Today we’d like to introduce you to Michelle O’Neil.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
During the pandemic when all the businesses were closed our local dog park remained open and it was then I realized how important dog parks were for the socialization of humans! I am a writer, and as I walked laps around the dog park, characters came to life and started talking to me. The result? Dog Park: Tales of Heartbreak, Laughter, Community and Hope. At first I thought it would be a sweet book of vignettes about how people found their dogs, but it turned into a much darker, drama filled novel.
I have a background as a news reporter and freelance writer. I’ve written a memoir as well. Dog Park is my first novel. It launched in December 2024.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The struggle for me is putting boundaries around my writing time. I am a wife, a mother, a (sometimes) working registered nurse, and a yoga teacher for seniors. I have an adult child with special needs and another one in college and still do quite a bit of caregiving. I love all of my roles, but writing is what keeps me sane. When you are launching your first novel it seems almost selfish to take time away from the other roles, especially when you haven’t sold the book or made any money on it yet. So getting over that in my own mind is the challenge. The writing is the easy part! I have a little writing shed in my back yard and it is my sanctuary.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Dog Park: Tales of Heartbreak, Laughter, Community and Hope is my first novel. I also wrote a memoir Daughter of the Drunk at the Bar which came out in 2011. I was a long time blogger, and in the 1990’s worked as a radio producer, a news reporter and freelance writer. Some of my pieces were dropped into NPR’s Morning Edition on WAMU in DC.
I am known for writing books that inspire people and make them feel every emotion, from joy filled laughter to fury, and everything in between. I don’t write fluff. I write real characters who talk like they talk, based on where they are from. I recently heard another author I admire, (David Joy) speak of his books as “working class” and I would put my books in that category as well. Everyday people going through extraordinary things are what interests me.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
I am back in my shed, currently working on a second novel. It covers ageism and racism in the workplace among several other topics. I’m halfway through the first draft and loving getting to know these characters. As in Dog Park, it is an eclectic bunch with nothing in common (but their place of employment in this case). They all show up with their own history and experience, each acting the way they do for reasons no one else is aware of. I love when characters with diverse backgrounds have their worlds collide.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://michelleoneilauthor.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michelleoneilauthor/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61552013781092
- Other: https://www.amazon.com/Dog-Park-Heartbreak-Laughter-Community-ebook/dp/B0DMFY2BMZ/
