Connie Roberts, Adjunct Instructor of English

Connie Roberts, a Hofstra University adjunct instructor of English, was a nominee for the prestigious Hennessy X.O Literary Award. Now in its 38th year, these awards provide the undiscovered writer and poet with an opportunity to break through barriers to see their work published. Ms. Roberts attended the awards ceremony on April 28, 2009, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Dublin, Ireland.

Ms. Roberts, an Offaly native, emigrated to the United States in 1983. She graduated from Hofstra with a Master of Arts degree in English Literature and Creative Writing. Her poetry has appeared in journals in the United States and Ireland. She was a finalist in the Strokestown Poetry Competition in 2001 and the Dana Awards in 2003, as well as a semifinalist in the “Discovery”/The Nation Contest in 2000 and 2002. Her book-length manuscript, Not the Delft School, a memoir in verse inspired by her experiences growing up in an orphanage in Ireland, placed second in the 2007 Patrick Kavanagh Awards.

The judging panel for the 2008 Hennessy X.O Literary Awards consisted of two highly respected and award winning authors, John Boyne and Sally Nicholls. There were 18 short listed writers in three categories: First Fiction, Emerging Fiction and Poetry.

Ms. Roberts teaches in the Creative Writing program that is part of Hofstra University’s English Department. She is also part of Hofstra’s Irish Studies Program, a new minor offered by Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Irish Studies at Hofstra is an interdisciplinary program with rich course offerings and events on Ireland’s past and present.

Hofstra University’s English Department and Creative Writing Program offers both undergraduate and graduate students a wealth of opportunities for the study of literature and creative writing. In addition to the undergraduate program in creative writing, the Master of Arts in English and Creative Writing program offers a wide range of workshops and independent study options in poetry, long and short fiction, playwriting and the essay form, and the faculty who teach in the Master of Arts are artists who represent the major literary genres.