Happy Bloomsday – listen to the definitive recording of Ulysses
Ulysses – James Joyce’s 700-page masterpiece – is 100 years old today. June 16th is known throughout the world as Bloomsday, after protagonist Leopold Bloom. This Bloomsday to celebrate the centenary of … Continue reading
MY BOOKS from knights in armour to Simon Schama…First lines, first books, first literary loves….and more
This is the start of a new series on the books we remember, the books that have changed our lives and the books we are reading right now…and by ‘we’ … Continue reading
WHAT IS A SHORT STORY? Writing Article Number 2 from the Archive
Someone asked me recently to define a short story. I could understand her difficulty because it’s much easier to say what’s it’s not. It’s not an idea that could have … Continue reading
Happy Bloomsday
Bloomsday celebrates James Joyce’s Ulysses. The story takes place takes place on a single day: June 16th 1904 in Dublin. Ulysses follows the life and thoughts of Leopold Bloom and … Continue reading
HAPPY JUNE 16th – a special day
A bit of background (from a 2013 post I wrote on the subject) Bloomsday celebrates Leopold Bloom, the main character in James Joyce’s Ulysses. The story takes place takes place … Continue reading
What is a short story?
Someone asked me recently to define a short story. I could understand her difficulty because it’s much easier to say what’s it’s not. It’s not an idea that could have … Continue reading
Happy Bloomsday — quotes from JAMES JOYCE on Christopher Columbus and his own immortality
Christopher Columbus, as everyone knows, is honoured by posterity because he was the last to discover America. I’ve put in so many enigmas and puzzles that it will keep the … Continue reading
I is for IMAGIST POETRY
A short lived but very influential poetic movement that flourished both sides of the Atlantic around WWI. It was a reaction to the abstract language used by poets … Continue reading
A is for ALL IN A DAY
We tend to think of a novel having a big landscape with a great sweep of characters and the story told over weeks, years, even centuries. But some writers have … Continue reading
USING MUSIC AS A PLOT DEVICE – extract from a creative writing exercise in Back to Creative Writing School
James Joyce’s The Dead has been called by some critics the best short story ever written. Indeed when I was studying for a Masters in Creative Writing a tutor apologised … Continue reading
Monday Creative Writing Exercise because it’s a good way to start the week TITLES
Titles are hard to get right. The easy option is to go for a label – Sunday Afternoon, The Dream, A Walk in the Park and there are excellent precedents. … Continue reading
BRIDGET WHELAN writer 