Louth native wins third place in All Ireland creative writing competition

Grace Carthy from Louth, has been selected as the third-place winner of the 2026 All Ireland Scholars Creative Writing Competition in the Poetry Category for her poem, After The Last Box.

Sponsored by JP McManus, the competition, now in its sixth year, is open to recipients of the All Ireland Scholarship, from 2008 to present. This year’s competition focused on the short form written word (max 600 words) with prose and poetry categories with entrants asked to focus on short-form fiction, non-fiction, and op-ed.

This year’s stellar judging panel included Paul Lynch (Booker Prize Winner 2023), Donal Ryan (Orwell Prize Winner 2025), and Dr Emily Cullen. The judging process was chaired by Professor Sarah Moore Fitzgerald, Head of Creative Writing at the University of Limerick.

Grace was awarded the All Ireland Scholarship in 2022 and is in her final year of Business Economics and Social Studies at Trinity College Dublin,

The judges were impressed by his winning poem saying: “This graceful, formally accomplished poem evokes a moment of flux in an emptied room in lines that conjure a state of liminality without sentimentality.”

Commenting on the competition, Sponsor JP McManus said: “I am delighted to be here today to honour the winners of this year’s All Ireland Scholars Creative Writing Competition. With over 2,050 All Ireland Scholars across the island of Ireland, their written work is yet another reminder of the creativity, insight, and imagination they bring to the table.

“We take great pride in following our scholars after they finish university. Congratulations to all of our winners here today and many thanks to the judges for sharing their time and valuable expertise.”

After The Last Box can be read here.

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