The deadline for this year’s Cúirt New Writing Prize is Monday, January 29, at 5pm

The event, which is sponsored by popular city pub Tigh Neachtain in memory of Lena McGuire, has three categories: poetry, short fiction, and short fiction and poetry in Irish. Submissions are welcome from Irish and International writers.

Sara Baume will be the judge for the short fiction, Elaine Feeney will be the poetry judge, and Doireann Ní Ghríofa will judge the Irish language poetry and short fiction category.

The winner in each category will receive €500 in cash and will read at the 39th annual Cúirt Festival, taking place in Galway from April 23-28.

People submitting poems should enter three works, each of which is under 50 lines. Short stories should be no longer than 2,000 words. The entry fee of €10 covers one story or up to three poems.

People shouldn’t include  names or contact details in the body or title of the submission.

Sara Baume, who is judging the short fiction section, has written three novels, and has won the Rooney Prize for Literature and a Lannan Literary Fellowship, while her latest work, Seven Steeples, was shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize and the Dylan Thomas Prize.

Galway’s Elaine Feeney is a woman of many parts, writing poetry, fiction and non-fiction.  Although now better-known as a novelist – her latest work, How to Build a Boat, was Booker longlisted – she first came to public attention as a poet. Two collections, The Radio was Gospel and Rise, were published by Salmon and her next collection, All the Good Things You Deserve, is due this year from Penguin Random House. Her debut novel, 2020’s As You Were, also won a raft of awards.

Is scríbhneoir dátheangach í Doireann Ní Ghríofa. Scríobhadh A Ghost in the Throat ar díon carrchlóis i gCorcaigh, leabhar a bhuaigh Leabhar na Bliana ag Gradaim Leabhar na hÉireann, maraon le Duais James Tait Black. The US edition was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and a New York Times Notable Book of 2021. Is é To Star the Dark an leabhar filíochta is déanaí óna peann.

■ For full details on the competition, visit: www.cuirt.ie and follow the links.

Pictured: Poet and author Doireann Ní Ghríofa is judging the Irish short fiction and story category of the New Writing prize.