Micheál Ó Conghaile was born in 1962.  A prolific and talented writer, he has published poetry, short stories, a novel, three plays, and a novella, and has also done some translation work.  In 1997 the Irish American Cultural Institute awarded Micheál The Butler Literary Award. The same year his second collection of short stories An Fear a Phléasc, (The Man Who Exploded), was published and received much critical acclaim. In 1998 he was elected to Aosdána. His first novel, Sna Fir, (Among Men), published in 1999, was shortlisted for The Irish Times Literature Awards 2001.  His works have been translated into various languages, including Romanian, Croatian, Albanian, Slovenian, German, Polish, Macedonian and English. His first play Cúigear Chonamara was staged at An Taibhdhearc Theatre, Galway in October 2003 and was awarded the Stewart Parker/BBC Ulster Award, an Oireachtas Award. His latest play, Go dTaga do Ríocht, was produced at An Taibhdhearc in Galway in July 2008 as part of the Galway Arts Festival