A VOLUNTARY Limerick organisation which helps emerging writers and which promotes poetry and prose, has been left out of Arts Council Funding this year. Dominic Taylor, board member of the Limerick Writers Centre, said he is “bitterly disappointed” that the council has not seen fit to give them a grant this year, having funded the centre previously. Last year the Centre was allocated €2,500 for its ‘On The Nail’ monthly reading series, which sees guest authors and poets doing readings.
“It wasn’t a huge amount of money but it meant that we could pay a reading fee to authors and cover their expenses but now we will have to rely on the generosity of authors to give their time for free.
“We had our first reading of the year last Tuesday week and the Three Legged Stool poets from Clare came and read for free and that’s what we will have to hope for from now on”.
The Centre relies on voluntary effort to run many events including two writers’ groups, which meet at it’s HQ at 12 Barrington Street, on the first Friday of each month where group members read and critique each other’s poetry and prose.
“We put so much voluntary effort into organising events and encouraging emerging writers and having the readings helps give us a profile,” says Dominic who says the money from the Arts Council was very important in that regard,” Dominic said.
As well as the writers groups and readings, the centre also runs courses such as a beginners playwriting course, Haiku workshops, talks on publishing and getting published and a short story writing competition.
Dominic said that another application is being made for the second round of funding “but there’s no guarantee that we will get anything”.
Other Limerick groups fared better than the Writer’s Centre, with Askeaton Civic Trust getting €9,500 from the council under its Small Festivals fund, an improvement of €1,500 on last year’s grant. The Kate O’Brien Weekend got an equal amount of funds as last year, being awarded €2,000 and the Limerick Jazz Festival got €12,000, €4,000 more than the previous year. The White House Poets were not funded last year but got €3,500 for their Poetry Revival events.
Closing date for applications for funds from the second round is February10 and the successful applications will be announced in May.
