Interviews

Name: Jaki McCarrick
Degree/Masters: M.Phil. (2004) Creative Writing

Tell us a little bit about what you are currently up to?
Until the end of August I was working with my band, CHOICE (an electronic trio). We have just performed at the Electric Picnic – in the Body and Soul area. We’ve gigged quite a lot in the past year, since one of our tracks was included in a compilation of Irish post-punk and electronica called Strange Passion, released by Manchester record label, Finders Keepers. This pretty much interrupted work on my first novel, which I am very eager to get back to! The novel, provisionally called Black Soap, is a multi-narrative story spanning three centuries.

 

Has the internet made it easier or more difficult to make a living as a writer?
The internet has changed the rules in most areas of the arts. And yes, making money as a writer or musician is much more difficult when there is so much work available on the net for free. I don’t think we, as artists, can turn the clock back on this; what we have to learn to do is adapt. Someone whose thoughts on this subject are very interesting is the singer and musician, Amanda Palmer. She is of the mindset that, as artists are often not going to be paid for their work (in this age of the net), they have to find other ways of earning funds and getting paid, i.e. by asking fans to pay for recordings through campaigns such as Fund It. I have had a lot of work published in online journals for which I was paid no fee – yet many of these journals have a much greater readership than some print journals/publications, one or two of which have paid me well for similar features or pieces of work!

The internet is also partly a huge marketing arena in which samples of work are offered by writers and publishers, free of charge, in the hope that people will then pay for a bigger ‘hard copy’ work. For instance, my publisher, Seren Books, recently offered a selection of nine short stories in a free-to-download eBook, called Seren Shorts (which includes a story of mine, 1975) - and I guess this is so that readers will buy the story collections these stories come from.

Do you still keep in touch with your Trinity classmates?
Yes, I do. We are actually planning a reunion next year!

What is the most useful piece of advice you’ve ever received?
This was something I read: “inch by inch it’s a cinch, by yard it’s hard”. That little sentence has often guided me through very difficult tasks and I have found it invaluable.

What are your Top 3 Desert Island Discs?
Bach’s Goldberg Variations
Erik Satie’s Gnossienne No.1
Joy Division – The Eternal

What are your plans for the future?
I would like to finish my novel this year and then work on my second collection of short stories. I also hope to have a first collection of poetry out this year or next year. My band would also like to release an album in the next twelve months.

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
David Lynch, David Bowie, Louise Bourgeoise, Jarvis Cocker, Joaquin Phoenix, Sam Shepard, Patti Smith, William Gay, Cormac McCarthy, Lana del Ray, Kate Bush, John Burnside, Saul Williams, Carol Ann Duffy, Eavan Boland, Michael Mann, Slavoj Zizek, Nile Rodgers.