We spoke to poet and essayist from Newry, Co. Down, James Connor Patterson. His debut collection bandit country has been nominated for the T.S. Eliot Prize 2022, and his writing has appeared in The Guardian, The Irish Times, New Statesman, Poetry Review and The Stinging Fly, among others.

We discuss two poems from bandit country in our December/January issue, the lingering effects of the Troubles on the ‘ceasefire generation’, and James gives one of our listeners advice on finding your authentic voice when writing.

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