Niall Williams (writer)

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Niall Williams
Niall Williams (writer) at the 2025 Adelaide Writers' Week.jpg
Williams at the 2025 Adelaide Writers' Week
Born1958 (age 6667)
Dublin, Ireland
OccupationNovelist, playwright, screenwriter
Education Oatlands College
Alma mater University College Dublin
GenreFiction, literary fiction, magic realism, historical fiction
Notable worksFour Letters of Love (1997)
As It Is In Heaven (1999)
Fall of the Light (2001)
History of the Rain (2014)
This Is Happiness (2019)
SpouseChristine Breen
Children2
Website
niallwilliams.com

Niall Williams (born 1958) is an Irish writer of novels, plays, and non-fiction. He is known for his novels Four Letters of Love (1997), As It Is In Heaven (1999), Fall of the Light (2008), History of the Rain (2014), and This Is Happiness (2019).

Contents

Early life and education

Niall Williams was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1958. [1] His parents' home was not filled with books, but his parents wanted him to be better educated than they were, and his father would take him to Pembroke Library every two weeks to encourage reading. [1]

He attended Oatlands College, a boys' school in Stillorgan, County Dublin. [2]

He studied at University College Dublin, graduating with a Masters of Arts in Modern American literature, where he met his future wife, writer Christine Breen. [1]

Career

Williams' first published story was printed in The Irish Press when he was eighteen. A £25 cheque for his first story, and a nod of approval, was the confirmation he needed from the world to dedicate his life to writing. [1]

After a year lecturing at the Université de Caen in Normandy, France, Williams moved to New York City (with Breen [1] ). He worked briefly at Fox and Sutherland's bookstore in Mount Kisco, New York, before becoming a copywriter at Avon Books. [3]

After five years, [1] in 1985, Williams and Breen returned to Ireland and moved to Kilmihil, County Clare, and began co-writing factual accounts of life in rural Ireland. [3]

Non-fiction

Williams' first four books, co-written with Breen, were non-fiction works relating to their lives living in a 200-year-old farmhouse in County Clare, and were written primarily for an American audience. [1]

Plays

In 1991, Williams' first play, The Murphy Initiative, was staged at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. [4] His second play, A Little Like Paradise, was produced on the Peacock stage of the Abbey Theatre in 1995. [4] His third play, The Way You Look Tonight, was produced by Galway’s Druid Theatre Company in 1999. [4]

Novels

Four Letters of Love, Williams' first novel, was published in 1997 to acclaim. [1] It went on to become an international bestseller and has been translated into many languages.[ citation needed ]

The Fall of Light was set in the nineteenth century and was Williams' first foray into historical fiction.[ citation needed ]

In 2006, Williams' published his novella, The Unrequited. He also wrote two young adult novels, Boy in the World (2007) and Boy and Man (2008).[ citation needed ]

In 2014, Williams started a series of novels set in Faha, a fictional village in the west of Ireland. Similar to Macondo in the works of Gabriel García Márquez, Faha is a village steeped in magic realism, which acts as a backdrop for Williams' stories. [5] [6] [7]

His 2024 novel, Time of the Child, is also set in Faha. Lucy Popsecu, writing in The Guardian, called it "a slow-burning, finely crafted novel about second chances, humanity and familial love". [8]

Screenplays

Williams has also written screenplays for television and film, including screenplays for Four Letters of Love and This Is Happiness. [3]

Four Letters of Love was made into a feature film, directed by Polly Steele and starring Pierce Brosnan, Helena Bonham-Carter, and Gabriel Byrne. The film was screened at the 2025 Dublin International Film Festival prior to a theatrical release in UK and Irish cinemas from 18 July 2025. [9] [10]

Recognition

Selected works

Fiction

Non-Fiction (with Christine Breen)

Personal life

Williams married American writer and artist Christine Breen, whom he met at University College Dublin. They have two adult children. [1] [23]

They moved to Kiltumpter, in west County Clare, in Ireland, to live in Breen's grandfather's old cottage. Both teach creative writing workshops. Williams does not read reviews. [1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Williams, Niall (13 January 2020). "An enduring, yet under-the-radar, popularity: Niall Williams talks to Mary McCarthy". Books Ireland (Interview). Interviewed by McCarthy, Mary. Retrieved 7 September 2025. Originally titled: "Niall Williams (61): This Literary Life", see archived version of 15 August 2020
  2. "Famous Alumni". A brief history of Oatlands College. 4 November 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 "Biography". Niall Williams.
  4. 1 2 3 "Niall Williams". Peters Fraser and Dunlop (PFD) Literary Agents. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  5. "History of the Rain". Bloomsbury Publishing. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  6. 1 2 "Longlist 2014 announced". The Booker Prizes. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  7. 1 2 "This Is Happiness". Bloomsbury Publishing. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  8. 1 2 Popescu, Lucy (20 October 2024). "Time of the Child by Niall Williams review – sublime tale of small-town Irish life". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  9. "Dublin International Film Festival launch 2025 programme". iftn.ie. 28 January 2025. Retrieved 21 July 2025.
  10. Hunter, Allan (26 February 2025). "'Four Letters Of Love' review: Irish eyes a'romancing in heartfelt adaptation". Screen Daily. Retrieved 21 July 2025.
  11. 1 2 "Miracles Happen". The New York Times . 9 November 1997. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  12. "100 Books chosen for Literary Award". The Irish Times. 10 October 1998. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  13. "Niall Williams - Irish Writer from Kiltumper, Ireland". www.niallwilliams.com. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  14. "An Post Irish Book Awards » Shortlist unveiled for the An Post Irish Book Awards 2019" . Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  15. "Novel of the week". New Statesman . 5 July 1999. Archived from the original on 11 January 2011. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  16. "Niall Williams". 20 November 2021.
  17. Sweeney, Eamonn (13 October 2001). "Gaelic revival". The Guardian . London, UK. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  18. Fiona Hamilton, Sean O'Neill (16 January 2005). "Fiction: Only Say the Word". The Sunday Times . London, UK. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  19. "The Unrequited by Niall Williams". www.fantasticfiction.com. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  20. "Into the mystic". Irish Independent . 3 March 2007. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  21. "In a realm of higher purpose". The Irish Times . 7 July 2008. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  22. "Niall Williams". 20 November 2021.
  23. "Niall Williams - Biography" . Retrieved 13 August 2014.