Main Programme

From Irishwomen United through to the Repeal the 8th campaign, join us for an engaging morning of conversation tracing the seismic impact of women activists in Ireland through the decades. Evelyn Conlon is co-editor, along with Rebecca Pelan, of After the Train (UCD Press). This striking collection of essays captures the courageous efforts of Irishwomen […]

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Joining our panel are poet and essayist Gustav Parker Hibbett whose debut collection High Jump as Icarus Story won the 2025 John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize, Sam Furlong whose just-published debut book is Crowd Work, and podcaster and columnist Sophie White, whose 8 books include The Snag List, Where I End and most recently, […]

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What does it mean to be Black in Ireland and Britain today? Join Phil Mullen, author and academic, and Afua Hirsch, journalist, broadcaster and bestselling author of Brit(ish): On Race, Identity and Belonging as they challenge and unravel the harmful legacy of erasure of the Black community in the history and culture of both countries. […]

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As short stories continue to captivate, join us to delve into two striking collections by award-winning novelists. Mary Morrissy’s Twenty-Twenty Vision (The Lilliput Press) is a collection of stories exploring hindsight, honesty and late middle-age regret, with empathy and wry humour. Mary O’Donnell’s Walking Ghosts (Mercier Press) takes us from urban encounters to sun-drenched beaches […]

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All aboard the Dublin Story Bus! Join master traditional Irish storyteller Niall de Búrca on a unique bus journey through the streets of Dublin City. Find yourself transported to other times as Niall enchants you with myths and stories from the places you pass along the way. Departing from O’Connell Street, this immersive storytelling experience […]

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Volume 11 of Winter Papers, Ireland’s annual anthology for the arts, is published by Curlew Editions. It offers fiction, non-fiction, photography, visual art, along with craft interviews and in-conversation pieces on writing, film, theatre, photography, music, and more.  ‘a treasure trove of soul fuel with deep roots in Irish soil’ – Irish Times Join us […]

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‘The Hare’s Corner’ is an ancient Irish farming tradition that encourages the wisdom of leaving spaces of land for nature, outside the imperatives of production. This new book, with poetry by Jane Clarke, prose by Catherine Cleary, illustrations by Jane Carkill and photographs by BurrenBeo forms “a beautiful tapestry of courage and resolve” (Mary Robinson) […]

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An accessible introduction to creating, storytelling and self-expression, the Irish Writers Centre will welcome writers to Dublin Book Festival to produce their own mini publications/booklet. Facilitator Mot Collins will guide participants in creating their own individual bespoke ‘zines’ (small, independent publications individually created) through writing, drawing and collage. Materials provided, though participants are welcome to […]

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As representations of LGBTQAI+ lives and experiences enter the publishing mainstream, join us to discuss the importance of queer visibility in writing, and the many ways in which such representation can work, serve our community – and shine a light in a still-challenging world.   Anne Walsh Donnelly writes poetry, prose and plays. Anne explores […]

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Step back in time with us as we explore two captivating novels that reimagine stories as we know them. In Paradise House (Somerville Press) Paul Perry conjures a vivid image of life for James Joyce had he succeeded with the Volta, Ireland’s first cinema. In Before Dorothy (HarperCollins), Hazel Gaynor imagines Dorothy’s earlier life and […]

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Join us for an afternoon of conversation around two gripping books exploring the darkness behind perfect facades and journeys of self-discovery to regain sense of self. Caroline Madden’s The Marriage Vendetta (Eriu) is a darkly humorous story of secrets, betrayal, revenge, and dangerous influence. Assembling Ailish (Poolbeg) by Sharon Guard is a moving story of […]

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İlhan Sami Çomak is an award-winning and internationally regarded Kurdish poet who was imprisoned in Istanbul for 30 years, before finally being released in 2024. This year, to mark the Day of the Imprisoned Writer, we are honoured to have Çomak joining us in person, along with his interpreter Ipek Ozel, for an afternoon in […]

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