Winner of the international Barbellion Prize for ill and disabled authors. Deaf Irish author Lynn Buckle represented Ireland as a UNESCO City of Literature Virtual Writer in Residence at the National Centre for Writing, Norwich, UK in 2021 (see Imagining the City) and hosts Irish Climate Writers at the Irish Writers Centre, Dublin.
Lynn studied at Warwick University, Camberwell School of Art, and NUI Maynooth in Co Kildare. She lives in Ireland, where she teaches, paints, writes, and campaigns for social justice. A tutor at The Irish Writers’ Centre in Dublin, at Kildare & West Wicklow ETB, The National Centre for Writing UK, and a guest lecturer, she delivers a variety of courses and talks on Greek mythology, art, art history, teaching skills, contemporary literature, creative writing, domestic violence, nature & climate writing, and the art of protest writing. Founder of the Irish Climate Writing Group at the IWC, where she regularly interviews internationally renowned authors and leads discussions on literature in the Anthropocene. Her recent work examines the intersections of gender, power, and place through the lens of her own disability perspective and eco concerns. She has been described as ‘a fierce and fearless new voice in Irish writing’ (June Caldwell) for her frank social observations and psychological insights. Works include two novels published by epoque press, five anthologies of short stories and poetry, and literary articles for magazines and the Irish Times.
PUBLICATIONS
What Willow Says by Lynn Buckle, Epoque Press, 2021
Winner of The Barbellion Prize.Critics Top Pick of the Year 2021 in The Irish Times and the Sunday Independent.Special Mention in Saboteur Awards 2022
Available here
‘A deeply affecting love song to the bogs. A powerful moving book, as much poetry as prose … soak up its rich waters and you will never look at the world, or deafness, in the same way again,’ Irish Independent
Sharing stories of myths, legends and ancient bogs, a deaf child and her grandmother experiment with the lyrical beauty of sign language. Learning to communicate through their shared love of trees, they find solace in the shapes and susurrations of leaves in the wind. A poignant tale of family bonding and the quiet acceptance of change. Listen to a reading here, with subtitles
Click link to hear more about What Willow Says during ‘Quiet Nature’ interview for Kildare Readers Festival 2021
Click link to hear Lynn reading a Christmas entry from What Willow Says for the West Cork Literary Festival Advent Calendar 2021
The Groundsmen by Lynn Buckle, Epoque Press, Sept 2018 debut literary novel
Listen to a reading from The Groundsmen;
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What Meets the Eye? The Deaf Perspective. Anthology ed by Lisa Kelly and Sophie Stone. Publication 25/11/21, by Arachne Press
Introduction by Raymond Antrobus
order here https://arachnepress.com/shop/What-Meets-the-Eye-The-Deaf-Perspective-p396705040/?amp
Also available in video format in British Sign Language
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Imagining the City
Anthology pamphlet by UNESCO City of Lit writers in residence Lynn Buckle, Liz Breslin, Marcin Wilk, Valur Gunnarsson, and Vahni Capildeo.
Published Sept 2021 by The National Centre for Writing UK. Free to Purchase here
A literary virtual tour of the city of Norwich
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A Captioned Joyce by Lynn Buckle Books Ireland Magazine
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Why Is Mythology Having a Moment? Lynn Buckle The Irish Times
Violence in Literature. Lynn Buckle The Irish Times
A Writer’s Experience of Covid-19. Lynn Buckle The Irish Times
Brigid; A Poetry Anthology, March 2020
Infinite Possibilities: An Anthology TU Dublin, Feb 2020 award-winning short stories
Watch and listen to Idle Woman of the Grand Canal, from Infinite Possibilities
Town Crier; short story by Lynn Buckle, published Oct 2020, epoque press ezine
Literary Collage and Polyphonic Voice; article on literary technique by Lynn Buckle, published Oct 2020, epoque press ezine
An Exercise in Humiliation, by Lynn Buckle, HCE Review, Vol II, Issue I, Oct 2017, p156, UCD Press (Dublin)
AWARDS
The Barbellion Prize Winner
UNESCO City of Literature Virtual Writer in Residence at the National Centre for Writing, Norwich UK 2021
The John Hewitt Society Bursary 2018
Greywood Arts Carers’ Writing Bursary Award and Residency 2018/19
Short-list Red Line Short Story Award 2019
MEMBERSHIPS
Royal Society of Literature
Wordsmiths Writing Group
Teaching Council of Ireland Registered Further Education tutor
AONTAS, NALA
See News & Events for festival appearances and workshops