Award-winning author and Narrative 4 founder Colum McCann is striving to make empathy and connection cornerstones of Irish education and community life. A storyteller through and through, he shares his cultural life.
Colum McCann is the Dublin-born author of thirteen books. He has won numerous international honours including the US National Book Award and an Oscar. His work has been published in over 40 languages. He is the co-founder of Narrative 4, a global non-profit that uses story telling to build community engagement in schools around the world.
Narrative 4, whose vision is to make empathy and connections a cornerstone of Irish education and community life,, has reached out to 23,436 young people across Ireland, trained over 1,000 facilitators with 40% of post primary schools having one or more teachers trained to make empathy and connection a cornerstone of Irish education and community life.
Colum is very passionate about this and firmly believes that story exchanges which take place in schools, community and youth centres, online, nursing homes and prisons helps build a bridge to greater empathy understanding. The organisation has introduced an Empathy School Award which is presented to post primary schools that excel in student wellbeing by creating a culture of empathy, kindness, connection and understanding.
Narrative 4 just hosted its much-loved Christmas event in Dublin, where Colum McCann was joined by long-time supporter, acclaimed musician, and friend of the Narrative 4 Colm Mac Con Iomaire in welcoming an exciting lineup of writers, artists, musicians, and supporters.
Below, Colum shares his cultural life.
What drew you towards becoming a storyteller?
I do think that stories hold the world together. That’s where we meet each other in an honest way.
Is there a certain theme or idea that you find yourself being drawn to again and again in your work?
I seem to concentrate a lot on being away but also being at home at the exact same time. It’s part of my idea that we must embrace contradictions.
Tell us about Narrative 4.
The greatest non-profit in the world! We bring young people together through the power of storytelling. And those young people go on to foster change in their communities. An ounce of empathy is worth a ton of judgement. We’ve been going for a decade in Ireland now and we are beginning to help transform the way we think about others.
What is the Empathy School Award?
It’s an award (gold, silver and bronze) where Irish schools and students get to be rewarded for their empathy-building skills.
Tell us about this year’s Christmas event, were there any highlights?
Colm Mac Con Iomaire is the world’s greatest fiddle player. He brought everyone together onstage
Who is someone you look up to in the Irish arts world?
Well, Colm Mac for one! And Bill Whelan who once produced an album for him.
What has been the highlight of your career so far?
This is very corny, but every day’s a highlight because I wanted to write from a very young age and the fact that I make a living from it is always a surprise to me. But if I had to be razor sharp with my answer I would have to say winning the U.S National Book Award in 2009.
What is one thing you wish everyone knew about being a storyteller?
That we are all storytellers.
What would you say to a budding writer unsure of their next steps?
Never be scared. Embrace Beckett’s idea: “No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”
Colum McCann’s life in culture
The last thing I saw and loved… A snowstorm in Connecticut. And even though it wasn’t a film, it really was.
The book I keep coming back to… There’s a tiny little fable called Fup by Jim Dodge. It’s about a duck. Try the two words together. (But it really is a powerful little book.)
I find inspiration in… Listening.
My favourite film is… Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The 1972 version.
The song I listen to to get in the zone is… ‘Fisherman’s Blues’ by the Waterboys.
The last book I recommended is… I’m always recommending books. But I absolutely loved Richard Flanagan’s Question Seven.
I never leave the house without… Me tent and me groundsheet rolled up tight.
The piece of work I still think about is… Sting playing with Loah at a benefit concert for Narrative 4. And she sang “I’m an Irish girl in New York…”
The best advice I’ve ever gotten… “Don’t listen to the people who want to give you advice.”
The art that means the most to me is… When Aedin Moloney played Molly Bloom in her adaptation of the final chapter of Joyce’s Ulysses. A phenomenal performance.
The most challenging thing about being a storyteller is… Learning that listening is more powerful than telling.
If I wasn’t a storyteller, I would be… A teacher.
The magic of storytelling to me is… That it allows us to expand the lungs of the world.
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