Posted on September 24, 2018September 24, 2018 in Blog, Books, Literature, Writing

A Writer Unwritten

There’s a great line from one of my favourite songs (Pink Rabbits by The National) which goes:

‘I was a television version of a person with a broken heart’

The one time I should have felt most like a ‘proper writer’, during my book launch, I felt like a television version of an author. Or what I thought an author should be. In reality, I felt adrift; like a boat that had slipped its moorings. Writing was the one thing that had kept me tethered and yet, while my book was published, I wasn’t being a writer (or at least, not in the sense that I’m familiar with); I was being a spokesperson for my writing, which is a completely different skill set. I never thought I would say this, but it’s official folks – not writing is worse than writing!

Being a published author, promoting a book you have written (past tense) is weird for all sorts of reasons. It’s a time of contradictions, where you feel like the centre of attention one minute, but oddly alone the next. Not many people are fortunate enough to have this experience, so not many people get how strange it can feel. Yet it’s only in the last few weeks, since I’ve returned to my WIP that I’ve figured why. Writing is a verb – if you’re not doing it, then it starts to feel like a distant thing. I felt like I was masquerading as a writer, because I wasn’t actually writing and hadn’t written for months. Don’t misunderstand – I’m not one of those ‘write everyday’ evangelicals (although I probably am still writing in my head, if not on screen or paper). But I feel more like a writer when I’m frowning at my laptop, still wearing my pyjamas at lunchtime and eating cheerios out of a box (although that’s not the author photo I went for in the end).

Maybe, at the back of my mind, it was the fear that I wouldn’t be able to do it again. Yeah, sure, I wrote this one, but what if there’s nothing left? I know other authors feel this way from time to time – regardless of how many books they’ve written. Because writing a book is never a sure thing. We all have those hopeful starts; manuscripts that crash and burn before hitting the 20k words mark. Potentialities simply abandoned. There is no real formula – either you’re feeling it or you’re not and that’s not exactly the most reliable career path. Because once you’re published, you begin to see writing as a viable career, but only if you can keep writing. Eek!

It’s the same with art. I haven’t painted anything in ages and it’s almost as if that channel gets blocked through lack of use. So if I don’t have dried paint under my fingernails, it feels very far away from me. And I’m not making a judgement or a generalisation here – this is a very personal realisation came as a surprise to me too. But I feel like book promotion is so divorced from story creation, that I almost became a different person. And in a way, I think that’s essential. You have to be a bit harder, a bit more calculating and a lot less sensitive. You need to be cool with seeing your face shared across the internet and nurture the ability to find eleventy-thousand different ways to say the same thing (i.e. please buy my book because it’s actually quite good – for realsies).

To craft a story, you need to be a dreamer. To sell one, you need to be a realist. And I’m not sure either personality trait sits comfortably with the other. I assume other authors feel some or all of these things. I know there are many on tight deadlines who don’t have the luxury of not writing while promoting and I take my hat off to those authors. Promoting and writing at the same time is the ultimate Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde act, which I have yet to master!

For now, I’m back in my happy place… mumbling ideas to myself in the shower, researching, scribbling notes, getting to know new characters and wrangling my plot into some kind of coherent structure. This is where the magic happens and I’m lucky I’ve got time and space to figure it all out and most importantly, enjoy it. It’s the best part – the part you won’t be able to explain fully in words when people ask, ‘What inspired you to write this book?,’ or ‘Where did the idea come from?’ You’ll just remember that year (or two, or three) in your life when you immersed yourself in a world of your own making and you’ll find it hard to believe that other people are now exploring it – as if it always existed, as if it wasn’t a bloody miracle that it ever got written!

So, to all the new writers or unpublished writers out there, wondering if they should even call themselves ‘real writers’ before they’ve got a publishing deal, hear this:

If you’re writing, you’re a writer!

