It was a sort of homecoming for Galway-native writer Michelle McDonagh last week as she savoured the atmosphere of Cuirt the week in which her debut novel was launched in her native city.
A lifetime of curiosity, a childhood of school essays and a career of empathetic and considered journalism had prepared her well for the craft of writing fiction, but her debut offering There’s Something I Have To tell You is mindblowingly brilliant, winning plaudits from authors across the globe, such as Jeanine Cummins, the author of the US bestseller American Dirt.
Set on the fictitious Galway farm at Glenbeg Farm, the gripping tale begins when the bodies of wealthy matriarch Ursula Kennedy and her farmer husband Jimmy are pulled from the slurry pit. Shock ricochets throughout the family and community. Everyone has questions, including the gardaí. Was this a tragic accident? Or is there more to it than meets the eye?
From that compelling start, you are carried through a pacy novel of family intrigue of twists and turns. You can tell that the author is well versed in the intricacies of Irish rural life and the obsession with lands and disputes — honed from many years on the reporter’s beat, first in the Galway Advertiser and later in the Connacht Tribune and in the Irish Times.
Did she have to dig deep into the criminal mindset to tell this story of deceit and envy?
“You do come across all kinds of people and stories as a journalist, but the most incredible and saddest stories I’ve heard have been from people I’ve known and met through my own life. Truth really is stranger than fiction,” she told me this week.
“We all read and hear about these tragedies that devastate local communities, how sometimes a row over a small amount of money in a will or a right of way on a piece of land can cause a feud that lasts through generations and in some cases, even leads to death.
“I’ve always been fascinated by the stories behind the headlines, behind the pieces of information that drip out in the aftermath of the event and in the court and inquest reports. Only the people who live through these events know what really went on behind closed doors.
“So, no I didn’t have to dig deep into the criminal mindset, but just into the mindset of ordinary, decent people who are pushed too far. Who knows what any of us would do in such a situation. My book has been described as rural noir, and psychological suspense because books have to fit into a specific genre these days, but really at heart, it’s a dark family drama.”
Such observational skills come with the territory of being a journalist on the beat.
Nosiness
“Yes, I’m such a people watcher, which can be quite distracting if I’m trying to work as I get caught up in listening to the conversations of complete strangers. My husband calls it nosiness, I call it a healthy curiosity,” she laughs.
“I’m always fascinated at how people can have such private phone conversations on a train, for example, oblivious to the fact that the whole carriage is listening to them. I like to take notes of the way people speak, particularly funny sayings. Even when I’m walking the dog, I’ll often stop to take a note on my phone of ideas that pop into my head.
“I’ve been writing as a journalist since I left the then University College Galway in 1994, but writing fiction is a whole other kettle of fish. The journalist in me comes in handy when I’m editing, but has to take a back seat when I’m writing as they are two very different crafts.
“It was always my dream to write a book, but I spent more time talking about it then ever actually writing anything. I’m thrilled to have the book out there now, but it still feels quite surreal. I thought it would seem real when I saw it on the shelves in the shops, but it still doesn’t.
“It was purely coincidental that my book launch happened to take place in Dubray on Shop Street during Cuirt, but it was lovely because there was such a great festival buzz around the city. I was only home for one night as I live in Cork now and had to get back for Cork World Books Fest, so I didn’t get to go to any events unfortunately. The launch was even better than I could ever have expected. Family travelled from the UK and all over Ireland and all my close friends and former colleagues from the Connacht Tribune were there to celebrate with me on the night.”
Writing fiction was a craft she honed early on in life.
“I was a very shy, sensitive child and found school really hard, but my best memories of primary school of those proud days when I was marched around to all the classes in the block to read out my latest essay, before being sent to the principal’s office to collect my reward which would have been a Spraoi or Sonas annual if it was around Christmas, or a plastic watch.
“It was my father, Seamus who nurtured my love of reading and writing from a very young age. He brought myself and my sister into the lovely old library in Galway city every Saturday morning as children, and often sat at the kitchen table helping me with my stories. He also had the house full of true crime books and murder mystery magazines which might be where the darkness if my own writing comes from.”
