Lissivigeen National School pupils enjoyed a creative treat last Friday when they were visited by children's author Olivia Hope for a series of writing workshops to help inspire them.

Fourth, Fifth and Sixth classes participated in activities around character creation, story development and storyboarding, all in keeping with the Irish folklore tradition and featuring spooky púcas and local landscape.

Olivia also gave them an insight into her own storytelling journey and how the Killarney author came to be with the same publisher as JK Rowling. She spoke with enthusiasm about finding story ideas and inspiration all around her.

Olivia said that she prefers to show children how to make stories, not just write them down, by highlighting the importance of children being able to tell their stories in a variety of ways, not just writing, but also through drawing, film, song and any art form that appealed to them. She says that we are encouraging pupils to be writers, film-makers, animators and artists, because, as she reminded them, "It’s your story, so you have to tell it in your own unique way".

Olivia, who currently works at Siamsa Tíre as a creative learning assistant, also gave pupils a behind-the-scenes insight into how she came to write the Samhain folklore tale for the highly anticipated art exhibition for children at Siamsa Tíre, 'A Way Home/Slí Abhaile'. Her visit also included a sneak preview of some of the art that will be displayed as part of the exhibition which launched yesterday (Thursday).

The classes and their teachers certainly have a story or two to tell after Olivia Hope’s visit.

Olivia Hope’s debut 'Be wild, Little One', illustrated by Daniel Egneus, will be published by Bloomsbury on May 12, 2022, and is available for pre-order in all bookshops.