The rest is icing, fur coat, what have you. It is the action of writing that makes you a writer. But crucially, it is the act of publishing that makes you read 😉

* THE STORY COLLECTOR *

Book Depository ~ Dubray Books ~ Foyles ~ O’Mahony’s ~ Waterstones ~ WH Smith

https://read.amazon.co.uk/kp/card?asin=B07D3TD965&preview=inline&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_.U-PBbHC6KF7N&tag=wwweviegaugha-21

Posted on June 10, 2018March 5, 2020 in Blog, Books, Life, Literature, Writing

My Writing Life

I read somewhere that you don’t become a writer; you discover you are one, and I suppose that’s what happened to me.

People always talk about their love of books as a child, but I also had a love of stories and storytelling. So much so, that I often made up my own and told them – seanchaí style – to anyone who would listen! My goal was to entertain and storytelling became my party piece. But when it came to reading, well, books were my medicine.

I spent a lot of time in and out of hospital as a child and people would always bring me books, mostly fairytales. I would read voraciously when stuck in bed. The Grimm brothers helped me escape from the confines of a hospital ward, along with Johnathan Swift whose crazy stories of magical lands and strange wonders opened up a whole new world for me. Later, my older sister’s Edgar Allen Poe collection saw me through countless infections and fascinated me with his gothic tales. Yet, as soon as my health improved, I would abandon my books for the outside world, making up for lost time. I was a fair-weather friend to books, but they were still there waiting for me, whenever life got hard.

IMG_20161109_095101 — I’m not sure this little girl, surrounded by books, would’ve believed she’d be an author one day. I think there’s a part of me that still doesn’t believe it!

It wasn’t until much later that I even dared to think of writing a book. Again, it was one of those ‘stuck’ moments in life and I needed a new story to help me find a way out. I rediscovered the library, my love of books and an escape route. I’m not sure at what point I decided, ‘Hey, I could write one of these!’ but I certainly remember the moment when I realised it wasn’t as easy as it looked. I felt like a fool for even trying. I wasn’t a writer! It was a silly dream. And so I buried my first attempt deep in my hard drive and tried to forget about that part of myself. I kept reading though – if I couldn’t be a writer, I was going to be a reader.

It worked, for a while, but it was like I’d been bitten by a bug (a not very talented, but persistent bug!) and before I knew it, I was writing another novel. I submitted it to ONE publisher before I even finished it and they requested the full manuscript. I couldn’t believe it. “It’s happening!” I thought to myself, “It’s really happening!” Then came the rejection letter – which wasn’t surprising, seeing as I had submitted just 50k words of a first draft. The editor said that, while it was well written, the story wasn’t strong enough. Well, if that’s not an excuse to wallow in self-pity for a good two years, I don’t know what is! But I kept reading, exploring new genres and different voices.

So yet again, I had pushed aside this crazy dream and told myself I’d have more chance of winning the lottery.

I think it’s a rite of passage for writers, this tug of war between heart and mind. You try to talk yourself out of it; acutely aware of how irrational this longing is. Everyone tells you there’s no money it, you’ll never get published and besides, the novel is dead! But you keep climbing into your ivory tower anyway, because you simply have to tell your story. Even if no-one listens, you have to tell it because if you don’t, no-one else will.

So when do you really start feeling like a writer? I can’t say. It’s an unusual process; you spend all this time wondering when you will become a ‘real writer’, but just like the Velveteen Rabbit, the realness happens without you noticing it. You work away, writing stories, writing articles, submitting manuscripts, waiting endlessly and then one day you look around you and realise, I am a real writer! It’s happened. I think seeing my photo in the Irish Times with the caption Evie Gaughan, Author was what really clenched it! I mean, who am I to argue with the Irish Times!!

And then came the greatest endorsement that all writers hope for, dream of, but never really believe will happen. Yet just like love, it happens when you least expect it and have almost given up on it. In a happy twist of luck and happenstance, fellow writer Thomas Hocknell (The Life Assistance Agency) pointed me in the direction of Urbane Publications, and I found my perfect fit. I submitted my manuscript and on Saint Patrick’s Day, merry with wine, I received the email I’d been waiting for – “We’d like to publish your book”. It was really happening.

It IS really happening.

