Carolann Copland, Chairperson
Carolann Copland is the chairperson and founder of The Carousel Aware Prize for Independent Authors. She is also an Indie author herself, and a creative writing facilitator from Knocklyon in Dublin. She writes contemporary and historical fiction and has published three novels. Carolann has a BEd in English and Drama and is presently studying for a Masters in Creative Writing.
For more information see www.carolanncopland.ie
Dolores Keaveney
I am an author and illustrator of children’s picture books and I have been painting for the best part of 40 years and have had many exhibitions. My art is vibrant, colourful, loose and up-lifting. I get my inspiration from the bees, my garden and my grandchildren. 16 years ago I was inspired to write and illustrate my first children’s picture book called If I were a bee….because I really love bees and I had been learning about them and they inspired me to write a little picture book about them. I decided to self publish because I had read up and researched a lot about self publishing over the previous year and I felt it was a route which I would like to take as it was a challenging way to go about publishing a book. I realised from the start that it would be a daunting journey but I felt I still wanted to go this route. In 2009 I launched ‘If I were a bee’… This book was a great success for me and spurred me on to write and illustrate more. So I have continued to launch one or two books per year since then. I also have one traditionally published book by Starfishbay Australia called Dee the Bee and this book has been turned into a Story Trail. It has been used outdoor by many Libraries and is erected in Boora Discovery Park Offaly.
I have produced and published 18 picture books to date and my latest one is back to the bees. It is called Queenie the Queen Bee and it is all about the queen herself. It is the 4th in my bee series. You can read all about me on www.doloreskeaveney.com
Jane Buckley
Indie-Reader award-winning author Jane was born in Derry in the mid-1960s.
Based on actual events, the Stones Corner tetralogy will take you on a thrilling journey, a pilgrimage of heartache, bravery, treachery and, of course, tragic love. From her own experiences, Jane writes about growing up during the Troubles, bringing with it sad, complicated and bleak memories. These books are not wrapped in ribbons and bows, nor do they offer simple happy-ever-after endings. Instead, they delve into hard-hitting storylines, showcasing the cruel realities of the past while interspersing heartfelt moments of love, family loyalty, and black gallows humour.
The series offers something for everyone, beckoning you into a world where a street’s name holds echoes of violence yet ultimately reminds us that the Province, to this day, still treads on very thin ice.
Project Children, a U.S.-based charity, has commissioned Jane’s next book for their 50th anniversary in 2025. Over forty years, this charity brought 23,000 children, both Catholic and Protestant. Through these experiences, children were given the opportunity to spend six weeks with host families, offering them a glimpse into a life beyond conflict
Yvonne Reddin
I am a freelance journalist, content creator, interviewer, travel writer and author. My passion lies in exploring human interest topics and narratives. I particularly love the interviewing aspect of my work, delving into the extraordinary stories of ordinary people. Drawing from my own experiences as a solo parent, navigating traveling with children on my own and overcoming challenges, these are the subjects I like to research and write articles about. I search for stories of resilience and triumph that resonate deeply with me and they are the stories that fuel my passion and drive my writing pursuits.
In 2020, during the lockdowns, I interviewed over 37 leaders in business, community & the arts which became my first self-published book in 2022. My guests included Lorraine Keane, Bibi Baskin, Gerry Creighton, Loretta Dignam, TD Jennifer Carroll Mac Neill, Baby Sleep expert Lucy Wolfe, actress Alison Arngrim (Nellie Oleson) and a variety of digital & marketing experts, coaches, authors, community leaders and so many more. There is something here for everyone to read. Talk Learn Connect’s explanation is perfectly described in the preface by Author, Playwright & Documentary Maker Cónal Creedon as capturing stories of resilience, tenacity and courage.
