Fighting Words Belfast hosted over 150 primary school children from Belfast and Dublin for the unveiling of 'The Teleportation Electrician' storybook, the result of a 2 month cross-community cross-border creative writing project.
On Monday 19 June, ‘The Teleportation Electrician’ materialized at the Seamus Heaney HomePlace in Bellaghy as Fighting Words Belfast welcomed over 150 children from primary schools in Belfast and Dublin, the young authors of this futuristic new tale, to a day of magic and celebration.
Fighting Words Belfast is the creative writing centre for children and young people across Northern Ireland, and in this project they teamed up with Primary 6 pupils from Ballysillan Primary School, Bunscoil Mhic Reachtain, and Wheatfield Primary School in North Belfast along with Elmgrove Primary School and Victoria Park Primary School in East Belfast and, in partnership with Fighting Words, Dublin, with Fourth Class pupils from Scoil Chaitriona and St Vincent’s Girls’ National School from Dublin.
The young authors have worked hard over the past two months and the result is a highly imaginative and original piece of fiction ‘The Teleportation Electrician’. Acclaimed author and newly appointed Northern Ireland Children’s Writing Fellow, Myra Zepf, hosted a lively Q&A session with pupils and presented the young authors with their own copy of the fantastical adventure.
Myra Zepf said
"Stories always have their own journeys, but by anyone's standards this one has been remarkable. These young writers have collaborated with friends and strangers alike, within Northern Ireland and cross-border. Today is a chance to celebrate them, their wonderful story and their journey together in making it."
Geraldine Wilkins, Development Officer for Fighting Words Belfast said,
“Once again Fighting Words Belfast volunteer mentors and illustrators have sparked these children’s creative imaginations. If anyone would like to find out more about us or volunteering opportunities just go to www.youngatart.co.uk for full details.”
The More Crosswords project was made possible with the support of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Dublin. This is the second year of the cross-community, cross-border creative writing project. The aims of the project are to allow Fighting Words Belfast to deliver an extended programme of creative writing engagement for students and to create opportunities for children to work with those from different communities in an enjoyable activity. As part of the programme children have been introduced to Seamus Heaney’s poetry as an inspiration for their own writing journeys. Each Belfast student has taken part in three structured creative writing workshops, held in Skainos and also at the Duncairn Centre for Culture and Arts, introducing children to new venues in different parts of the city.
