Tell us about your debut novel, The Compound. Louise O’Neill called it “Lord of the Flies meets Love Island”!
The Compound is a dark satire of reality television. We follow 19 contestants in an isolated setting in the desert as they compete for rewards and possible fame. I suppose the Lord of the Flies aspect is that the contestants do turn on each other the longer they’re there; the contestants hoard resources and try to wrestle power where they can.
What is your take on the phenomenon of reality TV?
I find it to be an interesting commentary on voyeurism in the digital age. I think in this eerie time of surveillance capitalism, we’ve not only normalised monetised monitoring, but made it into entertainment.
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You also shine a critical light on consumerism and materialism...
Yes; this to me was the driving force of the novel, and the reality television setting felt like a nice container for that conversation. I wanted to discuss the idea that capitalism doesn’t want contentment; it wants consumption.
Did you also want to address the mid-to-late 20s rush to do something meaningful, carve a path, meet a match and create an identity?
The main tenets of the show seemed to me the tenets of early adult life: find a partner, get a house, acquire nice things. There’s a sense of urgency that feels at odds with the economic and ecological state we’re living in.
How did the novel evolve as you wrote it? The tone is quite dark in places. Was that always your intention?
Once I had the rules of the show down, I was happy to let the characters lead the story. I knew that in a highly manipulated and manipulative setting, you were going to see the worst of people. I wondered what would happen if, for example, water became scarce in the desert – who would be the first to turn on another?
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You’re an English teacher. Did that help, apart from writing the book during your first long summer holiday?
Definitely. Aside from the fact that I got to spend my days discussing my favourite writers, I always fed off of my students’ enthusiasm. Reading and writing are very insular experiences, but having those conversations with students made it all more wholesome and exciting, to be able to share that love of literature, and respond in turn to their insights.
You’ve also worked as a bookseller. What did that teach you?
I had terrible FOMO when people came in discussing books I had never heard of. I started picking up anything and everything; it was a great way to broaden my horizons.
US film rights have already been optioned. Any updates?
It’s still very early days – I can’t say much.
Your brother David Rawle was the star of Moone Boy. Could you see him getting cast? Who would be your ideal stars?
Ah, it would be too strange. I really haven’t given it too much thought, I’m honestly just so thrilled that it’s made it into a novel.
You’re from Leitrim and live in Dublin. Has the literary culture of each place rubbed off on you?
I grew up in the same village as the writer/actor/director Seamus O’Rourke, and I always felt that his talent for storytelling was a gift we all greatly benefited from. In Dublin, there are so many talented writers at work – but Joyce is an all-time favourite, and it’s a pleasure to live in the setting of his masterworks.
Which projects are you working on?
I’m happily scribbling away at my next book.
Have you ever made a literary pilgrimage?
Yes, I went to Paris for a literary tour. Wilde, de Beauvoir, Joyce, Hemingway – it was all divine.
What is the best writing advice you have heard?
You only vomit what you eat. Your writing is an amalgamation of everything that you’ve read; and I’ve definitely found that if the writing is stalling, it’s time to read some good prose.
Who do you admire the most?
My siblings!
You are supreme ruler for a day. Which law do you pass or abolish?
I’m nixing parking tickets. Give a girl a break.
Which current book, film and podcast would you recommend?
Isola by Allegra Goodman; Friendship directed by Andrew DeYoung; and I’m Grand Mam.
Which public event affected you most?
I saw an immersive play of The Dead a few months ago, set in the Museum of Literature Ireland (MoLI). It was absolutely sublime to be fully in the scene, at the party, listening to the music and the speeches.
The most remarkable place you have visited?
The Acropolis of Athens.
Your most treasured possession?
My piano.
What is the most beautiful book that you own?
Emily Wilson’s translation of The Iliad.
Which writers, living or dead, would you invite to your dream dinner party?
Oscar Wilde, Stephen Fry, Zadie Smith, Jane Austen, Elena Ferrante.
The best and worst things about where you live?
The people make Dublin. The rent prices do a fairly comprehensive job of ruining it.
What is your favourite quotation?
“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so,” from Hamlet.
Who is your favourite fictional character?
Maybe Joe Gargery from Great Expectations.
A book to make me laugh?
Temporary by Hilary Leichter.
A book that might move me to tears?
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee.
The Compound is published by the Borough Press
