Inspired by his friend Dave Eggers, Irish novelist Roddy Doyle set up Fighting Words to nurture the creative skills of deprived children – with a little help from some big names.
From a story in the Guardian...
"Does anybody know why you are here this morning?" asks a woman standing at the front.
A tentative hand goes up. "To write a story," comes the reply from a pupil called Sophie.
"That's right – and we're here to help you."
The girls' legs jiggle in anticipation. This is Fighting Words, a workshop set up by the author Roddy Doyle in 2009 to encourage creative writing in students of all ages across Ireland. Since its inception, the centre has seen several thousand come through its doors. The majority are from local primary schools in Ballybough, an economically deprived area of Dublin, but other students have travelled hundreds of miles. Fighting Words, which relies largely on volunteer staff and offers all its lessons free of charge, has proved so popular that sessions are booked up a year in advance. "The interest is huge," says Sean Love, the executive director and co-founder. "We're obviously filling a gap that is not filled in formal education."
In a climate of arts cuts and economic gloom, the centre relies on private donations to keep going – its operating costs are about ¤300,000 a year (£250,000). To this end, Fighting Words is about to issue a hand-printed, collector's edition of short stories written by Annie Proulx, Colm Tóibín, Joyce Carol Oates and Salman Rushdie among others. It is hoped that the sale of the book will raise enough for the centre to stay open for a further two or three months.
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