Maura McHugh

Maura McHugh (Splinister) was born in the USA, but raised and educated in Co. Galway, Ireland. She has lived in the USA, and travels there often. At the moment she is resident in South Galway, Ireland. She is the webmaster and blogger for the Irish Playwrights and Scriptwriters Guild, and writes scripts, short stories, novels, and plays. She is not afraid to call herself a feminist.

From 1992 - 1996 she pursued a Ph.D. in Trinity College, Dublin in modern women's science fiction, and during that time she served as Information Officer (twice) and President (once) of the Graduate Students' Union. As Information Officer she edited the academic journal, Alumnus for two years. She also worked on the organisational committee for the Irish National Science Fiction Convention, Octocon for four years, and wrote articles and conducted interviews for the Irish Science Fiction Association's monthly newsletter (now defunct). She left academia eventually with no regrets to enter the IT industry.

In the following period she worked in a number of different companies as Lotus Notes Administrator, System Administrator, and IT Manager. She was the technology host for Online.ie from 2000-2002, and wrote articles about the IT industry.

In 2001 she left full-time employment to work freelance as a web designer and consultant, and to focus once again upon her writing. In 2002 she moved from Dublin to her home county of Galway. A love of cinema and scriptwriting drove her back to college.

Maura is a member of the fortnightly Galway Screenwriters and Playwrights Workshop, the Irish Playwrights & Screenwriters Guild, and the Codex Writers' Group.

Education

College

• B.A. in English and History at NUIG, Ireland
• M.A. in English at NUIG, Ireland by research thesis ("A Man's Brain and a Women's Heart": The Divisions in Anglo-Irish Nineteenth Century Fantastic Fiction)
• Diploma in Film Studies, at NUIG, Ireland
• M.A. in Screenwriting at the Huston School of Film and Digital Media, NUIG, Ireland.

Courses/Workshops

• Introduction to Screenwriting, Filmbase, Dublin
• Foundation Course in Filmmaking, Galway Film Centre, Galway
• Screenwriting Masterclass with Paul Laverty
• Screenwriting Masterclass with Paul Schrader
• Hal Croasmun's ProSeries Screenwriting Class
• Clarion West Writers Workshop, Seattle; Summer 2006.
• Scene Analysis certified course with FÁS Screen Training Ireland, taught by Beth Serlin; February 2008

Works

Podcasts

• "Bone Mother" in Pseudopod, February 2009. Originally published in the Fantasy anthology ed. by Sean Wallace & Paul Tremblay, May 2007

Poems

• "Tattoo Destiny" in Jabberwocky 3 anthology ed. by Sean Wallace, December 2007
• "Exchange" in Goblin Fruit, Spring 2009.
• "Grave Taster" in Doorways Magazine #8, forthcoming. 2nd place winner of its annual poetry competition.
• "The Solace of Dark Places" in Goblin Fruit, Spring 2010 forthcoming.

Scripts

• "Senses" (short) co-written with Brian O'Grady - a top twenty finalist in the Filmbase Short Script Awards, Autumn 2006.

Short Stories

• "Mirror Mirror" in College Green, 1993
• "Who Hears Our Cries in Forgotten Tongues?" in Flash Me Magazine, September 2004
• "In the Woods" in Cabinet Des Fées, Vol 1, May 2006
• "Bone Mother" in Fantasy anthology ed. by Sean Wallace & Paul Tremblay, May 2007
• "Home" in Shroud Magazine, issue 2, March 2008
• "Homunculus" in Aoife's Kiss, September 2008
• "Vic" in Black Static, issue 10, April 2009.
• "Beautiful Calamity" in Paradox Magazine, issue #13, forthcoming
• "Water" in Doorways Magazine, forthcoming
• "The Diet" in Arkham Tales, forthcoming
• "The Tamga" in Shroud Magazine, issue 6, forthcoming
• "Moments on the Cliff" in All Hallows, the journal of the Ghost Story Society, forthcoming

Twitter Stories

• A story in Outshine.
• here, here, and here, on Thaumatrope, with another three forthcoming.

External Links

• Splinister