Munster Literature Centre

Munster Literature Centre Cork International Poetry Festival | Cork International Short Story Festival | Sean O Faolain Intern This too is presented during the festival.

www.munsterlit.ie Founded in 1993, the Munster Literature Centre (Ionad Litríochta an Deiscirt) is a non-profit arts organisation dedicated to the promotion and celebration of literature, especially that of Munster. To this end, we organise festivals, workshops, readings and competitions. Our publishing section, Southword Editions, publishes a biannual journal online (http://www.munsterlit.ie/Sou

thword/issues_index.html). We actively seek to support new and emerging writers and are assisted in our efforts through funding from Cork City Council, Cork County Council and the Arts Council of Ireland.Originally located in Sullivan's Quay, the centre moved to its current premises in the Frank O'Connor House (the author's birthplace) at 84 Douglas Street, in 2003. In 2000, the Munster Literature Centre organised the first Frank O'Connor International Short Story Festival, an event dedicated to the celebration of the short story and named for one of Cork's most beloved authors. The festival showcases readings, literary forums and workshops. Following continued growth and additional funding, the Cork City - Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award was introduced in 2005, coinciding with Cork's designation as that year's European Capital of Culture. The award is now recognised as the single biggest prize for a short story collection in the world and is presented at the end of the festival. The festival name was changed to the Cork International Short Story Festival in 2010. (Read more about this here: http://corkshortstory.wordpress.com/2011/08/29/why-did-the-festival-name-change/)

In 2002, the Munster Literature Centre introduced the Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Prize, an annual short story competition dedicated to one of Ireland's most accomplished story writers and theorists. The centre also hosts the Cork Spring Poetry Festival each year, which includes the Gregory O'Donoghue International Poetry Competition. Workshops are held by featured authors in both autumn and spring, allowing the general public to receive creative guidance in an intimate setting for a minimal fee. In addition, the centre sponsors a Writer in Residence each year.

We have some great books available to purchase through our website including the latest edition of Southword. www.munste...
03/06/2026

We have some great books available to purchase through our website including the latest edition of Southword. www.munsterlit.ie .

Delighted to announce that Louise Hegarty will judge this year’s Seán Ó Faoláin International Short Story Competition, w...
29/05/2026

Delighted to announce that Louise Hegarty will judge this year’s Seán Ó Faoláin International Short Story Competition, which is open for submissions until 31st July. 1st prize includes €2000 and a featured reading at the Cork International Short Story Festival 14-17 October

Our Sean O’ Faolain competition is open for entries. For all the details on how to submit your entry please go to our we...
28/05/2026

Our Sean O’ Faolain competition is open for entries. For all the details on how to submit your entry please go to our website- www.munsterlit.ie via the link in our bio

Delighted to announce that Shanyang Fang, the inaugural Cork International Poetry Fellow will be available during the mo...
28/05/2026

Delighted to announce that Shanyang Fang, the inaugural Cork International Poetry Fellow will be available during the months of June and July for mentoring sessions. Places are limited and Sunday May 31st is the deadline for applying.
For all the details please go to our website via the link in our bio

Delighted to announce the Southword Subscribers Winners. Congratulations to them all and thank you to everyone who submi...
28/05/2026

Delighted to announce the Southword Subscribers Winners. Congratulations to them all and thank you to everyone who submitted an entry. Full list of winners on our website www.munsterlit.ie. Click on the link in our bio

Delighted to announce this great opportunity. Places are limited so for all the details and on how to reserve your place...
28/05/2026

Delighted to announce this great opportunity. Places are limited so for all the details and on how to reserve your place please go our website via the link in our bio.

A definite date for the diary - sounds fabulous!
27/05/2026

A definite date for the diary - sounds fabulous!

Date for the diary tomorrow:
27/05/2026

Date for the diary tomorrow:

Really looking forward to another great day of the International Poetry Festival and it starts in the City Library today...
15/05/2026

Really looking forward to another great day of the International Poetry Festival and it starts in the City Library today at 2.30pm with readings from Finola Cahill, Tadhg Carey, Imasha Costa, Sinéad Griffin, Valentine Jones, Seán Kelly and Fiona Tracey as part of our Prebooked Poetry Introductions. Hope to see you there.

Address

84 Douglas Street
Cork

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 5pm
Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Munster Literature Centre posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share