Just a quick apology for the interruptions in service over the last 10 days.   The site is undergoing some needed maintenance work which has resulted in disruptions with login.  We hope the problem won't reoccur and we're doing all we can to ensure the minimum amount of downtime as possible.  Thank you for your continued patience!

Due to the high volume of entries, we're a little late in announcing this, but nevertheless, we are delighted to publish the shortlist from the second round (close June 30) of our Writing Spirit Short Story Award.  Read on to see if your story made the shortlist...

It's finally here!  The Writing4all anthology that includes the 2010 monthly winners as well as the winners of the Writing Spirit award is out and ready for you to read.  All contributors should by now have received their complimentary copies of the book, and now it's available for everyone else to enjoy.  Read on for details of contibutors and how to get your hands on the book...

The second annual anthology of the best writing from Writing4all is due to be released next week. Featuring work from over 20 members of Writing4ll - as well as the winning entries to the Writing Spirit Award - it's a must-have for readers of new writing and W4all aficionados alike.

We've made a few changes to the prizes that can be claimed by Writing4all Members, including the option to have your work transformed into an eBook...

For those named on the final shortlist, the waiting is finally over:  the results of the Writing Spirit Award 2010 are here. 

The lucky (though, of course, hugely talented) first-place winners take away €1000 each, with the runners-up picking up €200, and the third place entrants winning €100.  As well as this, all of the work that made it into the top three will be published in our annual anthology, Writing4all: Best of 2010, along with all the monthly winners from the Writing4all site.

So, without further ado, here are the winners:

Poetry

1st Place           Robyn Rowland

2nd Place          Tony Devlin

3rd Place           Clare O'Reilly
 

Fiction (as judged by Fred Johnston):

1st Place           Danielle McLaughlin, "Between Night and Morning"

2nd Place          Rachael Foster, " Hickory Hill"

3rd Place           David Kennedy, "Jazz on a Sunday Morning"

For information on the Writing Spirit Short Story Award 2011, visit: www.writing4all.ie/writing-spirit

We've been planning a major new layout, design and structure for the Writing4all website for some time now. Primary amongst the changes will be a completely different presentation of the news. Events and resource items will also be categorised and highlighted in various new ways. In order to make the switch to the new revamped site, we have to shut down the website from 17th-19th November. Have no fear: all writings and associated comments will be safely migrated to the new version of the site. We will be up and running again on Friday 19th November. Sorry for any inconvenience caused, but we think you'll like the changes.

A gentle reminder that the deadline for the fourth and final round of this year's Writing Spirit Award is 30th November. First prize in fiction is €1,000, second prize is €200 and third prize is €100. The poetry category also has prizes of €1,000, €200 and €100 for first, second and third placed collections of poems.

Writing4all is delighted to announce the 3rd round shortlist for fiction in this year's Writing Spirit competition:

Between Night and Morning by Danielle McLaughlin

The Lonely Puppeteer by Natalie Ryan

Home is a Four Letter Word by Sharon Boyle

Davy and Golyat by Malcolm Bray

Congratulations to all. The fourth and final round is now open to submissions and will conclude on 30 November, with announcement of the shortlist in mid-December. Full rules on how to enter can be read here: http://www.writing4all.ie/site/catalogues/entry/writing4all_writing/yes.htm

The 3rd round poetry shortlist will be announced shortly.