PS I Love You: The Rise of Cecelia Ahern

Cecelia Ahern

Updated On: November 07, 2023 by   Ciaran ConnollyCiaran Connolly

Here at ConnollyCove, we take pride in all the famous writers Ireland has produced. Cecelia Ahern is a contemporary author who has had major book and film success throughout her ongoing career.

Cecelia Ahern
Cecelia Ahern
Sourced: Flickr, Join Sparkle

Continue reading to discover the life and novel success of iIrish novelist Cecelia Ahern.

Life

Cecelia Ahern was born in Dublin on 30th September 1981. Before becoming a writer, Cecelia attended Griffith College Dublin and studied Journalism and Media Communications.

She began working towards a masters degree, however, dropped out to begin her career as a writer. She is married to David Keoghan and they have two children: Robin and Sonny. They still live in Dublin.

International success

Cecelia Ahern
P.S I Love You movie cover
Sourced: Flickr, Zhao Tianchi

Cecelia Ahern’s writing success began in 2002 when she was 21-years-old. At 21 she began writing her first novel. This novel became her first best-seller:  “PS. I Love You”. This novel was published in 2004 and was Ireland’s number one bestselling novel for 19 weeks.

It was also number one bestseller in the U.K, U.S and across Europe. This novel success continued and soon was adapted into a film. The film, starring Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler, began production in October 2006 and was released in the U.S. on 21 December 2007.

Cecelia Ahern’s international bestselling success continued with her second novel “Where Rainbows End”, more commonly known as “Love, Rosie”.

This novel was also adapted into a movie called “Love, Rosie” which was released in 2014. This novel is uniquely written through letters, emails, messages and newspaper articles. This follows the life of Rosie Dunne as she overcomes many challenges and falls for her best friend. An amazing and funny love story.

Work since

Cecelia Ahern
Cecelia Ahern Novels
Sourced: Flickr, Nour Gazzaz

Since her success both in the writing and film worlds from her first two novels, she continued writing more successful novels and is still writing today.

She has also written short stories, series for television and articles for magazines. In total, she has written 15 novels, with her 16th on the way this Autumn. Her third novel was published in November 2005, entitled “If You Could See Me Now”. It was later published in America as “A Silver Lining”.

This was followed by “A Place Called Here” which was published in 2006. This follows the journey of Sandy Shortt who works for the Garda. She helps Jack Ruttie find his lost brother, however, becomes lost herself.

In 2008, Cecelia published her 5th and 6th novels: “Thanks for the Memories” and “The Gift”. “Thanks for the Memories” follows Joyce Conway’s life after waking up from a blood transfusion with new memories and knowledge she didn’t have before. “The Gift” is about Lou Suffern who wishes to be in 2 places at once and time is his enemy. He meets a homeless man who changes his life.

Then, in 2009, “The Book of Tomorrow” was published. Followed by “The Time of my Life” (published in 2011), “One Hundred Names” (published in 2012), “How to Fall in Love” (published in 2013), and “The Year I Met You” (published in 2014). Her novel “The Year I Met You” follows the journeys of Jasmine, who loses her job, and Matt, who hits rock bottom, who meet on New Year’s Eve.

Recent Publications and Future

In recent years, Cecelia Ahern has published “The Marble Collector” in 2015, “Flawed” and “Lyrebird” in 2016, and “Perfect” in 2017. The inspiration for her novel “Lyrebird” came from David Attenborough’s documentary on the birds, “Flawed” was her first young-adult novel, and “Perfect” is the sequel to her young-adult novel “Flawed”.

As Cecelia Ahern continues to write we, at ConnollyCove, are excited to see what this young author publishes in future years. We know that coming soon is her sequel to “PS. I Love You”. This novel is due to be published in Autumn 2019 called “Postscript”, and we cannot wait to see its success!

Other Work

Cecelia Ahern
Samantha Who? Co-created by Cecelia Ahern
Sourced: Flickr, Jéssica T

Cecelia Ahern co-created the ABC Sitcom “Samantha Who?” which aired from 15 October 2007 until 23 July 2009. In total, releasing two seasons and 35 episodes. This television series is an Emmy-award winning comedy.

She has also written many short stories. One of her most famous short stories is “Mrs. Whippy”. This follows Emelda’s struggles after her husband leaves her for a younger woman. She struggles to raise her five sons who worship their father, she struggles at her new job at a market. She finds comfort in ice cream from the Mr. Whippy ice cream van. This novel became her first work to appear in theatre. It was run in Dublin’s Liberty Hall for the first time in 2008.

Awards

Cecelia Ahern
Love, Rosie movie poster
Sourced: Flickr, screen relish

Cecelia Ahern’s career started when she was only 21-years-old, along with her successful novels and film adaptions, came many awards. For her first novel “P.S I Love You”, she was nominated for the British Book Awards 2004/5 Best Newcomer.

Following this, her second novel “Where Rainbows End” (Love, Rosie) was awarded the Irish Post Award for Literature and the 2005 German CORINE Award.

Then, in 2008 her novel “Thanks for the Memories” was nominated for Most Popular Book in the British Book Awards. In 2008 she was also voted Author of the Year in the UK Glamour Women of the Year Awards. Later, in 2009 the Irish Tatler awarded her Writer of the Year at the Woman of the Year Awards.

She has also written pieces for many short story collections such as: “Moments” published in 2004, “Irish Girls are Back In Town” published in 2005, and “Roar: Thirty Women, Thirty Stories” published in 2018.

As well as her many wonderful fictional works, Cecelia Ahern has also written pieces for Express Magazine.

Fun Facts

  • She is the face of Littlewoods Ireland.
  • Cecelia was previously part of a pop group Shimma- came third in the Irish national final of the Eurovision Song Contest
  • Her sister, Georgina Ahern, married Westlife’s Nicky Byrne.
  • She has contributed to charity books through giving money from her royalties from her short stories (such as “Irish Girls are Back in Town” and “Ladies Night”)
  • Her first novel “P.S I Love You” was sold in over 40 countries
  • Over 25 Million books have sold worldwide.
  • She is married to David Keoghan and they have been nominated for the VIP Style Award for Most Stylish Couple

If you enjoyed this article about the novels and works of the Irish author Cecelia Ahern, please enjoy more of our articles about famous Irish authors:

Two Authors | One Man | John Banville | Ireland Through a Canvas | 30 Greatest Irish Artists | A-Z | William Butler Yeats: A Poet’s Journey | Famous Irish Authors Who Helped Promote Irish Tourism | 100 Best Irish Historical Fiction to Consider Reading 

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *