Beginner's pluck: Virginia Evans
'I kept on writing novels. I self-published one, because my computer broke. I needed to sell enough copies so that I could buy a new one, and I did.'
Meanwhile, Virginia worked at various jobs.
'I was a paralegal; I scheduled surgery for an orthopaedic surgeon; I worked in customer service and in administration, but I'd get up early and write.'
When she was 32 and still unpublished, Virginia was accepted on the MFA for creative writing at Trinity College, Dublin.
'I moved my family over, and life has never been better. We all felt so settled.'
She was working on her eighth novel, titled the American Photograph with, among others, Claire Keegan, Carlo Gebler, and Kevin Power.
'I gained my agent from it.'
At the start of covid, in March 2020, the family returned to the US. It was a tough time.
'I was a wreck,' she says. 'I was grieving, and the book wasn't selling.'
Her agent suggested that she tried something new.
'I'd started writing The Correspondent for myself. My agent persuaded me to let her send it out and it's sold well around the world. I still can't believe it.'
Who is Virginia Evans?
Date/ place of birth: 1986/ South Carolina. 'But I was brought up in Pennsylvania and Maryland.'
Education: High school Annapolis, Maryland; James Madison University in Virginia, English and creative writing; 2019, Trinity College, Dublin, MA of Philosophy in creative writing.
Home: North Carolina.
Family: Husband Mark, son Jack,12, and daughter Mae, nine, and red labrador, Brigid.
The day job: Full-time writer.
In another life: 'I would have been an arborist; I'm fascinated by trees.'
Favourite writers: Deirdre Madden; John Williams; Anne Patchett; Maggie O'Farrell; William Trevor.
Second book: 'I'm working on two first drafts.'
Top tip: 'Take a walk with nothing in your ears.'
Website: www.virginiaevansauthor.com
Instagram: @Virginia.I.evans
The debut
The Correspondent
Michael Joseph, €17.99
At 73, Sybil's life is shrinking. A compulsive letter-writer, she's kept those she loves at a distance. Confronted by a past mistake, it's time to reassess. Is it too late for a happy ending?
The verdict: A glorious, life affirming debut. I adored it.
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