 Fiona Cassidy, a debut author from Galbally in Co. Tyrone, presents her first novel ‘Anyone for Seconds?’ at An Creagán Centre on Thursday 17th December. Fiona Cassidy (better known as Fionnuala McGoldrick) had been writing for about five years before she was offered a three book publishing deal by Poolbeg Press Ltd in Dublin. Fiona attributes a portion of her success to the fact that she attended creative writing classes in An Creagán Centre, outside Omagh, which gave her the encouragement and motivation she needed to strive to find a publisher.
“I have always enjoyed writing and when I heard about the classes which were being mentored by John Bradbury, a writer from Belfast, I decided to enroll in the hope that it might give me the push I needed to start submitting my work to publishers.” Fiona said. “It was a wonderful experience as not only was John a great teacher but the others whom I attended the classes with were good listeners and always full of useful suggestions and encouragement. I would advise anyone who is interested in writing or honing the skills they have to attend creative writing classes as not only do you meet people with similar aspirations to yourself but you can also pick up a lot of useful hints and tips from their experiences.”
Fiona will be doing a reading and book signing in An Creagán Centre on Thursday 17th December at 7.30pm. Come along and get a book signed by a local author and give your loved one the perfect Christmas present!
John Donaghy, Manager of An Creagán Centre, said ‘We are delighted that Fiona participated in our creative writing class and has now gone on to publish her debut novel ‘Anyone for Seconds?’ We congratulate Fiona on her achievement and wish her every success with her writing.’
Although a work of fiction, Fiona’s first novel, deals with issues that have presented themselves in her life, predominantly her experience of being a single mother, embarking on a relationship where her partner has children and starting a second family. "As a single parent for a number of years and being involved in complex family circumstances - where our household can fluctuate from five to seven to accommodate my partner Philip’s children - I know how challenging and difficult both situations can be.” Fiona explains. Fiona’s home is a very noisy, busy abode but a happy and fun-filled one nonetheless.
“I often wondered what way things would have worked out had the children been older when we first began going out together and thought it would be fun to explore that situation as I could see the scope for lots of humour and entertainment whilst tackling an issue which seems prevalent in our society with the disappearance of the ‘nuclear’ ‘2.4 kids’ family.”
Fiona is currently working on her second novel which is to be published next year.
Upcoming arts courses running in An Creagán Centre for the new year include Digital Photography, Salsa Dancing and Jewellery Making. Anyone who would like further information on the arts programme at An Creagán can contact the Arts officer on 028 8076 1112.
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