Earlier this year, in May in fact, I got the chance to read Clodagh Murphy’s hugely enjoyable debut novel and after that, I got to ask Clodagh some questions! It’s taken me a while to get this up (I was aiming for the paperback release of her new book Girl In A Spin but it’s been delayed) so here it is, and we’ll hopefully be reviewing her new book soon!

1. Tell us about your debut novel The Disengagement Ring.

The Disengagement Ring is about a girl whose family decide to interfere when she gets engaged. Kate O’Neill’s family can’t stand her boyfriend, Brian, so when she decides to marry him, they think she’s making a big mistake. Rather than accepting it and hoping for the best, they decide to take action and try to get her to call it off. They throw in Will Sargent, the unrequited love of Kate’s life, as a diversion, and Will takes Kate to Tuscany for the summer to cook for Walking Wounded, the band he manages. There are high-maintenance celebs and sexy rock stars, and the book unashamedly celebrates the good things in life – family, friendship, romance, beautiful food and lots of sunshine, even in Ireland (well, it is fiction).

2. What can you tell us about your second book Girl In A Spin?

Girl in a Spin is a romantic comedy set in London about a party girl, a Conservative Party leader, and a spin doctor. Jenny Hannigan is a rootless party girl, who craves a life of domestic bliss. She thinks she’s found her perfect match in Richard Allam, the Leader of the Conservative Party. But Jenny isn’t exactly perfect PM’s wife material, and Richard’s spin doctor, Dev Tennant, has his work cut out trying to keep the door closed on all the skeletons in Jenny’s closet in the run-up to the election. There’s also Richard’s ex-wife Julia, who may or may not want him back. But essentially it’s Jenny’s story and it’s about a girl who hasn’t had a very happy beginning in life, but is determined to find her happy ending.

3. The Disengagement Ring has quite a controversial plot-line, where did the idea come from?

Can I say from my head? Really it comes from daydreaming, thinking ‘what if?’ It takes a very common situation – a girl going out with someone her family dislike – and takes it a step further by asking what if the family actually decided to do something about it? Rather than bitching about Brian among themselves and putting up with it, which is what usually happens, Kate’s family take a more proactive approach and make a deliberate decision to interfere and try to save her from making a disastrous mistake. It’s tough love.

4. Kate and Will are the main characters in your debut novel, but I thought your book was also heavily influenced by family life and the O’Neill’s were all incredibly tight-knit, where did the influence come from for the O’Neill clan?

I’m a very family-oriented person and I’m close to my family, so I suppose that inspired me to write about family life – not that my family are anything like the O’Neills! But the idea of a close-knit family who are very involved in each other’s lives probably comes from my own experience, and also from the fact that I enjoy stories about families myself. A family is like a microcosm of society – you have a diverse group of characters, all ages, male and female, some related by blood, some not, and there’s great scope for writing about the dynamics of different relationships. As well as all the separate personalities, the family as an entity is almost like a character in itself. It has a life and an identity of its own, and it was fun to write about that.

5. How did your publishing deal come about?

I’d finished The Disengagement Ring and was sending it out to agents when I joined an online writers’ group. One of the people I met there was the author Claire Allan, who introduced me to her agent - writers are such lovely people! I submitted the novel to Claire’s agent, Ger Nichol, and luckily for me she fell in love with it and took me on. That was in October and just before Christmas I got a two-book deal with Hodder. It was a wonderful Christmas present!

6. Who are some of your favourite authors/books?

It’s so hard to pick favourites! I’m a big Jane Austen fan, and keep going back to her books. Growing up I was a huge fan of Jilly Cooper and devoured everything she wrote - Rivals is still one of my favourite books. I like Nick Hornby, Lionel Shriver, some crime writers like Elizabeth George and Lindsey Davis, and recently I loved One Day by David Nicholls, and The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff. I also loved the Twilight series (apart from Breaking Dawn), The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, … the list is endless really. I’m also addicted to cookbooks, and consider them bedtime reading – though someone once said to me it was like curling up with the rules of the road! (He was wrong – it’s not like that at all.) I love writers like Nigel Slater, Tamasin Day-Lewis and Nigella Lawson who write really evocatively about food. One of my all-time favourite books is Nigel Slater’s memoir, Toast.

7. What’s the best thing about being a published author?

It’s literally a dream come true, and seeing my books in shops is a real thrill. But without a doubt the best thing for me is when readers say they loved my book or when it gets a really good review. I’m a terrible applause junkie, but it really is the best feeling in the world.

8. What’s your normal writing day like?

I don’t really have a normal writing day. I still work full-time, though I’ve reduced to a four-day week, so it’s mostly evenings and weekends. I’m not very disciplined, so it’s quite erratic and I don’t have any particular routine – I just try and fit it in wherever I can. I’m more of a night owl than an early bird, so I tend to work late into the night a lot of the time. I drink lots of strong coffee when I’m working flat out on something.

9. Finally, what advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Write a book that you would love to read – don’t waste time trying to second-guess the market and don’t try to be like someone else. If you aim to be the next Marian Keyes or whoever, the most you can hope for is second best, because Marian Keyes will always be the best Marian Keyes.

I would also strongly advise writers to hook up with other writers – join writing groups, go online and check out writers’ forums and blogs, join Twitter. Having a community of like-minded people can be a great source of encouragement, support and inspiration, as well as practical advice – and it makes the whole business of being a writer a lot more fun when you have others to share it with.

Thanks Clodagh!

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