Four Local Writer Selected for Irish Writers Centre’s National Mentoring Programme 2025 supported by Fingal County Council Arts Office

Fingal local writers, Teri Donaghy, Fiona McKay, Elaine Maguire O’Connor and Rebecca D’Arcy have been chosen for the Irish Writers Centre’s prestigious National Mentoring Programme 2025, following an exceptional response to this year’s nationwide callout, which attracted 354 applicants.

Each selected writer will receive one-to-one mentoring from an established writer, offering invaluable creative and professional guidance over the coming months.

Fingal County Council Arts Office funds the four mentorships to guarantee that the chosen awardees receive this potentially career-changing support free of charge. The 2025 programme is co-funded by a collective of county arts offices, libraries, arts centres, and other cultural bodies across Ireland, ensuring that local talent from diverse counties is identified and nurtured.

Fingal County Council Arts Officer Sarah O’Neil said ‘We are delighted to announce the four selected writers to participate in this year’s Irish writers centre National mentorship programme. This prestigious programme allows writers to develop their creative professional practice; it also allows connection between people and ideas by coming together through the arts.’

When asked about the award, Teri Donaghy stated:
‘My objective through the National Mentoring program is to give shape and structure to my characters and scenes in my historical fiction novel.’

While Fiona McKay added,
‘I look forward to the support of mentorship to challenge me to balance experimental form with compelling narrative in my writing. The feedback from a mentor who will question and question the work will help me get to the heart of what I want to achieve with this novel.’

Elaine Maguire O’Connor added:
‘I’m incredibly grateful to both Fingal County Council and The Irish Writers Centre for the opportunity to develop and polish my work under the guidance of an experienced professional.’

While Rebecca D’Arcy said,
‘I plan to use the mentorship to make my dream of publishing a debut poetry collection a reality. Working with a professional poet will be an invaluable opportunity to take the next step towards publication.’

Now in its eighth year, the National Mentoring Programme (NMP) has become one of the most significant supports for emerging and mid-career writers across Ireland. Run by the Irish Writers Centre – the country’s leading organisation for writer development – the initiative plays a crucial role in shaping Ireland’s literary landscape by nurturing talent at pivotal stages in a writer’s journey.


About the Artists

Teri Donaghy

Teri lives in North County Dublin and is an academic and creative writer.  Her academic publications focussed on her scientific research in the areas of atmospheric chemistry. Her creative project – Daffodils, A Short Play, was published online during the pandemic. In 2024 Teri expanded her creative portfolio by publishing a short fiction piece titled The Meeting in The Storms, Issue IV. Teri’s creative writing projects currently focus on completing her first book set in 1970s Northern Ireland, writing short stories where her characters face challenges of their time and autobiographical poetry. Teri is a professional member of the IWC.

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Fiona McKay

Fiona McKay is the author of the novellas-in-flash, The Lives of the Dead, Ad Hoc Fiction (2025), The Top Road, Ad Hoc Fiction (2023), and the flash fiction collection Drawn and Quartered, Alien Buddha Press (2023). She was a SmokeLong Quarterly Emerging Writer Fellow in 2023. Her flash fiction is in Bath Flash, The Waxed Lemon, Pithead Chapel, The Forge, The StormsJournal, Ghost Parachute, The Four Faced Liar, trampset, Bending Genres, Fractured Lit, Peatsmoke, and others. Her work is included in Best Small Fictions 2024. She lives in Dublin, Ireland.

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Elaine Maguire O’Connor

Elaine Maguire O’Connor is a writer of fiction and non-fiction from Dublin. Her short fiction has been published by literary journals including Sans Press and Frazzled Lit and her novel, Time To Leave, has been longlisted for both the Marlow and Christie 2024 Novel Prize and the 2025 Exeter Novel Prize. Her non-fiction work focuses on the intersection of law and the arts.

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Rebecca D’Arcy

Rebecca D’Arcy has published poetry in journals including Crannog, The Storms and The Blue Nib. Her short stories have been published in Tír na NÓg literary magazine and The Martello. She has a PhD in English literature, and her academic essays have been published in Postcolonial Text and The Literary London Journal. She lives in Rush, Co. Dublin with her husband and two dogs.


About the Irish Writers Centre

Since its founding in 1991, the Irish Writers Centre’s mission has been to support the life of the writer – those whose ideas and words illuminate and influence the culture around us.

The impact of the National Mentoring Programme is evident in the success of its alumni, many of whom have gone on to be published and celebrated widely. Past mentees include Doireann Ní Ghríofa, Nidhi Zak/Aria Eipe, Fíona Scarlett, Will Keohane and Victoria Kennefick – all of whom are now recognised names in Irish writing.


For more information, please see:
irishwriterscentre.ie
www.fingalarts.ie
www.fingal.ie/arts