Tag Archives: Doolin Writers’ Weekend

SIMON O’Reilly came to Clare to work for a week, after spending much of his early life in Australia and Holland. Twenty-three years later, the musician, composer and producer is still here.  He has certainly been busy during those two decades developing his music studio between Lahinch and Doolin and working with artists including Luka Bloom, Susan O’Neill, the ConTempo Quartet, the Monks of Glenstal, Davy Spillane and Kila. A composer, producer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and music video maker, Simon has also found the time to showcase the musical energy of the West at festivals both local and international.  Under the banner of Doolin Arts, a not-for-profit organisation which describes itself as a “flying column of creative souls” committed to supporting and defending the arts, Simon co-founded Hedge School. The eclectic offering brings together creative artists and producers of all kinds in a series of workshops, performances and conversations that will take place from January 27 to 29 in Doolin. The …

HIS was the plight of hospitality workers the world over, he was never free on weekends. Donal Minihane, manager of Hotel Doolin, always wanted to go to a writers’ festival but couldn’t get away to attend one. Undeterred, he decided the solution was to organise one in his own hotel. So not long after he set about writing his first novel, he set off to the Irish Writers’ Centre in Dublin to get some advice on starting the Doolin Writers’ Weekend. “The idea for the writers’ weekend came from the fact I always wanted to go to a writers’ festival but I work in a hotel, so I thought I will never be able to go to one unless I have one here. I approached the Irish Writers’ Centre in Dublin about the writers’ weekend and when I was there, I noticed a flyer about their Novel Fair and decided to enter that,” Donal outlined. He was one of the …