James offers a personal critiquing service that helps writers solve their own problems. Whether you are a published or an emergent poet or a short story writer James can give guidance on technique, style, tone, structure and lay-out. James is noted for his honest, insightful, sensitive and encouraging approach. He enjoys the tussle of engaging with a poem or short story and trying to grasp its strengths and weaknesses, as well as conveying that analysis to the author (articulation is as much a skill as diagnosis!). 

As well as having many years experience as a poetry and short-story tutor, James has also worked in the publishing industry as a copyeditor and senior commissioning editor. This has given him the experience to critique writing both in terms of its artistic merit and its professional presentation.

●  Poetry
●  Short stories and other fiction
●  Copyediting 

Testimonials

James Harpur
is an award-winning poet, editor, adjudicator and creative writing tutor.
He has led workshops throughout Ireland and the UK, including at the Arvon foundation, the UK’s premier creative writing organization.

Publications:
Poetry
A Vision of Comets, Anvil Press Poetry, London, 1993 The Monk’s Dream, Anvil Press Poetry, London, 1996 Oracle Bones, Anvil Press Poetry, London, 2001 The Dark Age, Anvil Press Poetry, London, 2007
Translation
Fortune’s Prisoner: The poems of Boethius’s Consolation of Philosophy, Anvil Press Poetry, London, 2007
Non-fiction
Love Burning in the Soul: the Story of the Christian Mystics, Shambhala, Boston, 2005 
Selected anthologies
The Best of Irish Poetry 2009 (Southword Editions, 2009)
Staying Alive (Bloodaxe, 2002)
Ireland’s Love Poems (Kyle Cathie, 2000)
The New Exeter Book of Riddles (Enitharmon, 2002)
The Forward Book of Poetry (Faber, 2001)
Voices in the Gallery (Tate Publishing 1986)
Awards
Michael Hartnett Award 2009
Arts Council of Ireland Literary Bursary 2008
Cork Arts Literary Bursary 2007
Hawthornden Fellowship 1999
Society of Authors Award 1997
British National Poetry Competition 1996
Eric Gregory Award 1986

Poetry /
James will work with poets on individual poems, groups of poems and also full manuscripts intended for publication. He will annotate poems, raising queries (e.g. clunky rhythm, weak title, cliché alert, woolly meaning, florid imagery) and marking where a poem is particularly successful, and sometimes making suggestions as to how the poet might develop or change the poem. With manuscripts, he will annotate individual poems and also give a summary of the collection as a whole. He will also advise on presentation and publication outlets, from literary journals to book publishers.
To discuss your requirements and for more information and fees contact James at jwbharpur@iolfree.ie

Short stories and other fiction /
James has worked in publishing as a non-fiction writer and as a freelance editor and copy-editor for more than 25 years. His clients have included Penguin Books, Longman, Dorling Kindersley, Reader’s Digest, Time-Life, and many others. For Penguin he was a Reader of Crime Fiction, on the frontline of deciding whether manuscripts or published hardbacks should be made into  beginnings and endings, he developed an interest in fiction – what is it that makes a novel or a short story work? Although his English Literature degree had given him a good overview of fiction, it was having to make hard, commercial decisions – whether or not to recommend manuscripts – that concentrated his mind on the elements of fiction.  
     For many years he has been facilitating short story workshops. These have included sessions at the University of Lancaster on the Creative Writing MA course (in 2000, when he was voted most popular Visiting Writer and invited back the following year). But he has also worked extensively with emergent writers in local creative writing groups. In addition, he has assessed novels and their outlines, giving feedback on draft proposals to publishers. 
     James enjoys giving detailed feedback on short stories and other types of fiction. He will look at structure, characterisation, dialogue and all the other components that make a story work. And, if necessary, he will give ideas as to how the story might be re-fashioned or reworked. 
To discuss your requirements and for more information and fees contact James at jwbharpur@iolfree.ie

 Copyediting /
Some writers are happy with their poems or stories, but not so happy with their spelling, grammar, lay-out, consistency of style and so on. Should you say ‘farther’ or ‘further’, or doesn’t it matter? When do you put a comma or a semi-colon? Is it ‘the king reigned’ or ‘the King reigned’? Although publishers will always copyedit an author’s manuscript, writers who wish to enter their work for competitions or send it to agents should make it read as well - and look as perfect - as possible. James provides a full copyediting service.  
To discuss your requirements and for more information and fees contact James at jwbharpur@iolfree.ie