Stellar showing by Derry authors at CAP awards
Colmcille Press author Felicity McCall has won the award for Best Short-Story Anthology at the CAP Awards, sponsored by Chapters Bookstore in Dublin, while Jim Simpson (pictured above with Felicity) and Jane Buckley were both shortlisted in the Best Novel category.
Felicity was honoured for her collection What We Did On Our Holidays, a part-memour exploring issues such as parental dementia, addiction and alcoholism, bereavement and the integenerational legacy of the Northern conflict.
A Royal Literary Fellow, Felicity was previously awarded the National Lottery Heritage Award for her play We Were Brothers in 2011. She also received two Epic Ireland awards in 2013 for Every Bottle Has a Story to Tell.
Her latest triumph has been welcomed by Oakgrove Integrated School, where she served as a governor. A spokesperson said: "Felicity has been a true friend to our school community we couldn't be prouder to see her work celebrated on such a fantastic stage. A massive shout out as well to one of the OIC founders, Jim Simpson. Jim was shortlisted in the Novels category."
Garbhán Downey of Colmcille Press said it was very fitting that Felicity had got this 'long overdue' recognition: 'Felicity is both naturally talented and prodigously hard-working - a rare combination indeed. Her work is timeless and profound - she really deserves this award.'
Jim Simpson's new novel What Peter Knew has just been published by Colmcille Press and is available in bookshops now. There will be launches for the book across the North West and Belfast over the coming weeks.