Even now, in the midst of my third book launch, I think there’s a part of me that still can’t accept that this is real, that it’s really happening. People ask me how I feel and I’m sure I reply with something coherent, but really it’s a jumble of feelings and impossible to put into words (ironically!). I’m just trying to do the work and give this book the best launch that I can. Another surreal moment has been the endorsement of one of my favourite authors, Niamh Boyce (Her Kind). Having her words on my cover, praising my story, is something (again) I could only have dreamed of. Another welcome surprise to me is how generous and supportive authors are of each other – something I hope to pay forward.

But it’s probably the same for most authors, a lot of the time you just can’t see the wood for the trees. There are lots of hidden moments; a contract to be signed but you can’t talk about it, a new cover that you can’t reveal yet, a new story you don’t want to jinx, so you keep it to yourself. And so you never really know when to celebrate and when things finally do start happening, you’re already in promotion mode. So maybe it will be another few months before all of this sinks in and I can give myself a congratulatory pat on the back. And a holiday! Or sit down in a quiet, still place and let myself feel this in my bones, remember what it was like when I started out and see how far I’ve come. Till then, thanks to everyone who has supported me, my squad, my tribe 🙂 It would be a far lonelier journey without you x

The Story Collector is available to purchase here –

Hive * Foyles * WH Smith * Amazon *

Posted on April 10, 2018April 10, 2018 in Blog, Books, Literature, Writing

Patience Is A Virtue

There are many skills that an author needs to learn in this business of pub, patience being the most important. Patience with yourself, as the magical story in your head makes its way stumbling and lurching onto the page with all the grace and skill of a toddler. Patience with the world when it doesn’t immediately recognise your brilliance. Patience with agents and publishers while you await their response to your submission. And now, for me, a new kind of patience while I wait for my book to be released.

The advance reader copies have been sent out and happily, joyously, wondrously, the feedback is good 🙂 Editors and publications have been contacted, copy sent in. The blog tour has been arranged. And as we speak, my book (along with those of my fellow Urbanites) are being showcased at The London Book Fair. THE LONDON BOOK FAIR!

As Jean-Jacques Rousseau once wrote, patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet, and I couldn’t agree more! Over the years, there have been times when I wondered if being so patient was my way of deluding myself. Now I feel the opposite; expecting things to just fall into your lap is delusional! So to all of the up and coming writers out there, being patient, you’re on the right road – just keep going. And one day, you too can spend copious hours photographing your book when you should probably be writing your next one 😉

The Story Collector will be published on 14th June 2018, but you can pre-order your copy here.

A beautiful and mysterious historical romance from the author of The Heirloom and The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris.

Thornwood Village, 1910. Anna, a young farm girl, volunteers to help an intriguing American visitor, Harold Griffin-Krauss, translate ‘fairy stories’ from Irish to English.

But all is not as it seems and Anna soon finds herself at the heart of a mystery that threatens the future of her community and her very way of life…..

Captivated by the land of myth, folklore and superstition, Sarah Harper finds herself walking in the footsteps of Harold and Anna one hundred years later, unearthing dark secrets that both enchant and unnerve.

The Story Collector treads the intriguing line between the everyday and the otherworldly, the seen and the unseen. With a taste for the magical in everyday life, Evie Gaughan’s latest novel is full of ordinary characters with extraordinary tales to tell.

Posted on August 7, 2016 in Books, Writing

20 Questions ~ Chapter 2

book_nerd1 Well here we are again, same questions – different author! In the interest of full disclosure, I should say that our next author, Neal Doran and I go way back. We set up our own writing group together called The Inklings while he was working on his manuscript (something about rings?) and I had just found a publisher for my Narnia books… oh hang on, no that was somebody else 🙂

I’ll tell you what I do know about Neal, he might make a mean cup of tea, but never give him a multiple choice question, unless you want to see a grown man impersonating a duck in thunder. Mesdames et Messieurs, I give you the very entertaining, Neal Doran!

1. Hemingway famously said, “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” Where the hell do you find the motivation to stick at it?

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I’m not a writer who loves the mere act of writing, but I do hate the relentless dull prodding in the back of my head I get if I’m not doing it, so it’s the lesser of two irritants.

2. Which would you prefer: monetary success or literary acclaim?

I’d assume monetary success would entail lots of paying readers, so I’d take that over acclaim. I’d then use the cash to sweet-talk a few broadsheet journalists into maybe having a rethink on the literary merits of relatively tame sex jokes.

