An Interview with Irish Poet Clíodhna Bhreatnach
Episode description
In this episode of Words That Burn, I'm joined by Irish poet Clíodhna Bhreatnach to discuss her debut pamphlet, Pink Roses and Green. Together, we chat about a collection that sits at the intersection of the "nine-to-five grind," Millennial burnout, and a deep, tactile longing for the natural world.
Clíodhna breaks down her unique approach to the "Millennial Lyric"; moving away from the pastoral and into the office kitchenette. We discuss how she navigates the Post-Celtic Tiger landscape, using poetry to document the deformation of human time under late-stage capitalism.
We cover other topics like:
- The Romantic Office: Applying the philosophy of Keats and Wordsworth to photocopiers and Excel spreadsheets.
- Digital Intimacy: Finding beauty in the "randomised screensavers" of Windows desktops.
- The "Sick Addiction to Soft Things": Why tactile textures (paper, nature) are vital in a digital world.
- Writers Groups: The importance of community (specifically the Frustrated Writers Group) in banishing impostor syndrome.
References & Recommendations:
- Bandit Country by James Conor Patterson
- Unstoppable Utopia by Cassandra Moss
- The Perfect Season by Sean Pearson
- The Lover's Discourse by Anahid Nersessian (Criticism on Keats)
About the poet:
Clíodhna Bhreatnach is from Waterford and lives in Dublin. Her poems have appeared in Poetry Ireland Review, The Stinging Fly, and The Forward Book of Poetry 2023. She has recently been awarded a Dublin City Council Arts Bursary for 2025. She is the former poetry editor of Frustrated Writers Group.
Find the book and the poet:
https://cliodhnabhreatnach.com
https://greenbottlepress.com/product/pink-roses-green-by-cliodhna-bhreatnach/
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