"I knew I could write, but I never finished anything. I didn't know anything about the craft of writing, so when I was recommended to take the course at Maynooth run by John MacKenna and Angela Keogh, I thought maybe it was time ..."So, Paula Kavanagh, well known to patrons of Woodbine Books in Kilcullen, became one of 17 people like her who completed the 2024/2025 Maynooth University Certificate in Creative Writing for Publication, run by author John MacKenna, writes Brian Byrne. Last Friday, an anthology of works from the group was launched at the bookshop, with MacKenna doing the honours. The book's title, Indent, reflects his constant emphasis on the importance of formatting to hold the reader's attention, especially indentation. That also inspired the group's name.
"When we graduated last year, we had all got on so well that we didn't want it to end, so we had already formed this writing group, called The Indentations. Then we asked ourselves, why not publish a book and have something concrete from all we had done on the course?" One module led by Angela Keogh, who runs Harvest Press with MacKenna, had explored the publishing industry, including discussions on self-publishing. Karen Brown, a member of the group who has published on Amazon, prompted them to consider this option. The outcome is a very professional publication of 32 stories, available in hardback, paperback, and as an eBook on Amazon.
"It was a massive team effort," Paula Kavanagh said. "We selected pieces we had completed during the course. Some of us handled editing and proofreading. Another member, Cáit Bohan, has a friend, Tríona Walsh, who is an illustrator, and she designed the cover, posters, and invitations for the launch. Stephen McDonagh, member Sandra Linnie's husband, built our website, took photographs, and is managing our social media. All of this has been a labour of love, and I’ve gained an incredible group of friends from the course."
For John MacKenna, who has published 26 books, including novels, short-story collections, memoirs, and biographies, the biggest reward of running this course over more than two decades has been "meeting several hundred people interested in writing and spending time with people who love books." He estimates that around 20 course participants have actually published their own books over that time. "It's not just about the books, though. It's about people being committed to beginning and middling and finishing something, even if it doesn't get published. That they have the discipline to work on it — that's brilliant too."
He says working with course participants energises him personally and also brings satisfaction in seeing people flourish. "It could be someone who's been carrying a story in their head since they were 15. They might be in their 50s now and never had the time or confidence to do anything with it." He describes the launch night for Indent as 'brilliant' for this latest group. "They've worked phenomenally hard. It's not just the writing; they've put the whole book together. Edited it, printed it, produced it. It’s amazing, and perhaps the first step on a new road for some of them."
Introducing the evening, Paula Kavanagh described the group as creative, collaborative, and wonderful people who put their words, hearts, and energy into creating something special from day one. "We’ve laughed and cried together. We've listened respectfully. We've slagged unmercifully. We've come together like no other group I've been part of. I'm so proud of us."
John MacKenna admired that the group did not see writing as a competition but rather as a communal effort. "Yes, of course, writing is a solitary act. It's about being on your own, telling your stories, making your own way of writing, meeting characters, and getting to know them over weeks, months, perhaps years. But with a writing group, there also needs to be a sense of cooperation and community, which was present last year. Once the course ended, the group didn’t. They kept writing, meeting, and then they put together this book. A book is a tiny thing and a huge thing. Every book is important because it has an effect on somebody else, and doubtless this one will have an effect on many people who will read it, but it also had an effect on those who wrote it. They are not just writers, they created this work — they sat down and decided, ‘We’re going to do this.’"
The evening continued with a unique 'pop-up' set of readings from the 11 members of The Indentations present. Each read around 90 words from their piece to keep the launch lively and swift. Closing the event, Paula Kavanagh thanked the School of Adult Education in Maynooth for hosting the course, and John MacKenna and Angela Keogh, along with Kilcullen's own Ilona Blunden, who also teaches on the course. "We owe them a debt of gratitude, because we are a product of their legacy, turning writers into authors."
Finally, presentations were made to John MacKenna, Tríona Walsh, Stephen McDonagh, Karen Brown, and Dawn Behan of Woodbine Books, before Paula said the magic words: "It's not over yet, there's booze left ..."
If there was one valuable lesson the writers had learned from the course, it was how to end a story properly.
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