President Michael D. Higgins champions new generation of young writers

41 finalists took refuge from the warmest day of the year in the beautiful confines of the Irish Writer's Centre in North Dublin today. Coming from different backgrounds across all four provinces, they were united by the fact that their stories had been deemed the best out of thousands, by an expert panel of judges which included Mike McCormack, Rita Ann Higgins, D.B.C Pierre, and Tana French, as well as Hot Press editor Niall Stokes and co-founder of Hot Press, Máirín Sheehy.

Social Media: A Writer's Tale

Over the past few years, Hot Press developed the Write Here, Write Now competition as a vehicle for discovering the best young talent in the country – but even we were surprised by the high calibre and the inventiveness of the entries.

The theme for our 2018 competition was 'Social Media: A Writer's Tale'. As Hot Press Editor Niall Stokes commented in his introductory speech this afternoon, this was "a timely theme", especially in the wake of recent scandals surrounding social media data mining and the use of social media for interference in democratic elections.

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But this, of course, is just one of many facet of social media. From its baffling ability to make or break someone with an incidental viral post, through the often isolating quality of the medium, to the hope that it can inspire social change, the entries which made the final were truly thought-provoking responses to a still-new phenomenon.

Before announcing the overall winners, President Higgins spoke the "huge responsibility" that comes with being able to take words and share them with millions of people across the planet within a matter of seconds. A poet and writer himself, he spoke of the problems this could raise for disconnection and disinformation, in terms of how we use language – before praising the young writers before him for how they articulated "real words with real emotion."

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This, above all, was what the judges of this competition noted. Whether it was in pithy verse or devastating prose, whether the entries took the form of online reviews, Facebook DMs, or exchanges on dating websites, the best entries were those which communicated something new and truthful about this challenging platform. Each of the winning stories packed a real and powerful emotional punch.

You can read all the entries here:

www.hotpress.com/writeherewritenow

Full list of winners below.

National Winners Third Level

Male: Jason Reddan from Limerick
A student at Mary Immaculate College, Jason Reddan is from Limerick city. Jason is working on his first feature film this summer and has recently completed a producing program at The New York Film Academy in Hollywood, Los Angeles.

Female: Rose Keating from Waterford
Rose is studying English at UCC, on a creative writing scholarship, as part of the Quercus program. A previous 2nd Level winner of Write Here, Write Now, her fiction has been published in the Incubator journal, Not One of Us magazine, the Quarryman journal and the Breakroom Stories podcast.

National Winners Second Level

Female: Alva White from Kildare
A student at Leinster Senior College in Newbridge Co. Kildare. Alva is a sixteen year old fact aficionado. She is a fan of Shakespeare, Steinbeck and contemporary writers like Ali Shaw and Roddy Doyle.

Male: Robert Gibbons from Meath
Robert is a student at Kings Hospital, Co. Dublin currently undertaking his Leaving Certificate. He hopes to study English at third level. His hobbies include playing piano and reading.

The People’s Choice Award, presented by PayPal, went to Josh O’Loughlin from Clare, who is a student in D.I.T.

There was also a special award for Outstanding Achievement presented to Niamh Browne from Cork, a second-level entrant.

Provincial Winners – Third Level

Male:
Munster: Dean Buckley (NUI Galway graduate)
Connaught: Luke McDermott (NUI Galway)
Leinster: Aaron McGinnity (Trinity)
Donegal: Daniel McBrearty (NUI Galway)

Female:
Leinster: Aoife O’Ceallachain (Trinity)
Connaught: Mairéad Melia (NUI Galway)
Ulster: Grace O’Donnell (NUI Galway)
Munster: Amy Glover (Trinity)

Provincial Winners – Second Level

Male:
Leinster: Matthew Price (Terenure College in Dublin)
Munster: David Landers (Pobalscoil na Tríonóide in Cork)
Connaught: Luke Power (Sancta Maria College, Mayo)
Ulster: Patrick McCarron (St Macartans College in Monaghan)
Special Prize - Óran McCormack-Grant (Our Lady’s Secondary School Monaghan)

Female:
Munster: Vicky Burke (Saint Aidans Community College in Cork)
Connaught: Laura Quinn (Dominican College in Dublin)
Leinster: Eleanor Curran (St Vincent’s School in Dublin)

Highly Commended – Third Level

Mark Gilligan (Trinity)
Sandi Ndebele (UCD)
Josh O’Loughlin (DIT)
Daniel Ryan (DIT)
Jamie Sewell (BIMM Dublin)
Aoife Kearins (Trinity)
Alanna MacNamee (Trinity)
Fiona Monks (DCU)
Emer O’Hara (UCD)
Caitríona O’Malley (UCD graduate)
Anna Stockdale (Queen’s University Belfast)

Highly Commended – Second Level

Conor Ryan (Belvedere College in Dublin)
Dualtagh McDonnell (Ennis Community College in Co. Clare)
Kevin Matthews (Rathmines College in Dublin)
Fields Chung (The High School in Dublin) Rachel O’Dwyer (Borrisokane Community College in Co. Tipperary)
Rosa Thomas (St Wolstan’s Community College in Celbridge)
Maolíosa Ní Léannacháin (Loreto College, Mullingar)
Niamh Lusson (St Louis Community School in Kiltimagh, Co. Mayo)
Katie Farrell (Maryfield College in Dublin)