Nuala Ní Chonchúir

INTERVIEWS

Interview and review on Faoiseamh, June 2008

You describe the Irish and English forms of the poems published in both languages as versions. Is there any one of the poems which you feel that both versions are equally strong or even better in the target language?

I think some worked better in their TL versions than others. I’m fond of ‘Tatú’, the title poem, in both languages. And I like the way the last two lines of ‘Ó’, have an internal rhyme and assonance that the English version only has in the last two words. That sort of happy accident is pleasing. I think parts of some poems sound better in Irish, purely for the beauty of the language...

Go to Faoiseamh Questions and Answers for the full interview.
Alse see Faoiseamh Review for a review of Tattoo | Tatú

Interview on The Short Review, March 2008

How long did it take you to write all the stories in your collections?

Nuala Ní Chonchúir: First one, The Wind Across the Grass: This was six years work; I wasn’t working towards collecting them. Arlen House had published my first poetry collection in an anthology, Divas, with two collections from established writers; I was the newbie. They then asked to see my stories and decided to do a book of them. Second one, To The World of Men, Welcome: 18 months...

Go to www.theshortreview.com for more.

Interview on Authortrek, December 2007

Where were you born and raised?

County Dublin, Ireland. In a cold, old Georgian house, in a family of nine. I had a very happy childhood, spent as a tomboy and hungry reader.

What was it that first got you into writing and when did you start writing?

My writing is an extension of my reading, as it is for many writers. I've been writing poetry since I was a child. I have always written things but didn't know what to do with them. In 1998 I did a fiction writing workshop with the brilliant young writer Mike McCormack. It opened my eyes to the possibilities. I got serious about fiction and poetry after that...

Go to www.authortrek.com to read more.