Brian Kirk is a poet, short story writer, novelist and playwright from Dublin, Ireland. His first poetry collection After The Fall was published by Salmon Poetry in November 2017. His short fiction chapbook It’s Not Me, It’s You was published in September 2019. His novel for kids The Rising Son was published in December 2015. His poem Birthday won the Listowel Writers Week Irish Poem of the Year at the Irish Book Awards 2018. He won the Writing Spirit Short Story Award in 2010 with his story Perpetuity. He was shortlisted for Hennessy New Irish Writer Awards for fiction in 2008 and 2011, placed third in the Peoples College Short Story Competition in 2009, shortlisted for the Over The Edge New Writer of the Year Award in 2008 and 2009, a WOW Award for short fiction in 2011 and 2016, and in 2013 he was shortlisted for the Doolin Short Story Competition and Highly Commended in the Over The Edge for fiction. In 2014 he was placed second in the Labello Short Story Competition, was runner-up in the Penguin / RTE Guide Short Story competition and shortlisted in the James Plunkett Short Story Award. In 2018 his short story Festival was longlisted for the Galley Beggar Press Short Story Prize. His novel Winter Journey was shortlisted for the New Island “Get your Book Published” competition in association with RTÉ’s Today Show in March 2014. In April 2014 he was awarded an Arts Council bursary to complete his novel for 10-14 year olds The Rising Son which was published in December 2015. In 2010 and 2011 he was a featured reader at the Lonely Voice platform for new writers at the Irish Writer’s Centre. His story The Girl in the Window features in Sharp Sticks Driven Nails, an anthology of new stories, edited by Philip O’Ceallaigh, published by The Stinging Fly Press in October 2010. His one act play And the Word was Made Flesh was runner up in the “From Page to Stage” playwriting competition run by Dublin Public Libraries in 2010. His radio play Story was shortlisted for the PJ O’Connor Award 2011 with RTE. A full length version of Story adapted for the stage was shortlisted in the Eamonn Keane Play Competition at Listowel Writers Week 2017. He was highly commended in the iYeats International poetry competition in 2011 and 2012, shortlisted for the Fermoy Poetry Competition in 2013 and commended in the Galway University Hospital Arts Trust Poetry Competition in 2014. He won the Jonathan Swift Creative Writing Award for Poetry in 2014, the Bailieborough Poetry Prize in 2015 and the Galway RCC Poetry Award in 2016. He was awarded Creative Flow Dundalk FM Poet of the Year in 2015. He was selected for the Poetry Ireland Introductions series in 2013 and Highly Commended in the Patrick Kavanagh Poetry Award in 2014 and 2015. His poem film Red Line Haiku was featured at the Red Line Book Festival in October 2015. His work has appeared in the Sunday Tribune, The Irish Times, Poetry Ireland Review, The Lonely Crowd, Raintown Review, Crannóg, The Stony Thursday Book, Revival, Abridged(NI), Southword, The Penny Dreadful, Skylight 47, Café Review, Ofi Press, Boyne Berries, The Incubator, Wordlegs, WortMosaik(GER), Can Can, Burning Bush 2, The Honest Ulsterman, Shot Glass Journal, Bare Hands Poetry, Poetry Bus, Ropes, The First Cut, Live Encounters Poetry, Long Story Short Literary Journal, Fictive Dream, Cold Coffee Stand, Roadside Ficton, Lakeview International Journal of Literature and Art and various anthologies. He has appeared at many literary festivals including Listowel Writers’ Week, Cork International Short Story Festival, Dublin Book Festival, Belfast Book Festival, Bray Literary Festival and Red Line Book Festival.