Team

Dingle Lit is organised by a dedicated committee of volunteers, who between them bring vast and diverse experience, and work year-round behind the scenes to make this magical weekend happen. The organising committee is assisted during the festival weekend by wonderful volunteers, to whom we are eternally grateful, and we encourage anyone interested in volunteering to get in touch.

Dingle Literary Festival 2026 Committee

Festival Volunteer Committee (Programming and Operations):

Sheila O’Reilly (Festival Director): A book industry professional for over 35 years, Sheila owned award-winning bookshops in South London. She was a member of the Booksellers Association (BA) Management Council and now works part-time, leading the BA’s learning and development online platform. She is also a business mentor for independent bookshops on behalf of the BA.

Irene Flannery (Deputy Festival Director): Irene is a Nutritional Therapist (www.omnom.ie), speaker, tutor and researcher in health and wellness, delivering and organising events, courses and programmes. She writes a fortnightly column for West & Mid Kerry Live magazine. Irene is the Volunteer Coordinator for the festival, oversees Health & Safety, Garda vetting, and all our policies. Irene is a fluent Irish speaker.

Mia Colleran: Mia is a writer and editor with over eight years of transatlantic experience across publishing, bookselling, literary programming, journalism, and communications. She has had book reviews and features published in The Guardian, The Paris Review, and The Irish Times, among others. Mia is a fluent Irish speaker. Mia leads the team to discover new writing and events for the festival.

Nicholas McLachlan: Nicholas is a writer and teacher of poetry and fiction. His first collection of poetry, The Rain Barrel, was published by Salmon Poetry in 2015. From 1995-2010, he was the director of Dingle Writing Courses. He produced and edited Ildána, a bilingual book of West Kerry art and writing (2008) and 80 MPH, A Festschrift for Leland Bardwell (2002).

Deborah Grech: A senior communications expert with over 20 years’ experience in managing operations, brand and marketing globally and locally. A multi-lingual, dedicated advisor with proven strategic planning and implementation skills. Proficient in business management, leadership and communications through extensive experience with a FTSE 100 company in four countries.

Aoife O’Connor (chair of Festival Committee): Aoife works as a solicitor in Dingle. She recently moved home from Dublin to help run the family practice. Aoife holds a degree in law and Irish and has a passion for reading. She is the company secretary for Dingle Lit. Aoife is a fluent Irish speaker.

Peter McKay: A publishing professional with over 40 years’ experience. Peter is President of Publishing Ireland, the trade association for Irish publishers. He worked at board level for Thomson Reuters, Elsevier and was latterly CEO of The Publishing Training Centre in the UK. Peter works on grant applications, oversees venues and logistics, tends to the website and oversees all things technology-related for the festival. Peter is currently President of Publishing Ireland.

Siobhán Prendergast: A publishing professional for 30 years, Siobhán founded her own company, Dingle Publishing Services in 2014. Siobhán is a fluent Irish speaker and holds a PgDip in Publishing and Book Production and a Master of Arts with Distinction in Publishing. Specialising in helping authors with self-publishing, she regularly gives workshops and webinars on the subject.

Camilla Dinkel: Camilla is a founding member of Dingle Lit. She is the former owner of the Dingle Bookshop, which she ran for 15 years with her husband Mike Venner, hosting many literary events. They are also co-owners of Ponc Press, a traditional letterpress printer. A resident on the Dingle Peninsula for over 20 years, Camilla is a fluent Irish speaker

Niall McDowell: Niall McDowell is a Partner at a leading Irish law firm. He holds a BA in Philosophy & Politics, is an avid reader, and writes in his free time.

Jess O’Sullivan: Jess is a media professional with 20 years’ experience specialising in omnichannel content, social media and digital marketing strategy. Strong leadership skills paired with exceptional stakeholder management and an innovative outlook rooted in results.

Deanna O’Connor: Deanna is a freelance writer, editor, and native content specialist. As an award-winning magazine editor, she has worked across print and digital publishing, events, and broadcast media. A certified trainer and facilitator, she also hosts public speaking and personal branding workshops and webinars for corporate and private clients.

Focus Teams:

Workshops: Nicholas McLachlan + Sheila O’Reilly

New Writing: Mia Colleran + Jess O’Sullivan + Camilla Dinkel

Marketing/PR: Deborah Grech + Jess O’Sullivan + Deanna O’Connor

Finance/Grants & Venues: Peter McKay + Seirce Mhac Conghail (Irish Grants).

Volunteers, Health & Safety, Compliance: Irene Flannery

Sustainability Group: Irene Flannery, Nicholas McLachlan & Siobhán Prendergast

Accessibility Champion: Peter McKay

Paid roles:

Dingle Lit CLG Directors:

  • Niall McDowell (Chair)
  • Siobhán Prendergast
  • Deanna O’Connor
  • Irene Flannery