Land of Dreams: A Novel (37 page)
Read Land of Dreams: A Novel Online
Authors: Kate Kerrigan
Lastly to my mother, Moira, for letting me read aloud my work to her every day and providing me with a seemingly endless supply of love and encouragement.
P.S. Insights, Interviews & More . . .*
A Conversation with Kate Kerrigan |  |
© by Niall Kerrigan
L
ONDON-REARED OF
I
RISH PARENTS
, Kate Kerrigan worked as a journalist in London before moving to Ireland in 1990. She is the author of several novels, including the Ellie Hogan trilogy:
Ellis Island
,
City of Hope
, and
Land of Dreams
. She is now a full-time writer and lives in County Mayo, Ireland, with her husband and sons.
www.katekerrigan.ie
Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at
hc.com
.
A Conversation with Kate Kerrigan
How do you come up with your ideas? Are they character or concept driven?
A bit of both. The concept comes first but then once the characters present themselves and start to develop depth the story becomes theirs and they drive the narrative absolutely.
What is it about historical fiction that interests you so much?
I am fascinated by how the differences in our historical circumstances shape who we are and how we behave, especially in the way this affects our emotional landscapes. I love drawing comparisons between how things were and how they are now and showing that while history may alter our circumstances, in the most real, important sense human beings never fundamentally change. For all the freedom and money history has given us women in the western world, are we any happier now than our grandmothers were?
Is the character of Ellie based on anyone you know?
Only in the sense that every writer is influenced by every person they have ever met. Ellie is her own person and she evolved and revealed herself to me as I wrote. In the early stages I wanted her to be a likable adventuress; a simple, loving—if rather stubborn—young woman. She grew and evolved and became a more complex creature, but in her heart she represents the human search for freedom and love that is, perhaps, at the very center of all my female characters.
How do you feel about saying goodbye to the character of Ellie?
I won’t say goodbye, although I doubt I will write about her again. I have told as much of her story as I feel I can. In my imagination and my heart, Ellie is still living where I leave her at the end of
Land of Dreams
.
What’s your favorite part of the writing process?
Starting and finishing: one week at either end. Finishing is best.
Describe a typical day as a writer.
On a good day, I go into my accountant’s office, work from 9 to 5 and get 1,500 words written—this is how I intend every working day to be. However most days, I go into my accountant’s office, work from 9 to 5 and get 500 words written and know it’s not enough!
Which authors inspire you?
People who write from the heart: Marian Keyes, Patrick McCabe, a lesser known but brilliant Irish writer called Frank Ronan. Probably the biggest influences over my lifetime as a reader and writer have been Agatha Christie for plot and P. G. Wodehouse for his vocabulary and use of language. For pleasure and relaxation I rarely read anything other than contemporary thrillers—David Baldacci is my current thrill!
Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?
Just write, write, write—don’t be discouraged and keep going. Writing is 1 percent talent and 99 percent hard work and tenacity. I found writing groups and courses fantastic in my prepublished days. It’s not always easy to motivate yourself and a good writing group can really give you the encouragement and support you need.
What do you hope readers will take away from your books?
Identification with the characters and at least one lesson they can relate to their own lives.
Can you tell us a little bit about your next novel?
Two Islands
is the story of a boy and a girl from remote islands off the west coast of Ireland who fall in love when they meet abroad. Set against the backdrop of World War Two, it’s the most intense novel I have written so far, yet the premise is a simple love story. I’m very excited about this one and hope to have it ready for publication in 2014.
Questions for Reading Group Discussion
1. Can you relate to Ellie’s character? Do you think that she is a strong female role model?
2. How has Ellie’s character developed throughout
Land of Dreams
and the trilogy as a whole?
3. Did you get a good sense of life in 1940s Hollywood?
4. Discuss Ellie’s handling of Suri’s situation and Japanese internment as a theme in the book.
5. Were you satisfied with the ending and the resolution of Ellie’s story overall?
6. Discuss the author’s writing style. Which passage in the book was the most memorable for you?
7. Did any of the secondary characters in this story stand out to you?
8. Discuss the mother–son relationship between Ellie and Leo.
9. If you could ask the author a question, what would it be?
10. Is this book similar to any other books you’ve read recently? Would you recommend
Land of Dreams
to other readers?
From Hollywood to County Mayo, Ireland . . .
W
E THINK WE ARE INFLUENCED
by Hollywood today, but for my mother’s generation, growing up during the 1940s, the influence of Hollywood was absolute. In Ballina, a small town on the windy west coast of Ireland, the small population could support only one drugstore—but there were two cinemas.
“There was nothing to do,” my mother tells me, “except go to the pictures.” She and her contemporaries went once a week, or twice if they could afford it, where they lived vicariously through the excitement of the movies and the glamour of the American Hollywood stars.
“Humphrey Bogart, Frank Sinatra, Clark Gable, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, Ronald Reagan—we were in love with all of them,” my mother says. “We went to the pictures so often that these actors were real to us. We saw them more often than we saw most of our own family who lived in the same county. We didn’t have cars in those days, so we would hire a taxi once a year to visit relations. I ‘met’ Bette Davis in the cinema more often than I saw my mother’s own sister, who lived in a neighboring town. In those days it was like fantasy and fiction were intertwined in our lives.”
And they were seldom as discerning about what they watched as we are today. “I saw every single film Doris Day ever made,” she says, astonished now that she sat through such “old-fashioned,” cheesy output. “We just watched everything that came out. Boys watched romance, girls watched cowboy films—it didn’t matter. It was the chance to escape from our lives for a few precious hours and we loved it. There was no other form of entertainment, so we were grateful for whatever Hollywood gave us.”
My mother’s Top Five Hollywood Films:
Casablanca
Singin’ in the Rain
Going My Way
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
East of Eden
It’s a Wonderful Life
To hear more from Kate’s mother about her love of Hollywood, you can go to Kate’s website, www.katekerrigan.ie, and check out the
Land of Dreams
page for a video interview.