Top author Cecelia Ahern considered writing under pen name to avoid being linked to famous politician dad Bertie
CECELIA Ahern says she considered writing under a pen name to avoid being linked to her famous father.
The writer was just 22 when her book P.S. I Love You became a global publishing phenomenon, with some linking the book’s success to Bertie Ahern’s popularity as then-Taoiseach.
And she revealed how she toyed with the idea of changing her name, something she later did when submitting a young adult book to a publisher.
She said: “When I wrote P.S. I Love You, I thought about (changing my name).
“Then I thought this is a bit stupid because I’m going on the Late Late Show and I’ll have to say why I called myself something else.
“It didn’t seem very practical.”
NAME SWITCH
She added: “I wrote a young adult book (later) called Flawed and Perfect and just so I wasn’t getting a tainted response, I made up a name - Eden Kelly - and submitted it to publishers.
“I wanted honest opinions and I got honest opinions. One actually said ‘Someone is trying very hard to be Cecelia Ahern’. They recognised the voice.”
Cecelia, 38, recently released the sequel to P.S. I Love You, which became a massive success on screen with Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler among the cast.
Oscar-winner Swank is set to get back on board for the movie adaptation of the new book, Postscript, though it’s not clear if Butler - whose Irish accent irked some viewers - will feature.
Despite the criticism of the international stars’ brogues in the movie, Cecelia said she reckons it’s tricky for anyone outside the country to nail the accent.
ACCENT WOES
Speaking to Dermot and Dave on Today FM, she said: “Can we as Irish people ever be happy with accents?
“No one can ever get it right. We’ve got so many accents, in Dublin alone.
“I’m not complaining about getting Hilary Swank, Gerard Butler and Lisa Kudrow and all that fantastic cast. I wouldn’t change them for the world.”
She added: “I do understand why some people were saying ‘Oh the accent’. but it’s so hard for anyone outside Ireland to get the accent right.”
Cecelia and her husband David Keoghan welcomed their third child, Blossom, last October, with Cecelia revealing how she was on maternity leave before she returned to writing books.
WRITING STYLE
And she told her unusual writing style involves putting pen to paper, rather than using a computer.
She said: “My process is that I write longhand, so pen on paper. After I write a chapter, I transcribe it afterwards.
“I’m pretty old school about it. It flows better and feels more creative and visual. I like handwriting.
Most read in Celebrity
“I can see it all in my head and I’m getting it out on paper.
Read more on the Irish Sun
“If I’m typing it feels mechanical, and it’s the mechanical side of my head that starts editing, (I use) a Bic.
“I go through plenty of Bics. At the start of every book, I buy a box of Bics.”
