Heather Aimee O'Neill is the author of the new novel The Irish Goodbye. She is a poet and a teacher, and is the assistant director of the Sackett Street Writers' Workshop. She lives in Brooklyn.
Q: What inspired you to write
The Irish Goodbye, and how did you create the Ryan family?
A: Like many writers, I was inspired by Toni Morrison’s advice, “If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.” I wanted to write about the world I come from, the people I know, and the topics that matter to me.
I love stories that explore the fault lines in families, and I wanted to examine how grief shapes the sisters as a unit but also as individuals.
The question that guided me as I created the Ryan family was: How is the tragedy of the past showing up in their lives right now? And, importantly, is there a way forward toward healing and forgiveness?
Q: The writer Lynn Steger Strong said of the book, “Lovingly rendered and acutely felt, The Irish Goodbye takes the reader into the aching, complicated nooks and crannies of a single family trying to find their way back to one another, even as none is sure they have hold of themselves.” What do you think of that description?
A: I’m deeply grateful to Lynn for this thoughtful and generous blurb, and I think she captured the story deftly. It’s not just about a family finding their way back to each other, but about three women finding their way back to themselves.
Q: How was the novel’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?
A: The title comes from a scene toward the end of the novel where the youngest sister, Maggie, is having a conversation with her nephew, James, and he misinterprets what an Irish goodbye actually means. I loved writing the scene because it marks a turn in the story where the sisters start to look forward rather than backward. And honestly, I’m a sucker for a good Irish goodbye!
Q: The novel is primarily set
on the eastern shore of Long Island--how important is setting to you in your
writing?
A: The setting was very important to me for several reasons. I grew up on Long Island, and though I don’t live there anymore, it’s in my bones. I love the landscape and the people, its beauty and grit.
The Ryans’ house is nicknamed “The Folly,” and it serves as a metaphor for the story. It’s an old, crumbing Victorian on the water that’s expensive to maintain and protect from the natural elements, but it’s also filled with love and history. It gives the family both a sense of rootedness and claustrophobia.
And then there’s the water which is always present—calming and beautiful, but also destructive. The setting was an important character to me from the beginning to the end of the novel.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I’m thrilled to have recently sold my next novel, Winter Island, to Henry Holt. The story follows three lives that collide in a high-stakes surrogacy and takes place on an old-money enclave off the coast of New York.
It explores all the topics I’m interested in: What makes a family? How does a home shape us? How do we find our voice and vision as artists? And what does it mean to love another person?
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: Just that I appreciate your curiosity, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to share the book with you. Please feel free to reach out through my website or on Instagram. I always love hearing from readers.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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