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"Mary Murphy, we need a cover page for your web site.
Give us a two-paragraph synopsis of your life. You know, a
quick overview, in your own words of course. You're Irish,
you're a writer, and you love telling stories. Just make it
condensed will you?”
I gulped. "Mmmm...How about one paragraph consisting
of 6000 words?"
Silence.
"Sure," I say in a jovial tone. "No problem.
I'll have it for you tomorrow."
I hang up the phone in a panic.
Writing a quick overview is an almost impossible task to
ask of prolifically verbose Irish people. For goodness sake,
'Ulysses' started off as a two-page essay.
"Can you believe it?" I ask aloud to the two dogs
at my feet. They want the story of
my life in 150 words!"
I begin.
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Photo: Heather Thomson
Alberni Valley Times -
April 2010 |
Once
upon a time a sixth child was born to a family in Wexford, Ireland. She was a happy person who was thrilled to have been
born into a musical family. This family sang Irish songs,
danced Irish dances, ate large quantities of roasted spuds
and drank a lot of tea.
(The phone rings)
It is 'them' again.
"Yes, Mary. I think you should mention in your paragraphs
that you have lived in Ireland, Canada and the US. You know,
to let people know that living in three countries has been
a great boost in your ability to relate to large cross sections
of people."
"Yes yes, I will mention that."
We hang up.
"Now where was I?" I say to my four fish.
...tea.....I love traditional Irish, Scottish and World folk
songs. I never tire of singing them and/or interpreting them
to suit my own style. My personal modus operandi for writing
suits the aforementioned genres to a T. (There is that tea
again.)
The Irish language is extraordinarily beguiling to me. Singing
certain songs in the Irish language not only fills my own
soul, but also opens non-Irish audiences up to something atypical.
Conversely, people with a Celtic background relate on an intrinsic
level. So it is a win win for everyone!
As a matter of fact, should you like to dive into the beautiful language that is Irish, all you need do is to learn Irish on Bitesize Irish Gaelic.
(Phone is ringing again.)
"Mary, it’s me. I think you might want to mention that your novel, ‘The Emerald Diaries – Secrets of An Irish Clan’ was picked up by the very first publisher you submitted it to. Be sure to put an obvious link on the side bar so people can go read about it. Ha ha read about it? Get it? Good thing I’m so clever. Mary? Still there? Yes, well, I know you hate it, but I think you might want to drop some names, or perhaps add a review or two. Would you like to hear my favorites?”
"Do I have a choice?" says I, rolling my eyes up
to the ceiling?
 "Good.
My personal favorite is the one from Performing Songwriter
Magazine that says, "Blessed with a honeyed crystalline
voice, Mary fuses traditional, contemporary and original to
create an uplifting synthesis."
You might prefer the stage introduction you got from Will
Millar, of the Irish Rovers. Remember? He said, "When
you sing, you are the personification and the heart and soul
of Ireland." Or that one from the House Of Stories in
Wexford, Ireland. "Between that voice and that hair,
Mary is the absolute Colleen!"
"I suppose so." I say.
"Excellent. As far as book reviews, I love the one from The Potpourri Book Club. ‘...altogether engrossing. I was immediately transported to the crackling warmth of an Irish hearth fire and the to the timeless stories one always finds there.’
"Don't forget to mention a few names you've shared the
stage with while on tour, or have been influenced heavily
by. Like The Chieftains, Mary Black, Dolores Keene and Leo
Kottke. I know you have a lengthy list, but just add a few
names."
"okee dokee," I say again.
"And mention that your most recent CD, ‘Three Hand Reel’ has characters that live in both the CD and your novel. That should arouse interest!”
"I will if you let me get on with it.," I say as
politely as I can.
"Sorry, sorry. You go to it. But Mary?"
"Yeesss?" I say.
"Just...if you could..."
"Yees?" I say again in a singsong voice.
"It might be fun to let your readers know that you have
a large bobble head brown bear award on your window sill that
you won from an audience consensus at an eastern Canadian
Musical Festival last year for best band."
"Anything else?" I ask.
"Well, now that you mention it. You could let them know
that they can get loads and loads of information about you
if they just click on the desired category on the menu list.
We hang up. Again.
Would you look at that? I wrote my synopsis in only 140 words!
SO......
Welcome. Come in, sit down, relax , read and listen.
Failte. Tar Isteach, suigh sios, lig do scith, leigh agus
bhi ag eisteacht.
Mary ( aka Maire )
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