Irish fiction Archives

Isabella Pollexfen Varley: Artist and Aunt of WB Yeats

June 29, 2022June 3, 2022 by Orna Ross

One thing I love about writing historical fiction is doing the research. I often have to stop myself digging too … Read more

April 9, 2023May 30, 2022 by Orna Ross

If you don’t already know, my Yeats-Gonne book Her Secret Rose (first published in 2015) has morphed into a Yeats-Gonne … Read more

February 15, 2022December 23, 2021 by Orna Ross

In researching the prologue to my Yeats-Gonne series, which is told from the point of view of the fathers of … Read more

October 22, 2023October 13, 2021 by Orna Ross

Does Maud Gonne deserve a statue in Dublin? Some feminists believe so and want to see her recognized for her … Read more

February 15, 2022September 1, 2021 by Orna Ross

The After the Rising & Before the Fall blog tour begins today. For 10 days, 13 bloggers will be celebrating … Read more

February 15, 2022August 27, 2021 by Orna Ross

Each Friday, I publish an extract from my work in progress, currently Dancing in the Wind, based on a true … Read more

February 15, 2022August 3, 2021 by Orna Ross

“Poets should never marry,” Maud Gonne told WB Yeats shortly before she, without telling him, became engaged to another. “The … Read more

February 15, 2022July 23, 2021 by Orna Ross

The story opens in 1916. The world is at war, Irish freedom fighters have just staged an armed rebellion in … Read more

February 15, 2022July 9, 2021 by Orna Ross

The story opens in 1916. The world is at war, Irish freedom fighters have just staged an armed rebellion in … Read more

February 15, 2022July 8, 2021 by Orna Ross

The best poetry reading I ever attended took place at the Abbey Theatre in 1992. Reading this Irish Times article … Read more

February 15, 2022July 3, 2021 by Orna Ross

I am a member of the Yeats Society Sligo and horrified to hear from Director Susan O’Keeffe today that its future … Read more

February 15, 2022June 30, 2021 by Orna Ross

The Guardian recently pondered whether Joe Biden’s quoting of Yeats Easter Rising poem (“a terrible beauty is born) on his … Read more

February 15, 2022June 28, 2021 by Orna Ross

The Irish Times has put together a list of the best fiction about the war of independence, which was reaching … Read more

February 15, 2022June 18, 2021 by Orna Ross

The story opens in 1916. The world is at war, Irish freedom fighters have just staged an armed rebellion in … Read more

February 15, 2022June 7, 2021 by Orna Ross

John MacBride was a soldier in South Africa for a few years, fighting with the Boers (Dutch settlers) against the … Read more