Dermott Hayes

Writing has always been an essential part of my life; almost as important as breathing. When I was a youngster, I set up my own school newspaper which I edited and was the sole reporter. I could have been the sole reader too, if it were not for supportive parents. My father gave me a love of reading; particularly pulp crime fiction from Mickey Spillane, Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He loved to quote Shakespeare, Milton and Wordsworth. He also introduced me to the writings of John Steinbeck whose In Dubious Battle, a story of strike organizers and agitators among migrant fruit workers in Depression era California, brought two things together for me; political awareness and story telling. I resolved, at the age of ten, to become a writer. I became a journalist and worked in that business for twenty five years. It took me that long to wake up and decide I have only one shot so if I don’t take it, there’s no-one to blame but myself. So, I took a deep breath...