní Chonchúir is a full-time fiction

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

and

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

, living in County Galway. She holds a BA in Irish from

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

and a Masters in Translation Studies (Irish/English) from

Dublin City University Dublin City University (abbreviated as DCU) ( ga, Ollscoil Chathair Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a university based on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. Created as the ''National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin'' in 1975, it enrolled its ...

. She has worked as an arts administrator in theatre and in a writers' centre; as a translator, as a bookseller and also in a university library. Nuala teaches creative writing on a part-time basis. Ní Chonchúir was featured in ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' "People to watch in the year ahead" on Saturday 3 January 2009.

Works

Ní Chonchúir has published five novels, four collections of short fiction and three poetry collections - one in an anthology. Her short story "The Wind Across the Grass" (the title story from her 2004 collection) won the RTÉ Francis MacManus Award in 2002. She was writer in residence for the 2009

Cúirt International Festival of Literature The Cúirt International Festival of Literature (pronounced ) is an annual literary festival held since 1985 in Galway in Ireland. The Irish language word ''cúirt'' means "court". The festival consists of a variety of events taking place over th ...

. Her third short story collection, ''Nude'', was published in Autumn 2009 by

Salt Publishing Salt Publishing is an independent publisher whose origins date back to 1990 when poet John Kinsella launched ''Salt Magazine'' in Western Australia. The journal rapidly developed an international reputation as a leading publisher of new poetry ...

. In November 2009 her poetry pamphlet ''Portrait of the Artist With a Red Car'' was published by Templar Poetry.''Portrait of the Artist With a Red Car'' (Templarpoetry.co.uk)
2010 saw the publication of her first novel - ''You'' was published in April by

New island books New Island Books is an independent Irish publisher of literary fiction, poetry, drama, biography, and books on politics and social affairs. History It was founded as ''Raven Arts Press'' in 1977 by Dermot Bolger. In 1982, Raven Arts closed and w ...

. Her poetry collection ''The Juno Charm'' was published b
Salmon Poetry
in November 2011.''The Juno Charm'' (salmonpoetry.com)
/ref> Her fourth short story collection, ''Mother America'', was published in June 2012 by New island books. The story "Peach", from the collection, was published in ''

Prairie Schooner ''Prairie Schooner'' is a literary magazine published quarterly at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln with the cooperation of UNL's English Department and the University of Nebraska Press. It is based in Lincoln, Nebraska and was first publish ...

''s Winter 2011 issue and was nominated for the 2012 Pushcart Prize.''Prairie Schooner Winter 2011''
/ref> She has also written an essay for the

Wales Arts Review ''Wales Arts Review'' is a critical writing hub for Wales. Originally published fortnightly, the site has published daily since 2016. It offers a critique, by Welsh and Wales-based writers, of various social and cultural aspects of Wales. Histor ...

Bloomsday Bloomsday is a commemoration and celebration of the life of Irish writer James Joyce, observed annually in Dublin and elsewhere on 16 June, the day his 1922 novel '' Ulysses'' takes place in 1904, the date of his first sexual encounter with his ...

edition. In September 2013 Tower Press (USA) published ''Of Dublin and Other Fictions'', a chapbook collection of Nuala's flash fiction.''Of Dublin and Other Fictions'' (Tower Press)
/ref> Her second novel, ''Closet of Savage Mementos'', published by

in April 2014, was shortlisted for The Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award 2015.''The Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award 2015''
/ref> In October 2014 she was nominated for the Laureate for Irish Fiction.''The Arts Council list of nominees for the Laureate for Irish Fiction.''
/ref> Nuala's third novel, ''Miss Emily'', was published by Penguin USA and Penguin Canada in July 2015, and by Sandstone Press in August of the same year. This was her first novel as ''Nuala O'Connor''.Penguin Author Page
/ref> ''Miss Emily'' was shortlisted for the Eason Book Club novel of the Year 2015''Eason Book Club Novel of the Year 2015''
/ref> and was nominated for the 2017 Dublin International Literary Award.[''Dublin International Literary Award 2017''
/ref>

Review quotations

"...The novel flows beautifully and is understated in tone... This gem is sure to win her further acclaim. Nuala Ní Chonchúir is a writer to watch." "… one of Ireland's most unusual and creative minds; [her fiction is] dressed in modernity, a ritual playing of the bones of Irish storytelling." "Look for some big things to come from Galway's Ní Chonchúir. She has such a diversity of work and can say so much in just a few words that it's obvious she's also an award-winning poet. Her stories are filled with very astute observations, some humorous, some sad." "...''Nude'', with its thematic discipline, is a memorable achievement. As with Brendan Kennelly’s ground-breaking collection of poetry, ''Cromwell'', it is satisfying to sit down with a book that sets itself an explorative, self-questioning agenda, full of witty voices rendering adventures both savage and absurd." ''

'' "...''You'' deserves to find a place in our pantheon of much-admired, beautifully crafted variations on a theme" ''The Irish Times'' "... ouflows beautifully and is understated in tone. The author, who lives in Co Galway, has already won prizes for her poetry and short stories. This gem is sure to win her further acclaim. Nuala Ní Chonchúir is a writer to watch." '' Irish Examiner''

Bibliography

Novel

Short story collections

Poetry collections

References

External links

Nuala Ní Chonchúir's HomepageSalt Publishing Author PageNew Island Author PageSalmon Poetry Collection PageTower Press Home pagePenguin Books Author PageSandstone Press Author Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ni Chonchuir, Nuala Irish women short story writers 21st-century Irish short story writers Writers from Dublin (city) People from County Galway 1970 births 21st-century Irish poets 21st-century Irish novelists Living people Irish women poets Irish women novelists