Sally O’Reilly has a PhD in Creative Writing from Brunel University and teaches Creative Writing at the Open University. A former Cosmopolitan new journalist of the year, she was shortlisted for the Ian St James short story prize and the Cosmopolitan short story award. She is the author of the popular guide How to be a Writer and two previous novels (as Sam O’Reilly), The Best Possible Taste and You Spin Me Round. Dark Aemilia is her first historical novel.
O’Reilly’s short stories have appeared in the UK, Australia and South Africa. In addition, she has worked as a journalist and editor for Christian Aid and Barnardo’s, and is a contributor to the Guardian, The Sunday Times, The Conversation, Evening Standard and New Scientist.
Interviews and Features
Article for The Conversation
‘There are pros and cons of writing under pressure. Every writer is different, and this applies to speed of production as much as it does to style.’
The tortoise and the hare: in an article for The Conversation, Sally O’Reilly discusses the perks and perils of writing a 50,000 word novel in a month, versus writers who draw their novels out over months, years and even decades.
Article for The Conversation
‘History is not a finite resource. It is looming behind us: growing and morphing and consuming the space age and glasnost and Blairism; Britpop and 9/11 and the Arab Spring.’
Sally discusses the impact of bestselling author Ali Smith winning the Baileys Prize, and the rise of historical fiction, in an article for The Conversation.
Guest post for the Waterstones blog
‘A battle of wills and a clash of egos. It is a love story, but also dramatises the conflict between men and women, and about the desire to create beauty and meaning in the midst of chaos and pain.’
In this post for the Waterstones blog, Sally explores the mystery surrounding the identity of Shakespeare’s Dark Lady, who she re-imagines in her novel Dark Aemilia as Aemilia Bassano Lanyer.
The Guardian Top Ten
‘If you want to write a story about a fundamental predicament, there is a Shakespeare play to fit the bill. So it’s not surprising that he has inspired so many writers, from Herman Melville to Angela Carter.’
Read Sally’s Top 10 novels inspired by Shakespeare for the Guardian.
Article for Writers' Hub
‘Lose yourself. One of the unsung joys of writing a book is that you can create your own world and go there every day. There’s nothing like it. Forget about the bestseller list, this year’s Booker winner and all the rest of it. Invent your world, and follow the logic of your own imagination, and you will have one of the most rewarding experiences that life can offer.’
Sally O’Reilly presents her Top Tips for the First Time Novelist in an article for Writers’ Hub.