Readings, festivals, launches, and other events relating to Irish speculative fiction authors.
Subscribe to this list in your calendarAspects Festival is an annual celebration of reading and writing that takes place in Bangor, County Down. The festival is now in its 35th year, making it Northern Ireland's longest running literature festival. This year’s festival will take place from 23 September to 4 October 2026. The programme will be unveiled and tickets go on sale on Thursday 6 August. Featuring Alistair Moffat, John Banvile, Seán Farrell, Jane Coyle, Susan Bennett, David Park and Jan Carson.
More info at aspectsfestival.com →Spike Island Literary Festival is a weekend celebration of literature and writing that takes place on Spike Island, County Cork. This year’s festival will take place from 24 to 25 September 2026. Featuring Mark Billingham, Sam Blake, Edel Coffey, Clare Coughlan, PJ Coogan, Michelle Dunne, Fiona Gartland, Amy Jordan, Andrea Mara, Stuart Neville, Michelle McDonagh, Kitty Murphy, Gill Perdue, Cormac Quinn, Catherine Ryan Howard, R.O. Throp and Mary Watson
All welcome! A circle gathering celebrating the launch of They Called Us Witch by Ellen Ryan, at Dubray Books, Bray, on Thursday 24th September at 6.30pm. RSVP to Vada Haberland, vada.haberland@harpercollins.ie
Write by the Sea is a weekend celebration of literature and writing that takes place in Kilmore Quay, County Wexford. This year’s festival will take place from 25 to 27 September 2026. Featuring Sheila Armstrong, Laetitia Devaux, Mary Costello, ÉilÃs Nà Dhuibhne, Maeve Brennan, Kate Phelan, Sinéad Gleeson, Arnold Thomas Fanning, Molly Hennigan, Eoin Devereux, Moyra Donaldson, Jane Clarke, Richard Hayes, Anne Enright, Aoife Barry, Neil Tully, Orla Mackey, Natasha Brown, Kevin Power, Rosaleen McDonagh, Emilie Pine, Carlo Gébler, Andrea Carter, Rebecca Hannigan, Sam Blake, Jackie Lynam, Margaret Galvin, Philip Quirke, Paul Hennessy, Paul Cullen, RóisÃn Ingle, Dermot Bolger, Órfhlaith Foyle, Sarah Maria Griffin, Patrick Freyne, Louise Nealon, Francis Spufford, Ferdia Lennon, Rosamund Taylor, Andrew Cunning, Neil Hegarty, Neil Jordan, Pat McCabe, Alan Gilsenan, Sara Baume, Danielle McLaughlin, Gemma Tipton, Richard Ford, Vanessa Fox O'Loughlin, Eileen Morrissey, Peter Murphy
A day-long celebration of science fiction, speculative fiction, myth, fantasy and weird writing, hosted by the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen's, 10am to 8pm. Talks, panels and readings on uncanny futures, folk horror and ghost stories, game narratives, YA and urban fantasy, and publishing weird fiction, plus a workshop on preparing for publication, a screening panel at the Queen's Film Theatre, and an evening showcase of new fiction. Attendance is free, but registration is essential. The Weird Weekend continues on Sunday with the Doors into the Dark book stall, in partnership with No Alibis Bookstore. Featuring Sam Thompson, Reggie Chamberlain-King, Caroline Sumpter, R B Kelly, T O Munro, Byddi Lee, Jo Zebedee, Darcy Little, Samuel Poots, Thomas Hislop, Mark Mullan, Emma Devlin, Damien Kelly, Deirdre Sullivan, Tracy Fahey, Dom O'Neill, Stephen Daly, Siobhán F Murphy, Trevor Kennedy, Brian Showers, Mervyn Marshall, John Patrick Higgins and Niall McKenna.
More info at seamusheaneycentre.com →Octocon, the National Irish Science Fiction Convention, is a weekend celebration of our favourite stories from books, comics, TV, films and games; from science fiction, fantasy, horror and beyond; attracting artists, writers, film-makers and fans from across the human sphere of influence. Featuring Adrian Tchaikovsky, Catie Murphy, Gareth Hanrahan, Ruth Ennis and Ryan Cahill.
More info at octocon.com →A six-week evening course (Tuesdays, 6:30-8:30pm) on book illustration, tutored by OisÃn McGann. Covers character design, composition and staging, and sequential art, alongside the practice and business of illustration in publishing.
More info at irishwriterscentre.ie →Join us at the Glens Storytelling Festival 2026, taking place 8th - 11th October. Featuring Storytellers Eddie Lenihan, Anne Harper, Fran O'Boyle, Colin Urwin and Stephen O'Hara. Tickets will be on sale via our website.
More info at armstory.org.uk →You are invited to the launch of From Out My Heart by Sue Rainsford, with guest speaker Téa Obreht, at Hodges Figgis, Dublin, on Friday 9th October at 6pm.
Darren Shan appears at Chapters Bookstore, Dublin, at midday on Halloween - his first Irish event of 2026 - giving a talk, answering questions, then signing books. Tickets are €10 and include a book: your choice of one of the new editions of Cirque du Freak, The Vampire's Assistant or Tunnels of Blood. His last event here sold out, so book early. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1999782257565?aff=oddtdtcreator