We're supporting the Paul McVeigh West Cork Residency!

Applications are open for the Paul McVeigh West Cork Residency, which is now in its third year. Previous winners have gone on to get agents, book deals and win literary prizes, so this is an opportunity not to be missed! There are three residency places up for grabs this year.

The residency moves this year, from Belfast to near Glengariff in its stunning forest park, West Cork, from Sunday 25th January to Sunday 1st February 2026. 

The opportunity is for emerging writers of fiction and non-fiction aged 21 and over living in Ireland and the UK. 

The £20 application fee entitles ALL applicants to three professional development sessions:
 

1. An hour-long group zoom session on writing a query letter with Sam Blake and Maria McHale, Directors of Writers Ink.
    
2. An industry session by the Writers' and Artists' Yearbook team on ‘How to Pitch Your Book’. This 30-minute session will look at ways to approach the challenge of summing up a whole book in so few words, discuss pitch research, and share examples of successful pitches that you can use as a model for your own. We’ll also discuss how pitches can differ depending on the kind of book you are writing (fiction genres, memoir and non-fiction), as well as how the pitch functions in the context of your submission package. The session will end with a brief Q&A, so come ready with your questions!
    
3. A 30 min group zoom session on reading your work live with actor Tony Flynn. 
    

THE WINNERS
 

PRE CARE
The three writers will have an online session to discuss how to make the most of the residency.

Standard class travel provided.

WELCOME
Anna Burtt and Paul McVeigh will greet the three winners to settle them into their accommodation and answer any questions. There will be a welcome dinner and drinks. 
 

ON RESIDENCY

During the residency the winners will get one-hour group sessions with Louis de Bernières, Irish Fiction Laureate Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, Martina Devlin, Kirsty Logan, Pulitzer Prize-winner Robert Olen Butler and Leone Ross.
 

The winners will be taken on a trip to the beautiful harbour town of Bantry to visit Bantry Bookshop where they will get one-on-one reading recommendations, receive €50 book tokens to spend in-shop and a special gift from the shop.
 

Breakfast, lunch and dinner provided – family style. Basic tea and coffee provided. Alcohol, food outside of meals, special food items must be covered by the individual. 
 

AFTERCARE

1. Anna Burtt will give each writer a half-hour publishing consultancy by Zoom.
2. Previous residency winner, Patrick Holloway, will give a group Zoom session on his experience as a debut novelist – getting an agent and a publishing deal.
3. All three residency winners will also receive a copy of the Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook and a bundle of W&A Writing Companion Guides. They’ll receive a year’s free subscription to the Writers & Artists Listings Subscription (a digital database of publishing industry contacts), which also includes access to Agent Pages – individual profiles for over 500 literary agents – to help writers personalise their approaches when submitting to literary agents.
4. The winners will get membership for Writing.ie – a platform for the writing community filled with advice and resources.

Deadline: 30 November 2025

Head over to the webpage for full details.