“My debut novel is dedicated to my late mother, Lucy, who was only 56 when she died from cancer. She was a beautiful person, loved by everybody who knew her, and she would have had my heart broken trying to decide what she was going to wear to the book launch.The theme of motherhood is quite strong in my novel, and I was extremely close to my mother who was, as I mention in the dedication ‘a Mammy through and through’.
Michelle is a true Galwegian with family links right across the city.
“Until around the age of 12, we lived in Rahylin Glebe in Ballybane and I have very fond memories of growing up there. We went to primary school in Mervue and then moved out to Knocknacarra and went to secondary school in Salerno.
“Galway will always be home to me, there’s nowhere in the world like it. My father was from Water Lane in Bohermore and his father was from Long Walk and his mother from the Claddagh so I’m a Galwegian at heart. I miss it so much, especially the sea and my family and close friends there, and I dream of moving back some day.
Michelle took a leave of absence from The Connacht Tribune for a year back in 2007 to move to Blarney where her husband is from to write a book.
“I’m still here although it’s taken me this long to get round to writing the book. I have three children aged 10, 12 and 14.
“For so many years, I neglected my writing and put family and work and everything else first. I had started to write a few books before over the years, but found I never had the time or headspace to finish anything.
Lockdown
“Just before the first lockdown, I decided it was now or never. My 50th birthday was looming, and I decided to take a step back from journalism and prioritise my fiction writing for once. I enrolled on a Faber Write Your First Novel course where I learnt all about the craft of writing, including most importantly for me, how to plot.
“In the thick of home schooling with my husband working from home, I used to drive to a nearby car park to get some peace and quiet to write. Once I gave my writing the time it needed, I actually finished my first book and was extremely fortunate to get an agent and a book deal quite quickly and to now have that book on the shelves.”
After sleeping (quite literally, I just turned up for exams ) through three years of my BA at UCG, I embarked on the then Higher Diploma in Applied Communications there which I loved. I got my first articles published while on the course and started freelancing for the Galway Advertiser straight out of college back in 1994 when Ronnie O’Gorman was kind enough to give me my start in journalism.
“I went from there to working for another wonderful editor and mentor, the late John Cunningham or JC as he was known to us all. I have such great memories of my days in the Tribune and the craic we had, and I’ve made such amazing lifelong friends out of it. JC really was the best boss you could ask for, and also a great friend and a shoulder to cry on if you ever needed one, which I often did. I have a photo of him in my office at home and I really miss meeting him for coffee in Galway when I go home.
“I had already started freelancing for The Irish Times when I moved to Cork and spent a few very hectic years here freelancing for all of the main Irish papers. After the birth of my first child, I gave up news reporting as I found it too stressful trying to balance it with motherhood, and I switched to features and health.
Has she a writing routine?
“I write around my children’s school hours so I try to get as much as possible done before I have to collect my two youngest at 2.30pm. I find the beginning and middle of a book can be tough going, especially the first draft, but I love the final third. It’s like freewheeling downhill at the way until you type The End. I have an office at home where I do most of my writing, but as a journalist, I’m used to writing anywhere, whether it’s in a cafe, on a train or in the car outside the stables while my daughters are riding their pony.
Has she any advice for aspiring novelists?
“I printed off some quotes from the English fantasy writer Neil Gaiman which are stuck to the wall around my desk, and which I find really inspirational. His advice is to sit down at the keyboard and write one word after the other until it’s done. It’s that easy, and that hard. It is, of course, a lot harder than it sounds, but it’s the only way.
Michelle has a two-book deal with Hachette Ireland.
“The first draft of book two is finished but there’s still a lot of work to do on it. It’s another dark family drama, set this time between Galway city and Connemara and moving between the current day back and the ’80s and ’90s. I don’t have a publication date for that one yet,” she adds.
There Is Something I Have To Tell You is on sale in all good bookshops. and online.
