Seamus Connolly
Who are your favourite Scottish writers?
My novels are crime thrillers, so I’m naturally drawn to the masters of their craft and love getting immersed in a book by McIlvanney, Ian Rankin, or Alan Parks.
Writings from Elisa Soaves, Ginger and Me and Kirkland Ciccone’s, Sadie Call the Polis have also been really enjoyable reads and highly recommended – funny and from a working-class background to which I can relate.
What is your favourite Scottish novel or short story and why?
There are too many to choose from, and they change constantly – usually the last good book I’ve read. As I’m currently working on a book of short stories, The Good Times by James Kelman is one I return to often. As always, Kelman captures the struggles and inner thoughts of lives brilliantly, so it can be a bit daunting to contemplate writing in a similar genre.
What piece of writing of yours are you most proud of?
My first book, Black is the Colour, was a labour of love and the one that was in my head for years, which had to be put down on paper. The sequel, Death Before Revenge, is the one I’m most proud of, as I’d like to think my writing has improved, and that this is reflected in the story and the characters.
What is your 274 Miles story about?
Being brought up in an Irish household and, no doubt, similar to families across the country, from a very young age, I remember us all coming together to say the Rosary. We would be kneeling, stationed, around the three-piece suite in the living room, and my mum would lead us off. I do remember being lost in the rhythm of the prayers and then being sidetracked within that rhythm itself onto other things, though I doubt that was what I was meant to be doing.
I used that as the starting point for Praying for an Intervention.
Tell us about your writing process.
Given it took me around 10 years to complete my first book, I would say it could be referred to as slow!
I tend to have the story ferment in my mind for a while, then plot it out on paper and begin the process of building the characters and how they are intertwined, ensuring that each has an input into the final outcome.
If you have one piece of writing advice, what would it be?
My debut novel was published when I was fifty, and very few of my friends or family were aware that I had written it until it was out there in the public domain. To say it was a surprise to most would be an understatement.
I wasn’t aware of anyone from my background, the West End of Paisley, who was a writer, or I hadn’t read any books about where I was growing up in the 1980s, especially about decisions made elsewhere that impacted communities such as mine.
From a young age, I was probably programmed to think that this wasn’t a world where I should be inhabiting and to just stay in my lane and continue to enjoy working for the Council.
Having now produced two books, I’m getting a wee bit more comfortable with believing that I am a writer, and the inbuilt thoughts that this is something you watched from afar are receding.
That’s a long way of saying, no matter your background or writing experience to stick at it and if you’re passionate about that story which keeps swirling around in your head, get it down on paper and see where it can take you.
What are you working on at the moment?
I’ve a third book to write in the Cal Lynch series, though I have been distracted (no doubt by Kelman) to work on a book of short stories which I’m hoping to publish shortly.
All are set in Scotland or Ireland and are a mixture of lived memories or built around characters that have come into my head. An extended version of Praying for an Intervention will also be included.
How can readers connect with you and read your work?
My two novels, Black is the Colour and Death Before Revenge, are set in Paisley/Glasgow in the 1980s. The story follows a lawyer, Cal Lynch, who returns to Scotland and is welcomed into Paisley’s West End as he seeks retribution for the murder of his father. Cal’s life is wrapped around this community and the turbulent era of Thatcherism and the challenges faced by families and individuals during this era – all of which are met head-on with humour, love, resilience, and, importantly, spirit.
Both are available on Amazon, in libraries, or any good bookstore.
Instagram: @seamusgconnolly
Bluesky: @seamusauthor.bsky.social