3. How do people typically respond when you say you’re a writer?

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I don’t usually tell people. I could pretend it’s so I can secretly observe human nature without people being on their guard, but it’s actually because I’ve learnt people will ask questions like ‘can you make a living doing that?’ or ‘how’s your latest book going?’ and there’s only so much elaborate fiction I can cope with making up…

4. Social Media – Love or hate?

Love and hate

5. What would you classify as a bad review?

To get all zen, I try to remember no review, good or bad, is intended for the benefit of the author, it’s for other readers. So as a reader, I’d say a bad review is one where, regardless of whether it’s one star or five stars, I can still get no idea of whether or not *I’d* like to read the book being discussed.

6. What’s the worst review you have ever given a book?

There was a book I read once that was written in such a style that I couldn’t help but hear it in my head being narrated by Alan Partridge (and it wasn’t the Partridge autobiography). I didn’t commit that to the internet though, just thought it in my head….

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7. Your publisher asks you to write a sequel to your very successful debut, but you never planned on writing one and you’ve left those characters behind. Do you…

(a) Write it and be glad ANYONE is asking you to write more books?

(b) Write it, but spend the whole time in an almighty huff about the whole affair, taking your anger out on your characters by killing them all off – swerving the possibility of a trilogy?

(c) Refuse to sell out and walk away with your integrity intact, but your bank balance in tatters?

I LOVE this question. It’s like a magazine personality test for authors…

A… No, B. No A, no C.

Definitely C.

(A.)

8. What book do you wish you’d written?

I have become so consumed by the fear I’m forgetting the one book that means more to me than anything else that my brain has entirely shut down the library. Now all that I can find to hand is an old copy of Reader’s Digest, so I’m going to have to say that. The Kids Say the Funniest Things page is quite good, though.

9. If you could ask your favourite author a question, what would it be?

Anne Tyler, even though everything you write is touching and genius and real, do you have trouble remembering what happens in any of your novels moments after you’ve finished them? Or is that just me?

10. Which is your favourite part of the publishing process?

Oof… The day something’s finally published.

11. What’s the biggest lie you’ve ever told a potential publisher?

It’s virtually finished.

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12. If money were no object, where would be your ideal place to write?

A cabin by a lake in a wood that is remote and isolated, yet also conveniently placed for major hospitals and online supermarket deliveries.

13. Do you think readers still value books in the same way?

Reading books seems to be valued more now than it has at other points in my life. Yet at the same time, no-one seems that willing to actually pay much for them…

14. What genre are your books and do you find genres restrictive?

Rom-com, chick-lit, even just trying to pick the right genres for them feels restrictive.

I like to think of books like mine as pop lit. And pop-lit, like pop music, can be beautifully light, yet serious, fun but still about the most heart-breaking times in your life. So that’s quite a nice category to be in.

Of course pop can also be tacky, annoying and meaningless, so it’s not all upside.

15. Do you have any unpublished books, buried at the bottom of the garden and doomed never to see the light of day?

A half-finished romantic-comedy-thriller about a driving instructor/part-time private eye which wasn’t romantic, comic or thrilling. Oh, and a Choose Your Own Adventure fighting fantasy novel I wrote when I was 12.

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16. What was your favourite childhood book?

I LOVED that Choose Your Own Adventure book…

17. Do you have any other hidden talents you’d like to brag about?

I make the best cup of tea in the world. And it’s not bragging if it’s true.

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18. Book Launches: All fur coat and no knickers or a valuable rite of passage?

I think fur coat and no knickers is a valuable rite of passage.

19. What did you dream about last night?

See above question.

20. What would you like your epitaph to be?

I thought he’d died years ago…

Neal is the author of two comic novels published by Carina UK, and the new quick-read box set Other Plans. He can be found on Twitter, usually when he’s not supposed to be, as @nealdoran and, when really bored, on Facebook. Say hello!

Evie Gaughan

Author of The Story Collector, The Heirloom & The Mysterious Bakery On Rue De Paris

Tag: Writer