Orna Ross: Short bio

Orna Ross is an award-winning Irish novelist and poet and founder and co-director of the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi).

An international bestseller, her writing awards include the Goethe Grand Prize for Historical Fiction and the Gold Literary Titan award for poetry, and she has been named one of the Top 100 People in Publishing for her work with ALLi.

Orna Ross: Medium Bio

Orna Ross (born Aine McCarthy, 1960) is an award-winning Irish novelist and poet. An international bestseller, her writing awards include the Goethe Grand Prize for Historical Fiction and the Gold Literary Titan award for poetry.

A strong educational background, and a desire to help other authors achieve their creative potential in writing and in publishing, led her to found the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi), the professional association for self-publishing authors,

Ross is a passionate promoter of creative writing and publishing as forms of artistic expression, as personal development tools, and as a viable business option for authors. “One of the rising stars in the indie world”, (The Guardian) she has repeatedly been named one of the Top 100 People in Publishing by The Bookseller, the organ of the British publishing industry, for her work with ALLi.

As a novelist she writes mostly historical fiction, often cross-generational, with an Irish setting. She also writes poetry and non-fiction guides for authors.

She was born and raised in Wexford, in the south-east of Ireland, and now lives in St Leonard's on Sea, in the south-east of England, within working reach of London.

Her motto is: “When in doubt, be braver.”

Orna Ross: Long Bio

The work of this bestselling and award-winning Irish author, with a strong educational background–“one of the rising stars in the indie world” (The Guardian)–is defined by her desire to empower other authors to achieve their creative potential — in writing, in publishing, and in life.

Orna Ross’s writing achievements have gone hand in hand with a career in media, academia and publishing. With a Bachelor's degree in English Literature and a Master’s Degree in Women’s Studies, she has previously worked as a freelance journalist, creative writing tutor, literary agent, and lecturer in culture and creativity studies at her alma mater, University College Dublin (UCD).

During her time at UCD, Ross devised the “Creative and Imaginative Practice” course that later formed the basis of her Go Creative! books and podcast. She has taught creativity and creativism in a great variety of settings, from university lecture theaters to community halls, from publishing conferences to online webinars, and to people in every life situation, from asylum seeking to immigration.

Ross has always supported other writers in their progress, whether in her capacity as a lecturer at UCD, or as head of the non-profit association, the Alliance for Independent Authors (ALLi), which she founded in 2012.

As a novelist she writes mostly historical fiction, often cross-generational, with an Irish setting. She also writes poetry and non-fiction guides for authors. Her publishing has had two distinct phases: first with third-party publishers, then as a self-published author.

She published non-fiction guides for women with Attic Press in Dublin (Bodymatters for Women, 1989; Get Up & Go: A Travel Guide For Women, 1992) and fiction with Penguin Books (Lover’s Hollow, 2006; A Dance in Time 2008). After a cancer diagnosis and subsequent move to London from Dublin, Ross made a break from the world of traditional publishing, taking her rights back from Penguin to self-publish her novels. She has described this as “the best move of her publishing life.”

Her first novel has now developed into a trilogy: The Irish Trilogy incorporating I: After the Rising (2012); II: Before the Fall (2013); and III: In the Hour (forthcoming).

She has published two further novels, Blue Mercy (2013) and Her Secret Rose (2015) and collaborated with six other female writers to create a book box set: Outside the Box: Women Writing Women (2014), which featured Blue Mercy.

Orna is now working on expanding her novel Her Secret Rose (2015) on Maud Gonne and WB Yeats into a seven book series. She is currently working on the first book in that series, A Life Before which is due to release in April 2025.

In addition to her fiction, she has written and edited non-fiction guides for writers and published a number of poetry books. (See the publications list below to find a full list of all of Orna's titles).

She also runs a popular blog and podcast for the Alliance of Independent Authors': The Self-Publishing Advice Blog and an annual online writers' conference since 2014.

In addition to Ross’s writing, she also leads the Alliance for Independent Authors (ALLi). Ross launched ALLi in 2012 as a not-for-profit organisation that seeks to advocate for self-publishing authors’ rights, and help develop the self-publishing sector.

In her role as head of ALLi, Ross and her team have advised many authors and other organizations on independent publishing, including the BBC on publishing costs for independent authors.

Publications List

FICTION

Gonne-Yeats Series

• A Life Before
• The Holy Tree
• Her Secret Rose

The Irish Trilogy:

• After The Rising
• Before The Fall
• In The Hour

Standalone Titles:

• Blue Mercy

POETRY

Standalone

• Crowd of Stars

Inspirational Poetry:

• First Flush
• Keepers
• Allowing Now

12 Poems to Inspire: Gift Books

• Bright Star
• Night Light As It Rises
• The Light of Love
• Circle of Life
• The Milky Ways

NON-FICTION

Go Creative!

• Beyond the Law of Attraction
• F-R-E-E-Writing Notebook
• Creative Planning Workbook for Authors & Poets
• Monthly Mapping for Authors & Poets
• Quarterly Review & Forecast for Authors & Poets