Me And My Sisters: Sinead Moriarty

Sinéad Moriarty wants to make you cry. Before you run away – she wants to make you laugh as well. Author of the hugely popular Baby Trail series, her books deal with big themes of real life struggle and strife, but also the redemptive power of relationships, both family and friends. Her most recent (and seventh) novel is Me and My Sisters, a story of three sisters who have made very different choices in life - and what happens when their lives get turned upside down.

Born and raised in Dublin, Sinéad grew up around writing. Her mother, Mary, is a writer of children’s history books.  As a young child this was an inspiration Sinéad. “I knew from an early age that I wanted to be a writer”. However, it didn’t happen straight away. She spent much of her twenties working in Paris and London as a trade journalist; not her dream job she admits, but one which gave her plenty of practice and discipline in crafting words, “Although it wasn't remotely glamorous, I was writing 2,000 word features every week”.

With the perspiration out of the way, her thirties saw more room for inspiration. Sinéad’s creative impulses were put on hold for a time but the urge to write something of her own never quite went away. What made her ditch the trade writing to begin the first novel? “The catalyst to writing The Baby Trail was actually turning thirty. I decided that if I was going to write this book that I always felt was in me, it was time to knuckle down and get on with it”. Since then she hasn’t looked back, becoming a bestselling author not just in Ireland but in many other countries too – often with endearingly translated titles. The Baby Trail is published in Denmark as Projekt Baby, in Italian as Baby-a-Porter, and in Hungarian as Babablues!

Unafraid to lift the lid on difficult and often hidden topics like illness, infertility, anorexia and family fallouts, Sinéad understands that sharing an experience – finding that you’re not alone – can be a big help. Dark topics are covered with a deceptively slight hand; witty characterisation and fizzy dialogue lighten the mood while still bringing tough tales into the open. Sinéad feels this fits very much within an Irish tradition and mindset, “I think my writing is very 'Irish' in that I use humour, despite dealing with dark subject matter. I think it’s a very Irish thing to be able to mix comedy and tragedy.”

She is keen for readers to identify with the people in the book and their dilemmas. She says, “What I try to do with each book is to choose a topic that I feel passionately about and then start researching. The subjects that interest me tend to be universal themes, things that affect everyone, difficulties that can be hard to overcome, a crisis that deeply affects a family.....  things that I believe everyone will be able to relate to. My goal with each book is to make my readers laugh and cry. If I can achieve that, then I am truly happy.”

Readers’ responses are very important for her. Facebook, twitter and other types of social media can be useful tools for authors to gauge what readers think of their work. Sinéad’s readers aren’t shy in coming forward and she gets comments from all over the world. She says “my readers are really good about getting in touch which is honestly the most wonderful and gratifying part of the job. I was initially resistant to Facebook, but I have come around to it now and I love it! It's so immediate and interactive. I also get a lot of e-mails via my website which is lovely. I've had women from Somalia to New Zealand send me feedback and I appreciate every one. You can never have too much feedback, it’s invaluable”.

Naturally compared to authors like Marian Keyes, what other Irish writers does she admire? “Maeve Binchy was always a hero to me, because when I was growing up she was the first Irish women writer I had seen, to have success on a global scale. And she never seemed to change; she always remained the same lovely person. I admire lots of Irish writers, from Marian Keyes to Pat McCabe to Sebastian Barry. I think we should be incredibly proud of our rich crop of writers and story-tellers.”

Sinéad’s stories fit confidently within this Irish narrative tradition, which at its best has the ability to extract universal resonance from resolutely particular, even local, contexts and characters. The sisters in Me and My Sisters are not always likeable and they may make questionable decisions, but their imperfect, messy lives draw readers in and keep them hooked. This is the magical key to believable fiction and goes a long way to explain why Sinéad Moriarty is currently riding the crest of Irish popular writing. It just goes to show, the hard work pays off.

(c) Caitriona Devery August 2011

Find out more about Sinead's last book:

Piecing it All Together with Sinéad Moriarty