Kate Thompson Profile

17 March 2009

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Once classed as Ireland's Joanna Lumley, former actress and established romantic author Kate Thompson, tells Fiona Haran about her latest novel and the heart-ache that inspired it.

Kate Thompson isn't too keen on the prospect of her only child, Clara, 22, leaving home for good. So much so, that the former Irish soap actress recently suffered a bout of Empty Nest Syndrome – something that prompted her to write The Kinsella Sisters.

"I didn't think that I would be the sort of mother who would be afflicted by that but it really hit me badly, I got terribly depressed, I had completely no motivation, so my editor actually said to me, 'could you channel it through the book?'"

This is exactly what she did but that isn't to say that her latest offering is a complete work of woe. "The last thing I wanted to do was write a book dealing with Empty Nest Syndrome that would be depressing to read – it had to have a warmth and humour to it aswel."

The Kinsella Sisters tells the story of Rio and Dervla, two siblings that could certainly be labelled chalk and cheese. Rio is a free-spirit living on the scenic west coast of Ireland, wondering if she should stick around now that her son Finn has flown the nest (ring any bells?) while Dervla is a hard-hitting city journalist. When the two are reunited following a family bereavement, they discover a secret that will change their lives forever.

Having published a number of successful novels in the past including the Irish number one best-seller, Blue Hour, and the critically acclaimed Sex, Lies & Fairytales, Kate managed to make the successful transition from actress to esteemed author rather smoothly. However, after a chain of less successful novels that followed, she was forced to reinvent herself, considering her latest tale to be a slight departure. 

"For a couple of years I was casting around wildly trying to think of another style for writing. I wrote something historical, I wrote a novella. I was starting to work on a screen play but I wasn't firmly fixed on any one notion until I got the email from Maxine [her editor] and it just 'hello' and I thought it was spam. I was just about to send it into the ether and something made me click on it, and it was from HarperCollins saying, 'would you be interested in writing a book for us?' and, of course, I said yes."

Born in Belfast, Ireland in 1959, Kate recalls how the frightening troubles of that time led her to seek escapism in books; something that helped to develop her already active imagination.

"I used to have an imaginary family, I was called Mrs Patterson and the baby was called Rock. We lived under the pear tree in the garden so I had a very lively fantasy world. I read a lot as a child, you know, I can't stress the importance of that to anyone rearing children now – get them involved in books from a very early age."

Despite her love for writing, Kate's stance as an established author didn't progress quickly – much to her regret. She found that, unlike today, creative writing courses were hard to come by.

"I was always good at English in school but nobody ever runs it by you as a career option. Also, I think studying English at university put me off reading for a number of years because it kind of takes the pleasure out of reading if you're constantly making mental notes in the margin as you go along."

Taking on another interest of hers, she decided to try her hand at acting – going on to star as the femme fatale, Terry Kileen, in the popular Irish soap opera, Glenroe. However, despite enjoying her time in the limelight – particularly the part where she got to seduce fellow Irish actor Gabriel Byrne – she eventually decided that enough was enough.

"I thought ten years is an awfully long time – a decade of my life – and I really didn't want to say that I'd spent a decade in a soap opera so I very consciously made the decision to jump before I was pushed."

These days, there is nothing Kate enjoys better than spending time with her husband Malcolm and of course her beloved daughter, Clara – someone she considers to be her greatest achievement. Before I end my chat with Kate, I ask her what advice she has for all the budding authors out there, to which she replies:

"The easy answer is that you sit down and you pick up your pen or you go to your laptop and you write the first sentence." It's as simple as that.

The Kinsella Sisters by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd is out now.

Read our health feature on Empty Nest Syndrome

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