INTERVIEW WITH ANN O’LOUGHLIN
I understand you ‘love to write about ordinary people often dealing with extraordinary circumstances and women who, when they band together, can do the impossible.’ Can you share how you demonstrated this in Secrets of An Irish House while providing a little burst on what the novel is about?
This is the story of New Yorkers Katie and Maggie who are thrown together and end up at Kilcashel House beside the sea on the East Coast of Ireland. We first meet them after Katie's partner Harry is killed while riding the subway. Harry was also Maggie's ex-husband. He leaves the two women with a mountain of debt and they are forced to sell their Manhattan apartments. In his will, Harry leaves the women, Kilcashel House. With nothing to lose they move to Ireland and we follow their trials and tribulations as they set up home in the run-down Irish mansion. Soon they begin to rely on the local women. who introduce them to the delights of sea swimming and help them set up a bakery and café. They don’t know why Harry left them the house, but slowly and surely the secrets of Kilcashel House are revealed. Maggie and Katie learn the true meaning of friendship and the true meaning of home.
Was there a single moment, incidence or thought that inspired you to write Secrets of An Irish House?
I had just returned from New York where I walked the High Line, the old railway line that is now a garden. As I walked it the first scene in the book came to me, where Katie and Maggie are in one of those buildings that back onto the High Line. They are in the office of an attorney listening to Harry's will and getting the news that Harry has left them Kilcashel House. I couldn't get that scene out of my head and decided to write it down and the novel just took off from there.
Please tell us about the wonderful old house of Kilcashel and its Irish location. How is it different from the place Katie and Maggie originally came from in the US?
Kilcashel House outside Kilcashel village is a run-down mansion that Harry had begun to renovate in secret. There is a winding avenue, a rhododendron grove, and the Irish Sea practically at the back door. There is a gate lodge where Anna lives. To get to the sea, Katie and Maggie walk through the gardens and across the beach. Kilacashel House can be seen from the sea, surrounded by the farmland the women now own. It couldn't be anything more different than where they lived in Manhattan, but that is their challenge to take on everything in a new country, a new community, and a house surrounded by nature.
What is the importance of the Drawing Room Café?
The Drawing Room Café is where the locals come for the wonderful New York bagels baked by Katie and delicious cakes and biscuits with a huge dollop of gossip on the side. It is here where Maggie, sitting on her velvet chair beside the fireplace tells stories and listens to others. She is almost an agony aunt to everybody in the community. The Drawing Room Café becomes the hub of the community and particularly for the women.
Describe in three words each Katie, Maggie and Anna and which woman, if any, do you identify with the most?
Katie is SWEET and GENTLE but made of STEEL underneath.
Maggie is BRASH and OUTSPOKEN and SOFT as butter underneath.
Anna is OPINIONATED, STUBBORN and a SWEETHEART underneath the gruff exterior.
I think there are parts of each woman that I adore, but Anna is my favourite. She is the character who changes the most. She had the weight of the world on her shoulders but she bears it well.
How does learning the true meaning of friendship, a major theme in this novel, help Katie and Maggie?
The novel follows the trials and tribulations of Katie and Maggie as they navigate this whole thing of living together, the partner and the ex-wife, and also this whole thing of being in a new country on the other side of the world; part of a new community and trying to fit in. They also set up a business, and one of the things they do is join the local women who go swimming in the Irish Sea every day. In other words, Katie and Maggie find their tribe. The novel is about finding your tribe, which I think is what we all wish for.
Community spirit plays an important part in Secrets of An Irish House. How so?
What are we without our community? Katie and Maggie begin living at Kilcashel House, set up a business there, the bakery and cafe. They rely on the community, not only for the business but also to help them navigate this whole new world. It is through the friendship of the others in the community that they learn about themselves.
There are a lot of emotional moments in this novel. Which scene did you find the hardest to write and why?
There are many emotional scenes in the book and some of them were very difficult to write. I'm not going to give away any of the plot, but you become invested in the characters; they're almost like friends. As a result, there are times when things are not going right for them and yes, you feel the tears rising!
Tell us about your writing and publishing history. How you started, what or who inspired you to become a writer? Has the journey been a challenging/rewarding one?
I've always wanted to be a writer and I feel I diverted into journalism for quite a long time. My debut novel The Ballroom Cafe was a roaring success and translated into 11 languages and I was very lucky from that point on. Secrets of an Irish House is my sixth novel and I feel very lucky that all novels have been successful with a worldwide readership.
It took me a long time to get an agent and I think, as a result, I realised very quickly that one must be resilient to be a writer. There are lots of twists and turns on the road to publication, but it is very rewarding.
Describe your writing process and what part do you like and dislike the most? Are you a pantser, plotter or both? How long does it usually take you to write a novel?
This is going to sound strange, but I follow my characters' lead. They start talking in my head ( I said it would sound odd!) and I just have to write. I wish I was one of those authors who planned everything out, but it is not the way I work. Some days the writing comes easy and other times it doesn’t, but the important thing is to keep at it. When the characters are happy, I am flying it. A novel from start to finish can take anything from nine to twelve months.
What four novels have you read this year that you highly recommend and why?
1. How To Build a Boat by Elaine Feeny. Longlisted for the Booker prize and I can see why. Beautifully written, captivating and uplifting.
2. Normal Rules Don’t Apply by Kate Atkinson. Something different and fun to read.
3. Captain Correlli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres. Every few years I return to this book. When I read it I am transported.
4. Stay Close by Harlan Coben. I love his fast paced crime novels.
If you could meet two famous authors from the past and have dinner with them, who would you choose and what two questions would you ask them?
Jane Austen. Would you like the movie adaptations and, presuming she said yes, which was her favourite?
Maeve Binchy. Can we talk plots, story and dialogue please? Who was your favourite author?
What is your most favourite thing to do when you are not writing?
There is nothing I love more than writing, but when I am not writing I like to be at home in my garden with my two dogs, Labradors. They dig holes, but never where I want them and they try to rearrange the flower beds but somehow everything grows. If it can't survive the dogs, then it does not have a place in my garden. All that and travel. Far off places like India and China and in between soaking up all Europe has to offer.
Are you working on a new project and, if so, are you able to share a little about it?
I am working on my next novel and no, I can’t share anything about it yet. It is still in the very early stages, but I think readers will love it.
Many thanks to Ann for being my author guest today! Pick up a copy of her novel at your favourite book retailer as you won’t want to miss this exceptional read. ☘️
