Declan Collinge
Genres: Poet, Childrens' author, Essayist
Rugadh i mBaile Átha Cliath é sa bhliain 1949. Chuaigh sé ar scoil chuig Caisleán Droimní i sraith lán-Ghaelach. D’fhreastail sé ar Ollscoil Bhaile Átha Cliath, mar ar bhain céim MA, PhD agus ATO agus, ina dhiaidh sin, TTG agus teastas TEFL. Thug Declan 15 bliain ag léachtóireacht in Ollscoil Mhá Nuad agus dhá scór bliain, nach mór, ag múineadh mar mhúinteoir meánoideachais. Is file dátheangach é a bhfuil ocht gcnuasach foilsithe aige agus is údar téacsleabhar é freisin, a bhfuil breis is 20 leabhar curtha in eagar agus i gcló aige. Foilsíodh dánta leis in INNTI, Poetry Ireland, Cyphers, Stony Thursday srl. maraon le dánta a léamh ar raidió agus teilifís. Chuir Olivia O'Leary faoi agallamh é ar an gclár The Poetry Programme sa bhliain 2017.
Faoi láthair is eagarthóir coimisiúnaithe é do Mentor/Red Stag Books. Bíonn ailt go rialta aige i The Irish Times agus nuachtáin eile, agus is minic a chloistear ar Sunday Miscellany é.
Rinne Declan tráchtas dochtúireachta ar fhilíocht Mháirtín Uí Dhireáin agus ba mhór aige gur scríobh an Direánach an réamhrá dá chéad chnuasach, Sealgaireacht. Is ceoltóir Declan a sheinneann an giotár agus an t-orgán béil le chéile. Is garmhac é le Lennie Collinge a d’oibrigh mar theilgeoir do James Joyce sa chéad phictiúrlann i mBaile Átha Cliath, an Volta agus, mar sin, déanann Declan cúram ar leith de shaothar Joyce.
Seachas a bheith ina scríbhneoir aistí agus gearrscéalta, is éaneolaí amaitéarach é Declan a chuireann suim ar leith sa dúlra. Is údar é ar na sraitheanna Fadó Bilingual Irish Legends agus Fadó Bilingual Irish Saints atá dírithe ar pháistí 8–12 bliain.
Declan Collinge was born in Dublin in 1949. His went to school in Drimnagh Castle in an all-Irish stream. He attended UCD where he graduated with an MA, PhD and Higher Dip Ed, after which he added the TTG and TEFL certificates. He spent 15 years lecturing in Maynooth University and almost 40 years as a secondary teacher. He is a bilingual poet with eight collections published and also a textbook author with over 20 textbooks edited and published. He has been regularly published in such poetry journals as INNTI, Poetry Ireland, Cyphers, Stony Thursday, etc. as well as reading on radio and TV. He was interviewed by Olivia O'Leary on The Poetry Programme in 2017. Recently he became commissioning editor for Red Stag/Mentor Books contributing regular articles to The Irish Times and other newspapers. He has been a frequent contributor to Sunday Miscellany on RTÉ Radio.
Declan’s doctoral thesis was on the poetry of Máirtín Ó Direáin and he was honoured when the poet wrote the introduction to his first collection, Sealgaireacht. Declan is a musician who plays harmonica and guitar, the grandson of Lennie Collinge who worked as an operator for James Joyce in the first cinema in Dublin, the Volta. As a result, he has a special interest in the works of Joyce.
Besides being an essayist and short story writer, Declan is an amateur ornithologist with an avid interest in nature. He is the author of the Fadó Bilingual Irish Legend Series and the Fadó Bilingual Irish Saints Series which caters for children aged 8–12.
Mise agus Pangur Bán
Nuair b’iad na leabhair amháin mo stórchisteba mhinic mé sa leabharlann os cionn
an téacsa ag sú feasa ó dhubh go dubh.
In ionad Pangur Bán an tsean-mhanaigh,
is compánach anois mo ríomhaire glúine
a aimsíonn creach ina fheidhmchláracha
agus leathann an saol mór go gléghlan
os mo chomhair ar dhath an tuar ceatha,
an luch faoi mo láimh agam ar nós Pangur féin,
fad a shuím siar i mo phluais rúnda
ag sú ábhar dánta agus gearrscéalta
as an uile chearn den Idirlíon domhanda,
mé im shean-scoláire seasmhach nach mbeidh
riamh oilte ar mo chúrsa diamhrach
ag iarraidh teacht slán as gábh feasa.
As Athchuairt ar an Éigse (Coiscéim, 2017), lch 5.
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