RTE Guide
I was getting a bit worried ahead of meeting the new Marian Keyes, to be quite honest. I was wondering about this improved version - she had told me over the phone that she'd changed since turning 40 last September. "I've started saying 'no' and I'm not meek Marian anymore. I've started to answer back more."
Blimey. She'd offered to pick me up outside reception and whisk me away to a coffee shop for the interview and I had visions of a diva-like Marian hiding behind huge shades in a blacked-out limo. It was some relief, therefore, that I found her, nose buried in book, behind the wheel of her trusty Beetle.
"I've been here for ten minutes actually. I'm a Virgo. I'd go into fits if I thought I was going to be late. I was even more worried about being on time because you were interviewing me, so I've been here for ages reading my book."
One of the great things about catching up with Marian is that there's always loads to get through. Her job means that she's forever travelling, and her interest in trying to make a difference ensures that she will have been on some new crusade. What's more, she'll offer the information before you've even got around to asking for it.
But first, let's return to that momentous moment when Marian turned 40. "I was so positive about it before the day. I thought it would be like any other birthday but as soon as I woke up I just had this sense of time having passed me by. Where had it all gone?"
Thankfully for the army of readers who enjoy Marian's lighter take on life, (though that's not to diminish the often weighty subjects she covers in her books) such introspection didn't last long and it's hard to believe the petite M has turned 40 anyway. Her whole family was whisked away by her husband for a week in a villa in the south of France to celebrate, but it seemed the case that although you can take the family out of Ireland you certainly cannot take Ireland out of the family.
"We were only there for a week, but the prospect of running out of bread traumatised us all. It began with my mother bringing along a family pan with her, then one by one we all caught the paranoia and ending up buying loaf upon loaf my Serbian sister-in-law was even in the kitchen baking it from scratch. We couldn't see the bread for the loaves. . ."
Such frantic activity didn't detract from a welcome break in Marian's hectic schedule. In one nine-month period recently she'd been on 80 flights, 20 of them long haul, and she was, to put it crudely and quite bluntly, knackered. It's testament to her proficiency and popularity that publicity tours for her basically take in the whole world. In the past two months alone she's been to Canada, the United States and New Zealand, but there's light at the end of the tunnel as she's soon to wind up the final, European leg to promote The Other Side Of The Story.
Her new book is the biggest she's written to date, though the others have been pretty substantial, too. As one would come to expect, Marian weaves serious subjects such as gender politics and feminism through wildly funny situations in which thirty-something Gemma's dad has left her mum and her best friend has stolen her ex and written a bestseller. Set against the glamorous world of book publishing and agents thrashing out phonenumber book deals, Marian had to acquaint herself with ball-breaking book agents - not the world of publishing that she's used to. She famously works on her books on her laptop, sitting on the bed.
It was Marian's intention to look at friendships and relationships and it recalled to her a phrase she overheard at an AA meeting: there are three sides to every story - yours, theirs and the truth. "It's all based on negotiation and compromise." As well as being her longest book, it's also her most innovative in terms of writing style, incorporating emails and text messages sent between the characters. It makes for a snappier, pacier device to progress the plot. But all you need to know is that it's classic Keyes territory.
As for the reviews, they're not something that she'll be reading herself. "I try not to read them as I might end up reacting to the wrong review or the wrong reviewer when it's what the readers think that really matters."
Meanwhile, Marian is getting ready for the release of another screen adaptation of one of her books. This time, strangely enough, it's a French version of Last Chance Saloon, now entitled Au secours, J'ai trente ans, which comes out in France on June 23. Even though it's been completely relocated, Marian is delighted with the movie as the actors look just like how she imagined the characters.
The next adaptation, however, will probably invoke much more interest as Catherine Zeta Jones has been lined up to star in the movie version of Rachel's Holiday. And Marian's verdict? 'At least she's a Celt!"