Dermot Healy was born in Finea, Co. Westmeath, in 1947. He is the author of the story collection Banished Misfortune (1982), which won two Hennessy Awards and the Tom Gallon Award, a novel, Fighting with Shadows (1984), and a poetry collection, The Ballyconnell Colours (1992). He wrote the screenplay for Cathal Black's film about the Christian Brothers, Our Boys, and his plays include The Long Swim, On Broken Wings and Last Night's Fun. He has edited two journals, The Drumlin and Force 10, which was singled out for praise as one of Ireland's best community arts journals. A Goat's Song won the 1994 Encore Award for the best second novel. His most recent book, The Bend for Home was published by Harvill in 1996. He is a member of Aosdana and lives near Sligo.
