Eimear Ryan
Irish writer and publisher
About Eimear Ryan
Eimear Ryan (born ) is an Irish writer, editor, publisher and one of the founding editors of Banshee Press. Her debut novel, Holding Her Breath, was published by Penguin Books in 2021. She was 'writer-in-residence' at University College Cork in 2021. She has also written a book for children, and had her work adapted into the award-winning short film, The Grass Ceiling.
Career
Writing Ryan's writing has appeared in several publications, such as The Stinging Fly, Granta, The Dublin Review, and Winter Papers. In 2009, she received a Hennessy Award for her writing.
Her debut novel, Holding Her Breath, was published by Sandycove, an imprint of Penguin Books.
She is a columnist at the Irish Examiner. In 2019, Ryan's book on Cora Staunton was published by The O'Brien Press.
Film Her essay "The Fear of Winning" was adapted into a short film, The Grass Ceiling, directed by Iseult Howlett. The Grass Ceiling received the Special Jury Award at the Catalyst International Film Festival 2020, won first prize in the WFTi Showcase Awards 2020, and was nominated for Best Short Film at the IFTA Film & Drama Awards. The press publishes the literary journal Banshee twice a year. Banshee Press also publishes books, including a collection of short stories, Paris Syndrome by Lucy Sweeney Byrne (2019), and a poetry book, Gold Light Shining by Bebe Ashley (2020). Banshee Press was included in The Bookseller's "Rising Stars" list in 2021. She now plays club camogie for St Finbarr's in Cork.
Publications
Novels
Holding Her Breath. Dublin: Penguin Sandycove. 2021.
Short fiction
'Keep the Wolf from the Door'. The Stinging Fly. 2011. ‘The Recital’. Town and Country: New Irish Short Stories. London: Faber. 2013. 'Wearing the Pinks'. The Dublin Review. Spring 2014. 'Lane In Stay'. The Long Gaze Back. Dublin: New Island. 2015. ISBN 9781848404205 'Idioglossia'. Granta (online). 2016. 'The Arborist'. The Dublin Review. Summer 2016.
Essay/memoir
'The Fear of Winning'. Winter Papers. 2016.
For children
Cora Staunton. Dublin: The O'Brien Press. 2019.
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Irish writer and publisher
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Eimear Ryan. https://biography.guide/eimear-ryan/
MLA: "Eimear Ryan." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/eimear-ryan/.
Chicago: "Eimear Ryan." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/eimear-ryan/.
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