Orla Bakeberg
Orla Bakeberg McConnon, an Irish/South African photographer, poet, artist and entrepreneur. While growing up in Ireland, I was enchanted by its beautiful landscapes, something that seeded an early passion for art and nature. Our family later moved to Southern Africa, where I was captivated by landscapes of a very different kind. An exotic world that would eventually become very familiar.
Building on a successful career in marketing, it was on a trip to Botswana when I met Brian Bakeberg, a man who would change my life. Together we founded ‘Expo Africa’, a successful promotions and marketing business, which we build ourselves, into numerous countries across the southern half of the continent, including Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Swaziland and Lesotho. Brian soon become my husband and we honeymooned, appropriately, in Kenya.
Since returning to Ireland in 2018, now living in beautiful Mayo, I have connected myself more and more with my inner writings, my poetry and affirmations. They are always connected to the photographs I take, as I discover abundant beauty around this island.
In 2023 I self-published my first book, Life Threads. It is a dazzling culmination of a lifetime witnessing nature’s beauty and learning to respect the power of artistic passion and inspiration.
Marketing is very much in my DNA and I roll out Strategic Communications for the business which my husband and I own, An Even Better Place to Work. Along with building brands and digital marketing for other global customers, as a consultant.
Patrick Osborne
Patrick is an author, playwright & screenwriter from Dublin. He has published two darkly comic novels, Baxter’s Boys (2020) & When Your Number’s Up (2023) both of which were Amazon bestsellers in their chosen categories. He was a member of Filmbase, Dublin for a number of years, learning the craft of screenwriting & he has recently been made an offer to option the film & television rights to Baxter’s Boys. In 2019 he co-founded an amateur production company called the Four Esquires Productions and has written & directed a number of short plays including Bar Flies, Bin Wars & A Fishy Tale. Patrick was one of nine up and coming writers who were selected by the Irish Writers’ Centre, Dublin for their 2022/2023 Mentorship/Membership programme. He has been a guest speaker at a number of events including the Liverpool Writing On The Wall festival, the Dingle Literary Festival & the International Dublin Writers’ Festival. He was also invited by Fingal Libraries to run a workshop as part of their Write Time Festival. A feature length screenplay which he has co- written called No Time For Cowboys is currently with the BBC as part of their Open Call programme. Patrick is currently working on a number of projects including his third novel, a comedy heist story set in Dublin & a screenplay about the Great Hunger (The Irish Famine). Filming for his new short film, Two Halves is scheduled to begin this April.
Jeremy Murphy
Jeremy Murphy founded JM Agency, Publishing and Marketing Consultancy in 2018. To date, It has helped publishers, companies, independent authors and bestselling authors bring their books to life. Clients include Routledge, Springer, Orpen Press, Companhia das Letras (Penguin Brazil), and Lettertec. He holds degrees from Trinity College Dublin and University College Dublin, as well as postgraduate diplomas in business and marketing from Technological University Dublin and the Digital Marketing Institute, Ireland. His other roles have included Social Media Manager at the Dublin Gazette. He is the co-author of, with Dan Kiely, The Final Count, a candid account of the former senator’s political and business career.
Emer Cleary
Emer Cleary is a former journalist and newspaper editor, who founded her publishing company Emu Ink, alongside her software developer husband, Brian, in 2012.
Having started out publishing authors in all genres, Emu Ink began to specialise and then grow in the area of children’s writing – publishing work for children by children. To do this, Emer designed a unique online course for schools, the first of its kind, where pupils work through a programme and the result is a published anthology of their short stories.
To date, Emu Ink has turned thousands of pupils into published authors!
Over the years Emu Ink has produced a range of different books for schools from those celebrating milestone anniversaries to books of poetry and art. They also now work in sports clubs producing books and products that capture the history of the area as well as fundraise. Additionally they publish in community and writing groups.
Emer is a passionate writer herself, having written her own novel which she published independently. More recently she has written a children’s book which will be published this year; and is currently writing an animated TV series, based on the same central character.
For more information see emuink.ie
