Biography

Currently Interim Director of Creative Writing at UCC, Danny Denton is a writer from Cork, and lectures on writing at UCC. His first novel, The Earlie King & The Kid In Yellow, was published by Granta Books in 2018. His second novel, All Along The Echo, was published by Atlantic Books in 2022.

Among other publications, his work has appeared in The Stinging Fly, Southword, Granta, Winter Papers, The Dublin ReviewTate Etc, The Guardian, The Irish TimesArchitecture Ireland & The Big Issue.

He is also a contributing editor with The Stinging Fly magazine.

FULL LIST OF PUBLICATIONS  

NOVELS

Denton, Danny. The Earlie King & the Kid in Yellow. Granta Books, 2018.
Denton, Danny. All Along the Echo. Atlantic Books, 2022.  
Denton, Danny. Aidagara. Atlantic Books, 2026 (forthcoming).

SHORT FICTION

Denton, Danny. "The Bull." The Sharp Review, 2006, pp 22-28.
Denton, Danny. "Letters for M." Cúirt International Festival of Literature, 2006. Exhibition with      artist Máiréad Higgins.
Denton, Danny. "Kid, Falling." The Stinging Fly, Issue 7, Vol. 2, Summer 2007, pp 47-53.
Denton, Danny. "The Wild Garden in the Shade." Southword, Issue 12, 2007, pp 51-59.
Denton, Danny. "An Attempted Resurrection." Let’s Be Alone Together, The Stinging Fly Press, 2008, pp 65-76.
Denton, Danny. "Water." The Stinging Fly, Issue 11, Vol. 2, 2008-9, pp 45-52.
Denton, Danny. "I Bring Back The Books." Migrating Minds III, 2009, pp 76-84.
Denton, Danny. "Cana Wedding." The Stinging Fly, Issue 17, Vol 2., Winter 2010-11, pp 101-109.
Denton, Danny. "Terror, Wonder." The Stinging Fly, Issue 31, Vol.2 , Summer 2015, pp 123-145.
Denton, Danny. "The Body Stump." Funhouse, 2017, pp 38-45.
Denton, Danny. "Patrols." The London Magazine, February 20th 2018. https://theshortstory.co.uk/short-story-patrols-by-danny-denton/
Denton, Danny. "Three Spins." Winter Papers, Curlew Editions, 2018, pp 111-116.
Denton, Danny. "Middatun Town." Southword, Issue 35, 2018, pp 58-63.
Denton, Danny. "Everslipping Routine." The Dublin Review, Issue 76, Autumn 2019, pp 91-98.
Denton, Danny. "Idea For A Film." Port Magazine, Issue 25, Aut-Winter 2019-20, pp 188-191.
Denton, Danny. "Motorbike Accident, Galway West." Galway Stories, Doire Press, 2019, pp 131-138.
Denton, Danny. "Sea of Typhoons." The Cormorant, 2020, p 5.
Denton, Danny. "The Central Field." In Context 4 – In Our Time, 2021, pp 26-27.
Denton, Danny. “Evening at the Friary”. Cork Words 2, Cork City Libraries, 2021, pp 83-92.
Denton, Danny. "45 Views of a Dual Carriageway." Belfield Literary Review 2, 2022, pp 45-56.
Denton, Danny. "it’s windy here." The Writer’s Torch, The Stinging Fly Press, 2023, pp 6-10.
Denton, Danny. "Love Letter in the Midsummer." Cork Stories, Doire Press, 2024, pp 23-28.
Denton, Danny. "the things." Commissioned response to Lee Welch’s In Praise of Idleness, May 2024. https://www.leewelch.com/in-praise-of-idleness  

CREATIVE NON-FICTION

Denton, Danny. “On The Truth of the German Plot.” Journal of the Galway Archaeological and Historical Society, Vol. 59, 2007, pp. 122-133.
Denton, Danny. “Through Words I See: On the language of worship in the work of John McGahern”. The John McGahern Yearbook Vol. V, 2012.
Denton, Danny. "Song of Aero." Tate, Etc, Issue 43, Spring 2018, pp 108-109.
Denton, Danny. "Faltering Song." Granta, (the online edition), 10th January 2018. https://granta.com/faltering-song/
Denton, Danny. "In Rain." Banshee, Autumn/Winter 2019, pp 5-23.
Denton, Danny. “[Notations for] Mass for Voice Writerly Voices.” The Danger and the Glory. ed. Hedwig Schwall. Arlen House, 2019, pp 88-96. 
Denton, Danny. “Notes on Craft”. Granta (the online edition), 4th April 2018. https://granta.com/danny-denton-notes-craft/
Denton, Danny. “Witnessing our son…” Image Magazine, Spring 2022.  

OTHER WRITING

Throughout my writing career to date, I have also written literary criticism, feature journalism, and other non-fiction for publications including: The Irish Times, The Observer, The Guardian, Metro, Big Issue, Image, The Irish Examiner, Architecture Ireland, BBC Radio 4 (various), RTE Radio 1 (Arena), The 42, Granta.com, The Cardiff Review, The Stinging Fly, Metro (London), Sunday IndependentSuitcase  

EDITORIAL

I was the editor of The Stinging Fly literary magazine from October 2018 – January 2022, with creative control over magazine output, podcast, events, summer schools, workshops and mentoring schemes, with a remit to publish and promote the best new Irish and international writing. I remain a contributing editor. Issues edited:
-       The Stinging Fly, Issue 40, Vol.2, Summer 2019.
-       The Stinging Fly, Issue 41, Vol.2, Winter 2019-20.
-       The Stinging Fly, Issue 42, Vol.2, Summer 2020.
-       The Stinging Fly, Issue 43, Vol.2, Winter 2020-21.
-       The Stinging Fly, Issue 44, Vol.2, Summer 2021.
-       The Stinging Fly, Issue 45, Vol.2, Winter 2021-22.

