Lorcan Woods, one of the RSAs in Trinity Halls is publishing the first novel in a trilogy, Madame-Deliver us from Evil. Below he tells The University Times about his book, and how he came to write it.
When did you realise you wanted to write?
I didn’t grew up writing intentionally. I grew up escaping into my thoughts and fantasies when I was young. This helped me to cope with the boring world I found myself in. Then, when I was ten my form tutor in England at the time awarded me a gold star for my english essay which I had written earlier that week. For three weeks consecutively I won the class essay competition.
That got me started in writing, especially when my tutor told me, “Lorcan you have a great imagination, you should write more.” Ok, I never won another Gold star, but I finally found a hobby I was passionate about. There was no stopping me after that. I also have sister’s that are artisitc. Especially Helen my youngest sister, who is an accomplished painter and poet in her own right.
A familiar face to many Trinity Hall residents
How has your life so far influenced your writing?
My life has obviously influenced my writing alot. Living in England and moving to Ireland at 14 was an emotional upheaval at the time, and this is why I can write such descriptive emotions in my stories, as I draw from those past emotions which I felt at the time. I felt like I had been raped at the time loosing 14 years of my life to England and leaving all my friends and life behind, only to start again. Then spending the next 14 years in Ireland to try and make up for this loss. So putting pen to paper throughout this transitional period in my life helped me enormously. I learnt to escape into the world of literature, my characters, their lives and lose myself in the story I was trying to tell at the time. I still do this when I need to have a break from my daily routine.
Where do you find it easiest to write?
Believe it or not I find it easiest writing early in the morning or late at night after doing my shifts as an RSA, here at Trinity Hall. I do have a routine. When the college holidays come I capitalise on the this and spend my time working on new characters, as their are usually no students disturbing me with broken key cards, blocked showers, or fire alarms caused by burnt pizzas. I also have my annual holidays where I can develop story lines on a beach, or in the holiday apartment. But I am lucky having homes in Switzerland and Spain to avail of when I need inspiration.
Why did you decide to publish your own book?
It was difficult getting a publisher, so I decided to put my hard earned savings into producing my own work. Previously every publisher rejected my own work and I was at a loss as to why. Then I followed this path, and learnt from my editior that my grammar structure was wrong, and that if you so much as missed a full stop the publisher you send your work too would bin it. They have thousands to choose from, so your standards must be high and an editor is a must. I also learnt patience while publishing my own work. I am under no pressure with time scales, I can do it at my own pace. I had control over the cover of the book which I designed myself and the trailer that accompanies my website, was inspired by my own ideas.
I was offered a web designer to work with attatched to my publishing company, but because I had control over this I chose my friend Danny instead from Barakaldo in Spain. I think he has done an amazing job. All the several thousand euros it took to produce part one of my trilogy has been worth it. I now have my dream, I have a book published, and yes it was worth all the pain and effort to eventually do it.
Do you have any advice for up-and-coming writers?
The advice to any up-and-coming writer is choose the path you want to take that suits you. I got tired of playing the waiting game, and hated rejection. But equally self-publication is a risk. Unless you get a good editor and make sure all the editing and grammar corrections are perfect, then you will never become a writer. I know some editors in the world of journalism who use other editors to edit their own work. So anybody out our there sending pieces of work away, make sure a professional editor has looked over your work, and also proof read it. It’s worth the money.
What type of book is Madame – Deliver us from Evil?
Part one of my trilogy, Madame – Deliver us from Evil is set in the 1940’s and fiftie’s, in Dublin, Ireland. It is a story that will suit all ages, if you are not confined to reading books by a particular author who only writes for a particular market, eg ski-fi novels, or horror novels. I am trying to capture the market whose readership includes those readers who are open-minded about the novels they read. Mine has a Church theme, but that is it. There are a lot of various issues which arise within these novels, that will stimulate enough interest from both males and females in reading the story of Madame, until the end of this trilogy.
What inspired you to write this novel?
During my working life I had always encountered stories about the Church in Ireland and what it was like when the priests ruled this country of ours. I was inspired to write Madame after realising I had enough fictional and non-fictional stories to write a couple of similar themed books based on those inital true stories of hardship told to me privately.
Is there any character in the trilogy that you found particularly hard to part with?
I found it hard to say goodbye to Nathan, one of the main characters in the book. There is a lot of myself in this character, especially in how Nathan see things and deal with situations. He is strong on the outside and yet he is kind hearted within. He expresses himself through his actions, and is not afraid to speak his mind. Yes, definately alot like me, so maybe I havent quite said goodbye to him, I think he’s still about somewhere waiting to return.
Is there any aspect of Madame – Deliver us from Evil that you’ve based on your own personal experience?
There is the point in the story when Nathan finds the old place where he use to live, and he experiences flash backs and the old memories he once had come flooding back to him. This actually happened to me last year while visiting Chester recently and my old homestead after 31 years. I was stuck in Switzerland during the ash cloud incident. To get back to Ireland I ended up having to take a flight to Manchester, only to find myself then travelling to Chester before travelling on to Hollyhead to take the boat to Dublin. Whilst in Chester, I decided to go on a memory trip to pass a few hours, so this scene in the story where Nathan gets some flash backs of his childhood, actually was re-written after of my own situation last year.
The cover art of Woods' debut novel
What do you hope your readers can take away from Madame – Deliver us from Evil?
I hope readers will read Madame and learn to appreciate their own, current situation in life. That they appreciate also the hard times their parents dealt with under a regime that was plauged with
faults. That also some values are learnt from reading about the characters, and that readers learn that true friends and family are the foundations for having a successful life, not just money or qualifications.
What has been the best response so far to the novel?
The best response to this novel was my actress friend Maria who read the original Madame fourteen years ago, and recently the newly edited version. Maria, who now makes a good living in America making commercials, recently said to me on the phone:
”I’m so proud that everybody now will get to know the amazing Lorcan who I’ve known as a personal friend for years, as an equally amazing Author,”
Yes, this was actually said, I have the tear stained handkerchief, to prove it!
Where will Madame – Deliver us from Evil be on sale?
Madame – Deliver us from Evil will be on sale online only: http://www.choicepublishing.ie/index_files/lorcanwoods.htm That’s my book!
Now, its possible that you can pre-order my book! Which will be great as the more pre-orders I get the better chance I have of having it go straight into Easons for the general public to see and buy it. So please support my campaign to send this link to all avid facebook readers alike, stick it on your web page, and get them to buy a copy today. It will go online with Amazon from April 20th onwards, and people who pre-order it now will recieve their copies just after Easter. So spread the word!
Are you working on any new projects?
I am working on a new novel about a campus situated in south Dublin, and all the activities and mishaps that would naturally occur at such a place. It will come out Easter of next year 2012. It is purely fictional and any similarities to any other campus is purely co-incidental.
Best story from Halls this year so far?
The best story in the Halls this year was the guest who was signed in by a student in House 89, he came over, naked to reception at 2 o’clock in the morning, with a foreign girl and explained he was answering the apartment door to the girl standing next to him, when suddenly it closed behind him. I asked him his name he told me ‘Oh! my name is ”Dick! Then the irrate girl started to tell me it was true in a spanish accent, I asked her for her name and she replied ”Fanny” well I never laughed so much in a long time! Embarrassed, I let them both back in the room, after seeking permission from the resisdent via phone.
