The idea for this book came about during the debate around Ireland’s gay marriage referendum. I was sitting in the pub with my friend Colin, who was decrying the state of gay fiction at the time, and wondering where all the happy stories were. It seemed as if LGBTQ characters had been relegated back to the sidelines after briefly being cool, or as if the mainstream was only interested in tales of gay misery, with difficult coming out stories, the …
Category: Children’s
While I was writing my novel, my long suffering agent Harriet was subject to many anguished emails and phone calls about how long I was taking to finish. I would …
Squeeeak … Thwop … Thwop… whoop … whoop … whoop … Dwooooooerp! … Dwooooooerp! Just some of the sounds that you might hear if you were deep underwater, far out …
Gardening has been a big part of my life for as long as I can remember. My dad is very passionateabout gardening and growing his own food. I learned everything …
Scout’s Best Day Ever began life as an idea for a simple rhyming book about dogs for very young children. Over time it morphed into another story about a little …
When I was a kid, there was a henna plant outside my grandmother’s apartment. It was one of my favourite things in the world, because every once in a while, …
Christmas 2020 promises to be one like no other. Most of us will be at home. There’ll be less visiting but more home fires; less cocktails in bars but more …
2020 was due to be a momentous year for children’s literature in Ireland. Not only is it the year of publication for the latest books by many beloved children’s writers …
In October ’93 I was spending a few days in Dingle after the madness of the Children’s Book Festival and I took one of the dolphin boats out to see …
My life has always revolved around bookshops. My earlier memories are of my mum bringing us into our local indie to spend our paper 5 punt National Book Tokens and …
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