Tag Archives: Delphine

LISDOONVARNA writer Bill Bradshaw has finished a tough year on a high note after his third book scooped him a prestigious international award. The plot of his third book, Delphine, is described as a horror story, exploring moral taboos and family dynamics in a fictional Clare town. In recent days, it earned Bill the prestigious Kite Award from the World Authors organisation. The novel fought off stiff international competition, but judges chose it from a highly competitive field, describing it as a “searing supernatural thriller”. The former prison officer and Rathkeale native isn’t resting on his laurels, with two more novels in the pipeline and plans to turn Delphine into a six-part Netflix series. Delphine has already won several awards in the US and the film script took honours in Tokyo, Estonia, the UK and Canada, where it picked up the Fear of the Year Award in Toronto.

PRISON might seem an unlikely environment to inspire a creative career. For Lisdoonvarna’s Bill Bradshaw, however, working in that tense, high-pressure environment did exactly that. The Rathkeale native is an award-winning screenwriter and novelist, and credits a long career as a prison officer with his unique writing style, as well as some of his subject matter. Bill has just published his third book, Delphine, which draws on influences such as horror writer Stephen King and explores moral taboos and family dynamics. Two more novels are in the pipeline and Bill is actively fundraising to turn Delphine into a six-part Netflix series. He is also part of a Clare-based publishing initiative, backed by the Local Enterprise Office (LEO) and bringing together a number of other creative minds. While his work in the Irish Prison Service is partly responsible for Bill’s approach to his writing, it is a career that has taken a heavy toll. “There is a raw reality in a …