and Obliterations (co-authored with Jessica Piazza, published by Red Hen).
The Irish Goodbye is her debut novel.
As a developmental editor and assistant director of the Sackett Street Writers’ Workshop, O’Neill has worked with hundreds of writers who have gone on to publish with major publishing houses.
She lives in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, with her beautiful wife, two sons, and—she hopes, one day—a dog.
O’Neill applied the Page 69 Test to The Irish Goodbye and reported the following:
Though I’m familiar with this exercise, I hadn’t tried it with my own book, so it was exciting to see where it took me. Page 69 of The Irish Goodbye places the reader in the middle of a scene between Maggie, the youngest sister, and Cait, the oldest sister. They’re at a pizzeria waiting to pick up the family’s dinner and having a discussion that, in many ways, epitomizes what’s wrong with the family: no one is speaking honestly.Visit Heather Aimee O'Neill's website.
On the surface, the conversation is about their deeply religious mother’s reaction to Maggie bringing home her girlfriend, Isabel. But Maggie isn’t revealing the true source of her anxiety about the weekend, and while Cait pretends to listen to her sister, she’s actually preoccupied with thoughts of Luke, her first love and the real reason she’s returned home after five years.
Removing one’s mask and showing up as real and vulnerable with the people who supposedly know you best is a major theme in the book, and I think this scene captures it in a quick snapshot. Plus, what’s about to happen on the next few pages change not only the course of the weekend, but the entire family’s dynamic—so you could say that this scene sets up the story’s primary catalyst.
My Book, The Movie: The Irish Goodbye.
--Marshal Zeringue
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