BESTSELLING AUTHOR, born and raised in Ireland, now living in London. A writer of NOVELS, POEMS and NONFICTION about the creative process.
ORNA SAYS: I worked for 20 years in writing and publishing in Dublin, Ireland -- first as a journalist and editor, then running a writing school and literary agency, all the while writing features, poems and books, including novels. After a hiatus due to illness and a move to London, in 2011 I reclaimed my rights from my publisher, Penguin, in order to strike out as an independent, self-publishing author. It has been the best decision of my writing life and the creative freedom and rewards I have enjoyed led me to found THE ALLIANCE OF INDEPENDENT AUTHORS."
INTERESTS: Reading. Walking & jogging. Yoga & gym. Tennis. Movies. Music. Travel. Meditation. Philosophies, East and West. Human Potential. Beaches. Wild swimming. History. Web surfing. Theatre.
NOT SO KEEN ON: Spectator sport.
INSPIRATIONS #1: HISTORY: I agree with Mr Hartley that the past is, indeed, another country and it's my favourite place to travel. I'm especially drawn to bohemian times and places where shackles are thrown off and creativity flourishes -- fin de siecle Paris (1890s); literary revival and revolutionary Ireland (1910/20s); hippy (1960s) and gay lib (1980s) San Francisco...
INSPIRATIONS #2: HISTORY: GENDER. We are all seeded by man and born of woman and we all carry 'male' and 'female' characteristics within. How these play out, in an individual life and in different societies, is endlessly fascinating to me.
INSPIRATIONS #3: IRELAND:: You can take the girl out of, but...
INSPIRATIONS #4: THE SEA: Everything I ever really needed to know, I could have learned by watching the waves.
INSPIRATIONS #5: What I call THE ALL. Which paradoxically resides where there is nothing, in emptiness, in the space between the words.
Here's my poem about why I write:
THE WRITER'S CALL.
Your words must wash the floor for love,
I heard it All declare. I kissed my pen,
swore this decree to air.
Then set to work on bended knee,
a childlike creep through house and street,
to clean through what's encrusted there.
It's done for you, kind reader, dear,
who walks my words across the page,
who seeks clear ground in marks I make.
The glisten in your gleaning eye,
that shines with mine, us both to see
how in the clearing, all can be.
I have a deep and abiding interest in the creative process and and share techniques that foster creative intelligence, most notably INSPIRATION MEDITATION and FREEWriting. The same process that creates one thing creates everything, I believe, and that process can be applied to all dimensions of life, for greater happiness, freedom and self-expression.
I blog about this, and my books, on my website: ORNAROSS.COM
