Episode 32 - Lisa McInerney

The 738am podcast - talking to people about stuff

So back in the day, when blogging was the thing all the cool kids did, Lisa McInerney set up one called 'The Arse End of Ireland'.

Using the moniker of 'Sweary Lady' it was a showcase of her writing talent, both comedic and serious, and it become one of the most popular blogs in Ireland. The plan, however, was to use the power of blogging to become a novelist, and that couldn't have come together better if Hannibal Smith himself had made it.

Lisa's first novel, 'The Glorious Heresies', was published earlier this year to widespread acclaim. 'A big, brassy, sexy beast of a book', said Joseph O'Connor in the Irish Times. The reviews have been excellent, which is mostly because it's an excellent book.

I hadn't met Lisa since one of the last Irish Blog Awards events, and since then things have obviously gone really well for her. We chat about the blog, how it helped her as a writer, how an email out of the blue helped her find an agent, her writing process, video games and loads more.

You can follow @SwearyLady on Twitter and you can buy The Glorious Heresies at your local bookshop.