Building on the successes of the Young Writers project in 2018, we have started a new phase of the project in 2020!

The young writers from Letterkenny are back! The writing group which formed in 2018 has come together again, with Kids’ Own associate writer Mary Branley, to develop their writing practice. Meanwhile, in County Derry a new group of young writers has been formed. We are delighted to be working with our partners in Donegal County Council Library Service and Libraries NI again on this important project.

The young writers meet in their local groups – Letterkenny and Derry/Londonderry – each week and both groups are mentored by writer Mary Branley. These young writers are exploring and developing their individual creative voices, reading and listening to each other’s work and first drafts.

As well as meeting in their own local young writers groups, both groups will have opportunities to come together for joint workshops and to connect virtually to share their writing. These two groups will join creative forces to produce a brand new publication later in 2020! The Young Writers broadsheet, published in 2018, reflected the interests, values, and lived experiences of the young people involved from both sides of the border, in counties Derry and Donegal. This new publication hopes to echo the success of this broadsheet, and further develop the cross-community peer writing partnerships, amplifying the voices of this vibrant and enthusiastic new generation shaping our island’s future.