Irish writers Naoise Dolan and Caoilinn Hughes longlisted for women’s comedy prize

Huge congrats to them.

The Comedy Women in Print Prize has released their longlist and it includes two of our very own Irish writers. Naoise Dolan and Caoilinn Hughes have both been included on this year's list for Published Comic Novel. Debut novelist Naoise has been longlisted for her book Exciting Times, while award-winning novelist and short story writer Caoilinn Hughes is longlisted for her novel The Wild Laughter. Joanne Harris, Chair of Judges for the Comedy Women in Print Prize said: "What a marvellously diverse longlist! Humour is the thing that connects and reflects all of humanity; and I'm really looking forward to immersing myself in the wit and wisdom of these amazing women, and bringing their voices to the attention of a wider public." Entries for the prizes was up 26% since last year, clearly lockdown was bringing out the funny side of people. The CWIP Prize was founded by actress, author and stand up comedian Helen Lederer in 2019, aiming to heighten the exposure for women in comedy writing. She said: "Who knew that lockdown could offer such a broad sweep of satire, witty storytelling, and yes, we dare say, blatant laughs. This year's entries are mind blowing in their differences as they are united in wit and feistiness. "We never needed wit on the page more and these authors were the calvary. The increase of both published and unpublished entries proved that there are so many talented, witty writers out there simply bursting to be read." Martha Ashby, Judge for the CWIP Unpublished Novel Prize added: "The longlist demonstrated that we can find humour in almost any situation and across the generations. "What united them all was a sense of fun, originality and a certain je ne sais quoi that proved irresistible to the panel." The winner of the published prize will be given a £3000 from the Author's Licensing and Collecting Society, with the unpublished winner getting a publishing contract along with a £5000 advance from HarperFiction.