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Category Archives: Random
National Campaign for the Arts ad
I’m in an ad! It’s to promote the National Campaign for the Arts in Ireland.
Back in the Gutter
For seven years, from 1996 to 2003, I worked as a bookseller with Waterstone’s. The first 3 years in Dublin, the fourth in head office in London, and then three more back in Dublin. Then I left, after THE THIEF OF TIME and THE CONGRESS OF ROUGH RIDERS were published, and became a full time writer.
Two of the people I worked with there, Bob and Ann, set up their own bookshop a year ago, the Gutter Bookshop in Temple Bar, and my sister works there as a bookseller. But this coming weekend, both Bob and Sinead are out of the country at weddings and they had no one to help out in store.
So this Saturday and Sunday I will be a working man once again, going back to my roots as a bookseller. I buy all my books at the Gutter Bookshop and highly recommend it. So drop in this weekend if you’re in Dublin, say hello and buy a few books. I only shouted at a few difficult customers back in my Waterstone’s days and promise to be on my best behaviour.
It’s on Cow’s Lane in Temple Bar.
Scrabble
I like when literary festivals come up with novel ideas that are a little bit different. This year’s Dublin Writers Festival brought Scrabble to the table when Fiona McCann, an Irish Times journalist, took on the writers in a game. The idea was that each writer would contribute one word each. Ian McEwan started proceedings with ‘Beep’, I finished it with ‘Write’ and in between Antony Beevor, David Mitchell, Anne Enright, Yann Martel and others each put a word on the board. Final score: Writers 243, Fiona 214. Sorry Fiona! There’s a very enjoyable piece about this in today’s Irish Times.
Why don’t more festivals come up with fun ideas like this?
Facebook Part 2
So enamoured was I by Random House’s special fan page on Facebook (see post below) that I have finally taken the plunge and set up my own facebook site which I will try to keep updated. I’m not sure how you link to it but if you want to be my friend I imagine it’s easy enough to search Facebook for my name.
I am safely home in Dublin after a rather trying, planes-cancelled-left-right-and-centre, return trip from Montreal. Good to be home.
My publishers at Random House have set up a Facebook page for people interested in my books. I’ve never had a facebook account so am slowly getting used to how it works. I don’t maintain the page myself but I will check in on it every few days to see people’s comments (if there are any) and respond to some of them. At the moment it’s just bare bones but soon there’ll be things about all the books on there, including some information about Noah Barleywater.
You can see the page and sign up as a friend here. Be nice! Play friendly!
Zac, 15 weeks
As everything is quiet and nothing is worth putting on the blog, here’s a picture of our dog Zac, who’s 15 weeks old today, looking distinctly grumpy.
And one where he doesn’t look quite so grumpy.
Gutter Bookshop
With Anthony Horowitz at the Gutter Bookshop
The Gutter Bookshop
Zac
I’m 38 years old and I’ve never owned a dog in my life. Until three days ago, that is, when Zac Connolly-Boyne entered our lives. A ruby Cavalier King Charles spaniel, he’s only 8 weeks old and not given to too much at the moment other than eating, pooping and sleeping, but is a welcome addition to our home. Of course, one of the things about working from home is that I’m in charge through the day which is a challenge but I’m enjoying it so far.
