A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending the International Dublin Writers’ Festival in Dublin, Ireland. While I have visited southern Ireland before, this was my first foray into the nation’s capital and I found it to be a writer’s Mecca. The city is extremely literary, with an incredible array of bookstores, libraries, museums, and quotes (to say nothing of conferences). For example, I couldn’t help but snap this while waiting at a crosswalk:

The city offers a lot of beautiful 19th-century architecture, with Trinity College sitting at its center. My sister, who travelled to the city with me, experienced the Book of Kells and the long room, but my time outside of the conference was extremely limited, so I opted to spend it perusing the National Museum of Ireland’s Archaeology wing.

This museum is free to enter and walk through, which is an incredible gift: there is so much for the history buff to see here! I knew I’d made the correct choice when I walked into the entrance rotunda to find an elaborate Roman-style tile mosaic representing the zodiac covering the entire floor.

Cancer baby.

The museum thrusts you into an extensive set of prehistoric and Neolithic artifacts that boggle the mind - seeing woven materials, undamaged grave goods, and enormous carved items astonished me. The wet, boggy conditions of Ireland have worked to preserve these natural materials far longer than they ever could have otherwise lasted. When looking at these beautifully crafted items, you cannot help but marvel at the skill and intelligence possessed by early humans.

A portion of a woven bag more than 4,000 years old.

Bronze-age tassels woven from horsehair. 

The golden Bronze-age hoards were abundant, consuming the entirety of the central ground floor. The wings extending out from the main floor included exhibits displaying some finds from the hills of Tara, relics from Glendalough - one of the earliest Christian refuges on the island, a compelling wing exhibiting Iron Age and early Christian artifacts, and the impressive kingship & sacrifice wing.

Miniature model of the hills of Tara, the traditional and ancient seat of the high kingship.

The kingship & sacrifice wing contained several Iron-Age bodies of young men preserved in bogs. The incredible condition of the remains of these men provide us a window into our ancestors of 2,000 years ago, though these men were very likely human sacrifices. The manner of their death and the indications of high or princely rank evidenced by their remains falls into line with other contemporary bog bodies found across Celtic Europe. It was a very moving, thoughtfully and respectfully presented exhibit. The remarkably preserved condition of one man’s hands, down to his dirt-encrusted fingernails, make the distant past all the more real.

The hands of Oldcroghan Man.

This is what I love about ancient history - it reaches out to us from the mists of the past to tether us back to our common humanity. As a descendant of German, Irish, British, Viking, and Gaulish peoples, I’m under no illusion that my ancestors were brutal. But the ways in which they lived and communed with one another in their Iron Age environments conveys a deeper set of convictions and senses of self that, in the modern day, I cannot find.

The upstairs portion of the museum contained primarily medieval Irish artifacts, including several pieces of horse harness, statuary, and equipment that I found fascinating. Check out the display of medieval spurs - they look no different from modern-day roweled spurs.

The second floor also offered an extensive wing of Viking artifacts, including a scale model of Viking Dublin and contemporary seacraft. This wing contains, significantly, the oldest known stirrup in Ireland. It looks like this convention was introduced to the Irish via the Vikings during the dark ages.

Oldest known stirrup found in Ireland, exhibited alongside the earliest known spurs (not pictured) found in Ireland. Spurs and stirrups came to Ireland with the Vikings.

Additionally, there was an extensive exhibit about Brian Boru and the Battle of Clontarf, alongside relics belonging to Boru and his descendants. The second floor also included medieval-era and Renaissance garments that, once again, were remarkably well-preserved.

My favourite wings on the second floor, however, were the Egyptian wing replete with incredible Roman-era artifacts and the Roman-era pottery on display from ancient Cyprus (including the adorable horseback figurine). The mummy portraits of Roman women displayed in the Egyptian wing are so realistic - and they underline just how diverse the Roman empire actually was. The dice, lamps, and mini altars invite us into Roman-era homes and daily life. The glasswork from this period never fails to take my breath away. What made me gasp this time, however, were the remarkably well-preserved Egyptian textiles from the 3rd century AD (late Roman era). Seeing any preserved fabrics from the Roman era is exceedingly rare, so I was in awe of the amount of woven fibre on display at this museum.

Roman-era textiles from ancient Egypt. 3rd Century AD.

The Archaeology Museum in Dublin is a true treasure trove, and I could not have picked a better single attraction to visit during my limited outside-conference hours.

Now, moving on to the conference itself: I could not have had a better time attending the sessions and connecting with fellow writers at the International Dublin Writer’s Festival. Our conference rooms (and the cushy lobby where chai lattes were consumed and the chat flowed) were situated at the Academy Plaza Hotel located in the heart of Dublin.

The sessions provided over the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of the conference brimmed with helpful exercises, panels, advice, and collaboration in a warm, welcoming creative space. All authors, both aspiring and published, were linked by a common desire to tell the stories that burned within them. No judgment or gatekeeping was in sight - with its specific focus on indie and self-publishing, there was no talk of indie authors not ‘counting’ as actual authors. Presenters sat beside us new and hopeful authors in the audience when not sharing their own expertise. And the networking periods during coffee/tea breaks never seemed to last long enough!

Some highlights from the conference sessions include: the wild goat herder story concocted during the story creation workshop, Glenda Cimino’s character interrogation activity, Anna Graham’s helpful advice regarding beta-reading and common writing traps to avoid, the self-publishing panel, Katherine Mezzacappa’s wonderful session over historical writing, Shawn Warner’s incredible story and experience marketing through TikTok, the nerve-wracking pitch session with wonderfully astute and helpful feedback provided by Audrey Wilson and Cathleen Young, Catherine Dunne’s insightful window into the creative process, and of course, Alison Morton’s visually stimulating discussion regarding how to refill the creative well.

Alison's insightful and empowering session.

I made so many new friends from all over the globe, all of whom have incredible stories they are writing or about to write. I highly recommend Sam L. Greene’s academic memoir examining their nonbinary life experiences amidst the political hostility towards the LGBT+ community in their home nation of Greece, ‘Between the Folds.’ There are even more incredible things to come out of our group, which you will no doubt see me crowing about here, and I so appreciate the genuine connections forged among our group. Amena, Kayla, Eve, Barbara, Anna, Sam, Janae, Rhayn, Alex - it was a pleasure and a privilege meeting you all and I look forward to our writing paths crossing again in the future!

Thanks to Glenda for introducing me to the poetry of Anne Hartigan and the late Fred Johnston. The collections I now own provide such a strikingly beautiful window into contemporary Irish poetry and will be savoured for years to come. And thanks also to Alison for recommending Elisabeth Storrs to me - her trilogy now sits on my never-shrinking TBR pile!

The highest of thanks of course goes to Laurence O’Bryan and Tanya Slijepčević for putting together this incredible event. I hope to return to Dublin for this conference again in the future!

The morning before my departure, my sister and I ducked into the Dublin Chapters located across the street from our hotel. The treasures encased within made me shake with giddy excitement. So, so many books - used and new - were offered at incredible prices, including more titles on my wantlist than I ever thought I could find! The enchanting Emerald Isle held one last magical surprise for me.

Dublin Chapters, dressed for Autumn and full of surprises

I was so pleased to see that the store included its own dedicated historical fiction section (more bookstores need to do this), rows upon rows upon rows filled with new and used titles - including a bunch of old Lindsey Davis paperbacks and the first book in Ruth Downie’s Medicus series featuring a humorous title I hadn’t seen before!

And, thanks to my sister, I managed to steal away with more books than I really should have purchased.

Total Britain and Ireland haul. Why do I always do this?

Until next time, Ireland!