We launched Seaborne in style at the Druid Mick Lally Theatre in Galway on Tuesday. Huge thanks to launcher Edel Coffey, my gorgeous editor Aoife K. Walsh, Marketing & Publicity Manager at New Island Des Doyle, all who came out to set sail with Anne, and to Manuela Moser and all the Cúirt team.
And I was on RTÉ Radio’s ARENA last night with lovely Seán Rocks. You can listen back here.
New Island Books Acquires Nuala O’Connor’s Sensational New Novel, SEABORNE, publishing April 2024.
New Island Books (Dublin) is thrilled to announce the acquisition of Nuala O’Connor’s new novel, SEABORNE. Aoife K. Walsh, commissioning editor at New Island, acquired English -language, Ireland, UK and Commonwealth rights from Gráinne Fox at United Talent Agency (New York). SEABORNE will be published by New Island in April 2024.
About:
After the huge success of her 2021 novel, Nora: A Love Story of Nora Barnacle and James Joyce (Irish bestseller, Vogue and New York Times recommended, One Dublin One Book), Nuala O’Connor’s sixth novel is her most ambitious yet. In crisp, shimmering prose, she conjures a completely unexpected portrayal of Anne Bonny, giving us so much more than just the 18th-century, Irish-born pirate of lore. In the hands of one of Ireland’s most brilliant fiction writers, Bonny is a young woman of privilege who is anything but comfortable, hell-bent on a voyage of self-realisation with or without the consent of those around her. Novelty-seeking, contrary, stubborn and bisexual, she is also neurodivergent, brave, and capable of deep and enduring love.
Records show that Anne Bonny spent all of two months actually being a pirate. SEABORNE is the thrilling and sensuous imagining of the loss, frustration and desires that steer this lonely daughter of a plantation owner towards elopement, two marriages, two pregnancies, violence, trial for piracy, and legendary status.
Comments:
Commenting on the acquisition, Nuala O’Connor says, ‘It’s a pleasure to once again publish with New Island – my sixth volume with them – they’ve always been great champions of mine and they take such warm, meticulous care with the books. I know the team will safely steer SEABORNE, my tribute to pirate Anne Bonny, into reader’s hands.’
New Island commissioning editor Aoife K. Walsh said, ‘Everyone at New Island Books is truly delighted to be working with the master storyteller Nuala. Obviously, we were hooked at the first mention of pirates but soon we were utterly captivated by Nuala’s rich, complex and sensual portrayal of the oft-mythologised Anne Bonny. As an independent Irish publisher, it feels right to be publishing this Irish origin story and we can’t wait for today’s readers (wherever they may be) to meet this fiercely independent, queer, neurodivergent, brave and passionate 18th-century pirate.’
NUALA O’CONNOR is a novelist, short story writer and poet, and lives in Co. Galway with her family. She is the author of five previous novels, including Nora (2021) and six short story collections. She has won many prizes for her short fiction including Short Story of the Year at the 2022 Irish Book Awards, the Francis MacManus Award, and the James Joyce Quarterly Fiction Contest. Her work has also been nominated for numerous prizes including the Edge Hill Short Story Prize, the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award, the Irish Book Awards Novel of the Year and the International Dublin Literary Award.
For further information contact Des Doyle, Marketing and Publicity Manager, des.doyle@newisland.ie
Shortlisted! My dementia story *This Small Giddy Life* from the New Island Books anthology A Little Unsteadily Into Light is up for the writing.ie Story of the Year at the An Post Irish Book Awards 2022. We had a lovely shortlisters’ event at the GPO last night. This story is meaningful to me as I took elements of my mother’s dementia to fictionalise. She’s still with us, and doing well, TG.
Voting is open now, see all shortlistees below: Vote here.
Thanks to editors Jan Carson & Jane Lugea and all at New Island & Vanessa of Writing.ie. This is my fifth Book Awards shortlisting, maybe this year I’ll take something home other than memories of a great, chat-filled, glammy night. The big event is the 23rd November and I can’t wait!
I’m genuinely delighted that NORA has been chosen as the One Dublin One Book for 2022. Big thanks to Dublin Libraries, Dublin City Council, and the stellar team at New Island. I’m looking forward to April and all the events we’ll hold to celebrate Nora Barnacle and James Joyce. More here.
I will be talking about NORA, with Belfast writer Maureen Boyle, at the John Hewitt Summer School at the Marketplace Theatre, Armagh, 13:30 IST, Wednesday 28 July 2021. This event will stream too. More here.
NORA and I will be doing several events for Bloomsday 2021.
Ahead of Bloomsday I was interviewed by Chiara Liberio for Radio Dublino on 90.3FM. The piece is here at 16 minutes in.
For Bloomsday, Elisabetta D’Erme interviews me for Il Piccolo, the newspaper in Trieste, Italy, that Joyce wrote for, about Joyce, Nora, and my trip to Trieste. Link here.
13th June, 6pm IST: I will be reading for the Cercle littéraire irlandais and Irish Embassy in Paris. More here.
14th June, 10pm IST: I will in conversation with Kerri Maher on Instagram at 5pm EST/10pm IST. Kerri’s book about Sylvia Beach appears in 2022.
15th June, 5pm IST/6pm ECT: I will be discussing NORA with the Irish Embassy of Belgium Book Club.
* 16th June, Bloomsday *
3.15pm IST: I’ll be talking about Bloomsday on the Afternoon Show on BBC Radio Scotland.
6pm IST: I am taking part in the James Joyce Centre in Dublin’s annual Bloomsday flagship event for Ulysses: Readings and Songs which runs on Facebook Live from 6pm.
7pm IST/2pm ET: I will be discussing life writing and NORA with the University of Notre Dame & the Kylemore Book Club. More here.
7pm IST, RTÉ 1 television: I feature on Nationwide with Anne Cassin. We go to Galway city and explore Nora and James Joyce’s haunts there. We also go to Kennys book shop. You can watch the piece on the RTE Player.
7.30pm IST: I speak about NORA with the Consulate General of Ireland in Atlanta, Georgia, as part of their Bloomsday ‘In Praise of Women’ celebration. Watch the video here. My bit starts at 25 mins.
I am interviewed by founding editor & publisher of the The Stinging Fly literary magazine, Declan Meade, for The Stinging Fly podcast. It is available now here.
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17th June: I’ll be on the Wexford-based Red Books podcast talking with Álanna Hammel about NORA, James Joyce, and writing bio-fiction. Link to follow!
17th June, 7pm Berlin/6pm Ireland: I will be reading from and discussing NORA with Melanie Neumann of the Embassy of Ireland in Berlin. Sign up here.
Thanks a mill to Eibhear Walshe for a fab review of NORA on Saturday’s Brendan O’Connor show on RTÉ Radio 1. Listen here. (Review starts about 10 minutes in.)
The panel also discusses Julia Parry’s The Shadowy Third which I reviewed for Books Ireland magazine. An excellent read, one of my books of the year, for sure. My review of that is here.
You can listen to me talking about NORA to Seán Rocks on Arena here now. It’s a Cúirt Literature Festival special and I am the first guest on so no slooshing through the programme required!
My Cúirt event is on Friday 23rd April at 5.30pm, when I speak with the glorious Galway girl Elaine Feeney. We filmed at Ashford Castle. Book for free or pay-what-you want here.
