A late bloomer on Achill
OLIVIA KING ONER
Adrian Lavelle is a writer and playwright who lives on Achill Island off the west coast of Ireland, but whose formative years were spent in Dunshaughlin. He started writing properly at the age of 25, staging his first play 'A Fig For A Kiss' at the famous Valley House, known for inspiring JM Synge's 'Playboy of the Western World'.
"It was almost 20 years ago that I decided I wanted to be a screenwriter," said Adrian. "Instead, my journey took me into theatre, and finally, at the ripe young age of 38, I’ve self-published my first novel, 'The Keelman’s Fortnight'."
When tragedy strikes, Wesley Harding, a misanthropic loner studying law at NUIG flees to Achill Island, where he joins a commune that practices Primal Scream Therapy. Meanwhile Detective Sergeant Jimmy Daniels deals with his own obstacles within the Major Crimes Unit in Galway, which includes a bizarre case of a missing NUIG student, Myia Dawkins. This gripping crime novel is a tale of obsession, cancel culture, philosophic cults and the power of being an internet sensation.
Adrian was first inspired to write the book in lockdown during Covid-19 after watching crime documentaries and criminal psychology videos on YouTube.
"I took notes on interrogations, how they played out, they’re the greatest plays I’ve ever witnessed, all unscripted and real."
From there, the legends of Achill island shaped his story idea.
"There is an old two-storey convent near my house, with a large kitchen, a church, a common room and an old hospital ward. After reading about cults, and the damaging effect they have on people, I was walking the dog one day, passing the convent. And I thought to myself ‘If I was a cult leader, and I needed to buy a house for my followers, this convent would be perfect.’
Adrian's mother, Anne, and her family, the Stoneys, hail from Dunshaughlin, where they lived in a small cottage at Roestown on the old Navan road.
"My mum and her brother and sister grew up in that little cottage, and I have fond memories of it." He lived in Dunshaughlin until the age of 10, when the family moved to Achill.
"My family are natural born story tellers," he said. "I've always had a love for books and films and theatre." Adrian credits his love and inspiration for storytelling in particular to his parents. "They've always encouraged me, and I really do love them for it, it's the reason why the novel is dedicated to them."
"Writing a novel is an entirely different animal than writing a play, but I do think that the way they're able to tell a story, the cadence of how they tell it, the humour, that has been a part of the writing process for as long as I've been writing."
As a young man he was writing plays and staging them in Galway City. "If I wasn't writing them, I was acting in them. It wasn’t until I started in An Taibhdhearc when my real education began."
Unfortunately, Adrian fell gravely ill with boils poisoning his bloodstream.
"I was in so much pain I couldn’t walk. I had surgery upon surgery to remove them."
The author spent eight months trying to recuperate, only to end up 27 hours in adrenal crisis in 2019. "My doctors told me I should have been dead."
He was hospitalised for six weeks and was diagnosed with Addison’s disease, Vasculitis, and A1AD (Alpha One Antitrypsin disorder) a rare lung condition not to mention one of his kidneys wasn't working properly.
"If I was a car, I would have failed the NCT. If I was a horse, they would have shot me. I couldn’t work anymore."
Forced to give up his job at An Taibhdhearc Theatre, he moved into his grandfather's cottage on Achill Island, where he started writing another play, 'Young Orson- An Irish Journey Through Theatre'. It was accepted into the Galway Theatre Festival 2020, but then struck when Covid hit and everything was cancelled.
"Myself and my colleague, producer Blue Hanley, are still focused on getting the play produced....We would love to see it on stage at the Gate Theatre, if nothing else."
According to Adrian, the process of self-publishing was a 'long, tough arduous process but it was also a great learning experience."
Aside from writing and editing the novel, he also had to design the cover. The PDF version features a photograph he had taken himself of the Minaun Cliffs while the print version is of a green stone tablet. "It's a reference to the philosopher's stone," he explained. "The concept fit in well with the truth-seeking knowledge all of the main characters are so desperate to acquire in the novel."
When asked about his journey to self-publishing, Adrian had this to say: "Artists don't need publishers to sell their work, and I would put forth the same argument for writers." Although it would be nice to eventually sign one day with a publisher, I've saved a lot of money doing the entire process myself than having to rely on freelance editors and designers, and I'm quite pleased with the novel and the way it has turned out."
With several other projects he's working on, there isn't an exact date for the release of Volume Two of The Keelman's Fortnight.
"I have the ending. That's the most important thing," he said. "I put a lot of work into giving the story a meaningful ending, and I think readers will come away very satisfied...probably crying as well, but satisfied more than anything else."
The Keelman's Fortnight Volume One can be purchased online as paperback or eBook on AchillTourism, Barnes & Noble and Amazon.