13 December 2014

Author Q&A Session #11: With Sheila O'Flanagan

Welcome,
Who haven't heard or read Sheila O'Flanagan's name or books. This best-selling author surely knows how to put a smile on her readers face with her sweet yet sometimes heart-breaking love stories. So without wasting a minute, let's get candid with Sheila about life, choices and writing.

Read the review of If You Were Me



Me: Hello and welcome to my blog, Sheila. Congratulations on your new book, If You Were Me. Please tell us briefly about the story behind If You Were Me.

 Sheila:The story is told in the first person by Carlotta, a successful businesswoman who goes to Seville for a meeting and bumps into Luke, whom she'd last seen when they were both teenagers. They'd gone on one date together and then he and his family disappeared. Carlotta never knew why. Now she's engaged to be married to an eye surgeon, but meeting Luke has made her wonder what her life would have been like if he hadn't vanished without a trace. Quite suddenly she's questioning herself and the decisions she's made. The novel looks at how she resolves those questions and how woemn work at juggling their personal and their professional lives.

Me: What inspired you to pen down this beautiful, soul-touching novel, If You Were Me.


 Sheila: I wanted to write about someone who thought she knew what she wanted from life, and felt that she was in the right place for her, but who suddenly realised that perhaps she wasn't. I was also writing about unresolved things in our past, and how they affect us now.

Me: You've written 22 novels till this date. How will you describe your journey
so far as an author? Was it a joy ride or a bumpy ride or a mixture of both?
 
Sheila: Being an author is a joy, no question. Getting a book into print is always a bumpy ride, both creatively and practically. There are days when the story isn't developing the way you'd like, or you can't quite get inside the character's head and you have to work really hard to overcome that, but it's very satisfying when you do. I try to learn from each book I've written so that the next one is better than the last. There have been lots of changes in publishing over the last number of years which have been both good and bad for authors, but for me the important thing is to write the story I want to write and hope that as many people as possible get to read it.

Me: Well among all of your books, tell us one trait of protagonists that intrigues you the most?
 
Sheila: Actually it's the thought processes of the protagonists that intrigues me. Although there's obviously a little of me in all of them, they're also quite different to me and react to things from their own viewpoint. So when someone does something that I wouldn't, I'm always amazed by it! At the same time I want for my female characters to find and tap into their inner strength.

Me: All your books act as a getaway- more like a medium of escape, for the readers into a glorious world. Do you research extensively for this purpose?
 
Sheila: I like the detail to be as authentic as possible. A large part of If You Were Me is set in Seville, Spain, and so I stayed there for a few days to get the feel of the city (which is far lovlier than I could possibly describe). I went to California to do research for All For You, part of which is set in San Francisco and Monterey. I also research the careers of the characters if I need to. In Too Good to be True, Carey is an air traffic controller, so I spent a few days in the tower at Dublin airport to research that. I also went on an archaeological dig to research for Someone Special.

Me: In Wikipedia, it says: Sheila is a competitive Badminton player in Ireland and has served on the Irish Sports Council Board! Please tell us more about your sports background?

 
Sheila: I took up badminton when I was twenty, as a way to keep fit. I play for a Dublin club in league and cup competitions, and have even represented Ireland in a veterans event!! The badminton court is the one place where I can block out the voices of my characters and I need to be able to do that from time to time. I did some voluntary work for Ireland's badminton association and as a result of that was asked to serve on the board of our national Sports Council. That was a great privelege and I had some input into the way we help people to develop their talents, both recreationally and as potential professional athletes.

Me: Tell us about your one single inspiration that made you a best-selling writer in all over the world.
 
Sheila: My readers! Before I was a writer I was a reader, and I try to write books that keep the readers interested.

Me: How you get away from your stress and your busy writing days?
 
Sheila: The badminton court is one place to get away from it all. I also have a home in Spain where I edit my books. Because it's in a different country, I can relax in a way I don't in Ireland.

Me: What is next up on your writing sleeves? Please tell us briefly about it.
 
Sheila: I'm working on a children's book! This is a big departure for me but I had an idea for a story and I decided I had to write it. I didn't know if it would be published or not, but last week I heard that Hodder books want to publish it in 2016. So that's very exciting for me. My next adult book, My Mother's Secret, will be published in the summer of next year.

Me: Thank You Sheila for sparing time to have this interview session with me. I can only wish you luck in all your future endeavors.
 
Sheila: You're very welcome.
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Sheila's Bio:


A Dubliner all her life. Sheila's parents owned a grocery shop in the Iveagh Markets, in the Liberties area of the city and she guesses city blood runs through her veins.
As a child she enjoyed reading and telling stories, and everyone thought that her future career would have something to do with books and literature. But though she applied for a job in the library all of the job offers she got were in commerce.
She turned down lots of them before her mother accepted one for her (she was on holiday at the time). It was in the Central Bank of Ireland and that’s how her career in financial services began.
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