OUR
WRITERS MEAN BUSINESS OUR
WRITERS MEAN BUSINESS 
How did you get started in your writing?
I wrote my first words out of desperation. I used to be an actress
and our theatre couldn't find any plays with decent parts for women so I
modestly decided to write my own. I wrote six stage plays before moving
into television writing and then novels.
What was the last book you bought
The Avoca Cafe Cookbook - again probably out of desperation. I've
also just started Zadie Smith's White Teeth - years behind everyone else,
but worth the wait.
What are your desert Island Books?
Any book by Anne Tyler, or preferably all of them. I am in complete
awe of her. The Amateur Marriage is probably my favorite. I would also bring
The Pale Gold of Alaska, a wonderful book of short stories by Irish writer
Eilis Ni Dhuibhne. And maybe one of Delia Smith's cookbooks, although my
chances of cooking anything out of it are very slim.
Heroes?
Martin Waddell, Shirley Hughes and JK Rowling for their fabulous
children's books. Having young children, I probably read more children's
fiction than adult these days. In the non-literary world, Bob Geldorf can
do no wrong as far as I'm concerned, although his own book about his youth
Is That It? was good too.
Tell us about your latest book?
My Fabulous Divorce is about Jackie and Henry, love's
young dream two years ago, but now at each other's throats in a vicious
divorce. Jackie is set to get married again - if only she can get rid of
Henry first.
And what's in the pipeline?
I've just finished a novel about a bride-to-be who discovers that
her groom has hightailed it the night before the wedding. To add insult
to injury, his credit card shows up two days later in the South of France.
Where do you get your ideas from?
I'm never lucky enough to be struck by inspiration whilst strolling
down the street. It's a case of sitting down and working it out. With women's
fiction it's not so much about coming up with something startlingly original,
but finding a different point of view.
Why did you approach the Darley Anderson Agency?
Actually the Agency approached me, which was flattering for a first
time author. I met with Darley when he was in Dublin in 1999 and we've been
together ever since, so to speak.
What advice do you have for people hoping to find their first publisher?
Don't get too hung up on publishers and agents before you've written
the book. It will still have to be written whether or not you get a publishing
deal. So pour your energy into the writing first, and the rest will follow.
October 2006