Research Interests

I am primarily interested in innovative, modernist or postmodernist fiction, but keep an interest in all fictional forms, both short and long. I am also interested in researching precarity amongst arts practitioners, the writing life, and creative writing as research.

Current interests in my own fiction include: voice; clowning; hauntology; dystopia; senses of place; non-place; the philosophies of John Moriarty, Marc Augé & Tetsuro Watsuji; Studio Ghibli; Final Fantasy VII (among other games!); and much much more.

Some of my favourite writers (who I'll never stop 'researching') include: Anne Carson, Alisdair Gray, Han Kang, David Foster Wallace, Max Porter, Helen Dewitt, Malcolm Lowry, Zoe Wicomb, Nelson Algren, Gavin Corbett, Lisa McInerney, Thomas Morris, Conor O'Callaghan, Niamh Campbell, Chetna Maroo, James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, David Means, Flann O'Brien, David Markson, Roberto Bolano, Annie Ernaux, Claire-Louise Bennett, Martin MacInnes, Sally Rooney, China Mieville, George Saunders, Keith Ridgway, B.S. Johnson, Denis Johnson, Nicola Barker & Eimear MacBride.

Books

  Year Publication
(2026) Aidagara.
Danny Denton (2026) Aidagara. London: Atlantic. [Details]
(2022) All Along The Echo.
Danny Denton (2022) All Along The Echo. London, England: Atlantic Books. [Details]
(2018) The Earlie King & The Kid In Yellow.
Danny Denton (2018) The Earlie King & The Kid In Yellow. London, England: Granta Books. [Details]

Book Chapters

  Year Publication
(2024) 'Love Letter in the Midsummer'
Danny Denton (2024) 'Love Letter in the Midsummer' In: Cork Stories. Galway: Doire Press. [Details]
(2023) 'it's windy here'
Danny Denton (2023) 'it's windy here' In: The Writer's Torch. Dublin: The Stinging Fly Press. [Details]
(2022) '45 Views of a Dual Carriageway'
Danny Denton (2022) '45 Views of a Dual Carriageway' In: Belfield Literary Review 2. Dublin: Moli. [Details]
(2021) 'Evening at the Friary'
Danny Denton (2021) 'Evening at the Friary' In: Cork Words 2. Cork: Cork City Libraries. [Details]
(2019) 'Motorbike Accident, Galway West'
Danny Denton (2019) 'Motorbike Accident, Galway West' In: Galway Stories. Galway: Doire Press. [Details]
(2019) '[Notations for] Mass for Voice Writerly Voices'
Danny Denton (2019) '[Notations for] Mass for Voice Writerly Voices' In: The Danger & The Glory. Dublin: Arlen House. [Details]
(2018) 'Three Spins'
Danny Denton (2018) 'Three Spins' In: Winter Papers 4. Sligo: Curlew Editions. [Details]
(2009) 'I Bring Back The Books'
Danny Denton (2009) 'I Bring Back The Books' In: Migrating Minds III. Dublin: MM. [Details]
(2008) 'An Attempted Resurrection'
Danny Denton (2008) 'An Attempted Resurrection' In: Declan Meade (eds). Let's Be Alone Together. Dublin: The Stinging Fly Press. [Details]

Journal Volume Edited

  Year Publication
(2018) The Stinging Fly magazine.
Various (2018) The Stinging Fly magazine. Journal Volume Edited [Details]

Honours and Awards

  Year Title Awarding Body
2019 Shortlisted: Novel of the Year Collyer Bristow Prize
2019 Shortlisted: Newcomer of the Year Irish Book Awards

Professional Associations

  Association Function From / To
Irish Writers Centre Member /
PEN International Ireland Member /

Committees

  Committee Function From / To
The Stinging Fly Contributing Editor /

Education

  Year Institution Qualification Subject
2006 National University of Ireland, Galway Masters Writing
2005 University College Cork Bachelor of Arts English & Philosophy
2015 Kings College, London Qualified Teacher Status Secondary Teaching
2025 University College Cork PhD Creative Writing

Journal Activities

  Journal Role To / From
The Stinging Fly Member of Editorial Board 01-APR-22 -

Other Activities

  Description

Sounds From A Safe Harbour

All Curious Minds (All Together Now)

Cork Midsummer Festival

Teaching Interests

I lecture on writing, with a particular interest in innovative fiction in both short and long forms. 

Having published widely in the prose form, I lecture on modules including Reading The Novel Creatively, The Short Story, Fiction Workshop, Writing For Other Media (which includes components on the long-form essay, podcasting, radio adaptation, blogging & v-logging, among other forms). 

Recent Postgraduates

  Graduation Year Student Name Institution Degree Type Thesis Title
2024 John Connolly University College Cork PHD ABSENCES & PRESENCES: TOWARDS A DETECTIVE GOTHIC