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A lot of family dinners ended up burning downstairs when inspiration struck Mary Teresa Madden. Rather than slowing down like others, this young-at-heart Galway woman (72) has discovered a whole new chapter in recent years, fulfilling a lifelong ambition to be a writer.
The Killimor native bubbles with enthusiasm talking about the joy she gets from her fictional characters and romantic stories based in the countryside that she loves so much. Her steely determination also shines through because she had quite a journey to get to where she is, learning to use a computer in her 60s, honing her writing skills, and editing draft after draft.
It was a lot of hard work at a time when others were retiring, but Mary smiles, saying that, “it has been worth it”. When she held her book, Celia’s Promise, for the first time she was “on top of the world”.
One thing that’s crystal clear is that once Mary, as she is known to family and friends, got some encouragement and support, nothing was going to stop her. And she is keen to stress this message to people – not to put barriers in your way if you have a dream or an ambition, whatever it might be.
“You know, if you want to do something, you’ll make time for it. I don’t have any structured time for writing, but if I have an hour free, I’ll just go [upstairs] and do it. I’ve burnt more carrots and potatoes [than I care to mention],” she says, laughing.
Juggling helping out on the farm and still working in the family business, Madden’s Marina, on the banks of the Shannon close to Portumna, Mary is a busy and social person. She has plenty of life experience and inspiration to draw on for her writing which she likens to the style of Maeve Binchy.
Books were part of her life from an early age, she remembers fondly, saying her parents passed on that love of learning to her and her siblings. “My mother always read to us at night, and my father did too. I loved reading. I found it such an escape.”
“So I always had a little inkling in the back of my mind that I’d love to write a book – but I didn’t think I’d be able to go about it at all,” says the mother of six.
While Mary always remembers having a copy and pencil when she was young to write down little stories, she never kept them for some reason, and one part of her educational experience knocked her confidence somewhat to pursue it further.
After school she worked in Killimor Creamery, now Arrabawn, before marrying her husband John, a garda. They later moved around with his job for some years, and they went on to have six children.
When her husband inherited the family dairy farm, they returned to Killahunna, just a few kilometres from her homeplace, and settled into the countryside. Mary later cared for some seriously ill members of her family with the guidance of medical professionals.
With her children now grown up, Mary felt she had the caring experience but not the paperwork to go with it. So, in her 50s, she decided to apply to university as a mature student to do an honours diploma in social care and later worked in the sector.
“I had a light bulb moment one day when one of the tutors complimented me on a case history I had done. I had got 100% in it. She said to me, ‘You know that could be a chapter in a book; it’s so well written’.”
This led Mary to think that writing a novel might still be possible.
“A couple of evenings after that, I was out on the farm, and I was looking at a big house down the road from me, and there was an avenue down to it. Gosh, I thought, I could build a family in that and put that house in a book.
“So, I went home and got an A4 copy, and I made a circle and put the house in the middle of it, and I grew a family from there,” says Mary. “I was writing it in bits and pieces. It was like a jigsaw to try and get it all together,” she recalls, wondering where to go next when it was finished and typed up on her typewriter.
Athenry publisher
In 2015, she came across Book Hub Publishing, an independent publishing house based in Athenry. Handing over her typed tale, she was delighted to learn that they believed there was a book in it. But Mary needed to triple the number of words, learn to use a computer, and start working on her initial draft.
Undaunted, Mary jokes that she thought her book was finished, but it was only the beginning. “I had to go on the journey of learning [the computer], and my four girls, Anne, Caroline, Carmel, Mary, and sons John and David, helped me along. I learned how to email, to print, type, and do all the changes,” she smiles at the memory. “It was a huge job but I was determined to do it. I said, I’m not letting anything stop me.”
“I think anyone at my age (72) that wants to do something, whether it’s a course or a book or anything should just go and do it because there is no excuse – you can make time.”
Especially [people] saying they are too old. Age is only a number and it actually makes you feel young – instead of sitting in the corner saying you can’t do it. You can
Mary did get to grips with technology, even though at times she laughs that it was like she was back at school. With that and the help, patience, and support of her publisher, she got it over the finishing line. Her first book Celia’s Promise was launched in 2017 in her daughter’s café and guesthouse, Cafe Gordons in Tynagh, Co Galway.
Buoyed up by the positive feedback from many readers who loved the countryside setting and stories of ordinary people, she embarked on a second book. The Man on a Bus launched in 2019, and the latest, Whispers of Love, came out last year.
Currently working on her fourth tome, Mary’s family are delighted for her and very proud of her efforts. She pays tribute to her husband and children and her siblings Bert, Majella and twin sister Kay, who always has a candle lighting to inspire her.
“There were times I came home and I said to myself, I won’t be able to do this, but I got up and said, ‘I’m not going to stop now’,” she adds with clear pride and delight that she stuck with it. “There is no point telling yourself you can’t do it or you’re too old, or too young. It’s just a matter of putting your mind to it.”
“Especially [people] saying they are too old. Age is only a number and it actually makes you feel young – instead of sitting in the corner saying you can’t do it. You can.”
And if it doesn’t work the first time, try again, Mary advises. She often had to leave her copy for a few days, and eventually inspiration would strike out of the blue.
Asked for advice for others, she says just start writing as much as you can.
“There could be a story in there if you want to pursue it. The more you write, the more you can write, and it grows from there. If you are a writer or you have that skill, you will do it. But if you don’t start, you won’t know.”
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