Women have found their voice

The bestselling author on the boom in writing by Irish women, and on telling stories in a compelling way

1 Away,

Your latest novel, The Women Who Ran

is the story of how two women come to terms with the shocking truths about the men they’ve loved by embarking on a life-altering adventure. Do your characters mirror the lives of contemporary Irish women?

I hope they do. Ireland has changed considerably as a country over the last 50 years and I think how we look at ourselves as a people and how we have embraced that change has been very positive.

2 Women authors from Ireland have been winning major awards. What has led to this flowering?

In the last 20 years, women have found their voice. The changes in the country have made women more confident that their own experiences are worth talking about. Irish people — men and women — are very open, great listeners as well as great talkers, and we enjoy hearing other people’s stories. It’s a source of immense pride to me that women from such a small country are doing so well on the world stage.

3 Who are the contemporary Irish women writers who must be read?

Young literary fiction writers like Sally Rooney and Anna Burns have distinctive voices, while crime writers like Liz Nugent and Jo Spain are doing well at home and abroad. Sarah Breen and Emer McLysaght are brilliant comedic writers and their novels have been huge bestsellers in Ireland. Cecelia Ahern is another brilliant young writer whose novels have been made into Hollywood movies.

4 Has the emergence of independent publishers made it easier for new voices to get published?

I hope so, but independent publishers are competing against the big corporations, which makes it difficult for them both to publish exciting new voices and stay profitable. However, it’s important for writers to write from their hearts. Good editors in good publishing houses are always looking for exciting new writers.

5 What are the dominant themes in novels by contemporary Irish women writers?

The majority of novels by women deal with relationships. My own books often deal with an event that puts a stress on the main characters and how they cope with it. Many of us have written about the struggle to meet all the expectations of us as women. Most women writers also try to reflect the world around them and that’s why the world that our characters inhabit has changed from an inwardlooking society to a more outwardly focused one. 50 years ago themes would have centred around a male, rural society, now we write about a more multicultural and urban one.