Joseph O'Connor explained

Joseph O'Connor
Birth Date:1963 9, df=yes
Birth Place:Dublin, Ireland
Occupation:Novelist, journalist
Notableworks:Star of the Sea (2002)
Spouse:Anne-Marie Casey
Relatives:Sinéad O'Connor (sister)
Children:2

Joseph Victor O'Connor (born 20 September 1963) is an Irish novelist. His 2002 historical novel Star of the Sea was an international number one bestseller. Before success as an author, he was a journalist with the Sunday Tribune newspaper and Esquire magazine.[1] He is a regular contributor to Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) and a member of the Irish artists' association Aosdána.[2]

Early life

O'Connor is the eldest of five children and brother of singer Sinéad O'Connor. He is from the Glenageary area of south Dublin.[3] [4] His parents are Sean O'Connor, a structural engineer who later turned barrister, and Marie O'Connor.

He worked in Dún Laoghaire Shopping Centre selling fireplaces in the late 1980s.

Educated at Blackrock College, O'Connor graduated from University College Dublin with an M.A. in Anglo-Irish Literature. He did post-graduate work at Oxford University and received a second M.A. from Leeds Metropolitan University's Northern School of Film and Television in screenwriting. In the late 1980s, he worked for the British Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign; his second novel, Desperadoes, drew on his experiences in revolutionary Nicaragua.[5]

Career

O'Connor's novel Cowboys and Indians (1991) was on the shortlist for the Whitbread Prize.

On 10 February 1985 his mother was killed in a car accident.[6] The mother of his character Sweeney in The Salesman (1998) died in the same manner.

In 2002, he wrote the novel Star of the Sea, which The Economist listed as one of the top books of 2003. His 2010 novel, Ghost Light is loosely based on the life of the actress Maire O'Neill, born Mary "Molly" Allgood, and her relationship with the Irish playwright John Millington Synge. It was published by Harvill Secker of London in 2010.[7]

O'Connor was a Research Fellow at the New York Public Library and Visiting Professor of Creative Writing/Writer in Residence at Baruch College, the City University of New York.

In 2014, he was announced as the inaugural Frank McCourt Chair in Creative Writing at the University of Limerick, where he teaches on the MA in Creative Writing.[8]

He was a regular contributor to Drivetime, an evening news and current affairs programme on RTÉ Radio 1.[9]

O'Connor's Shadowplay, published in 2019, was shortlisted for the 2019 Costa Book Prize in the Novel category.

Personal life

O'Connor is married to television and film writer Anne-Marie Casey. They have two sons. He and his family have lived in London and Dublin, and occasionally resided in Manhattan during his work in New York City.

Selected publications

Stage plays

Awards and honours

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Read Ireland – Featured Authors . Readireland.ie . 21 May 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110519155837/http://readireland.ie/aotm/dec97.html . 19 May 2011 .
  2. News: O'Connor one of five new Aosdána members. The Irish Times. Irish Times Trust. 20 February 2020. 8 February 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120208181631/http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0405/1224293869275.html. live.
  3. Web site: Glenageary roots . Southcountydublin.forumforus.com . 4 May 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100325024850/http://southcountydublin.forumforus.com/Glenageary . 25 March 2010 .
  4. News: Ciarán Byrne . The late Eugene Lambert – neighbour and artist from south Dublin . . 27 February 2010 . 9 June 2012 . 23 October 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121023204028/http://www.independent.ie/national-news/wanderly-wagon-wizard-makes-final-journey-2082518.html . live .
  5. Web site: About Joseph O'Connor . Josephoconnorauthor.com . 20 September 1963 . 21 May 2011 . 13 July 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110713121054/http://www.josephoconnorauthor.com/about.html . live .
  6. Web site: Sinead's love of her 'devil' mum . Irish Independent . Brendan . O'Connor . 2007-06-17 . 25 December 2020.
  7. Web site: Ghost Light by Joseph O'Connor . Josephoconnorauthor.com . 21 May 2011 . 2 August 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200802130848/http://www.josephoconnorauthor.com/novel-ghost-light.html . live .
  8. News: Joseph O'Connor appointed to chair in creative writing at University of Limerick. 11 December 2015. Irish Times. 20 February 2014. 22 December 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151222104235/http://www.irishtimes.com/news/education/joseph-o-connor-appointed-to-chair-in-creative-writing-at-university-of-limerick-1.1697859. live.
  9. News: Reasons to be cheerful: Joe O'Connor sees good in the recession . Tribune.ie . 20 July 2008 . 4 May 2010 .
  10. Web site: Review of "Star of the Sea" . Mostlyfiction.com . 4 May 2010 . 12 March 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100312062219/http://www.mostlyfiction.com/history/oconnor.htm . live .
  11. Reviews:
  12. News: Walter Scott historical fiction shortlist announced. BBC News. 12 June 2011. 1 April 2011. 7 April 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110407155321/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-south-scotland-12932522. live.
  13. News: O'Connor to receive Irish PEN Award. 29 November 2011. RTÉ Ten. 29 November 2011. 30 November 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20111130223158/http://www.rte.ie/ten/2011/1129/oconnorj.html. live.
  14. News: Shadowplay: Eason Novel of the Year 2019 – Winner. 21 November 2019. irishbookawards. 21 November 2019. 10 August 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200810083624/https://www.irishbookawards.irish/nominee/shadowplay/. live.
  15. Web site: 2024-05-02 . Walter Scott Prize 2024 shortlist announced . 2024-05-10 . Books+Publishing.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Joseph O'Connor".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.