"That attitude is changing" - Longford authors discuss independent publishing

County Longford has plenty of talent and creativity, whether that be through a professional job, recreational activity, or building a career in the arts sector. However, rather than wait for the “big break”, some individuals are prepared to bring their work to life through other means.

The evolution of technology to provide more opportunities and platforms has been advantageous for those who want to get their work out there without the industry pressures.

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One of the most prevalent forms of media that has been produced is independent (or self) publishing. Many Longford authors have decided to take it upon themselves to produce their books, have them printed, and get them up in local stores around respective towns and counties. Eileen Moynihan and Benny Reid are two authors who have used platforms to create a blog to market their books. They gave some reasons why, in the end, they decided to pursue this route to do it themselves:

“I did try the traditional route for a few years and I never heard back from some publishers, I got some, 'thanks but no thanks' replies and some encouraging feedback,” explained Eileen. “I was left waiting from three to six months or more for an answer. Some publishers wanted you to only apply to them and so you were left hanging around.

Personally I felt I was getting too old to be playing this waiting game. I then heard about Amazons CreateSpace which was the precursor to KDP and began my self-publishing route.”

A similar response was shared by Benny Reed, who released “Out on Our Own” (2025).

“I’m in my 80s. If I'd been 20 years younger, I may have addressed traditional publishers. I'm quite happy to go with my local printer.”

Both Eileen’s recent release of her second publication, ‘Finding the Scribe’ (2025), and Benny’s ‘Out on Our Own’ (2025) are available on Buy the Book. The latter has had 600 prints, and Benny said that 75% of them have been sold across the globe.

Helena Grimes, a Longford artist now based in Limerick, has dabbled in the independent book world, but not as the author.

She has an extensive portfolio of illustrations, and illustrated for the independent children’s book 'Thinking Star’ by Anna Callaly (2020).

“What I loved about working with Anna and ‘Thinking Star' was dealing directly with the author who wrote the story. She very much trusted my style and creative process yet was very capable of directing the imagery.

It allowed for something really authentic to be produced. It also just felt really special and a lot of hard work went into it. There was also great flexibility on particular deadlines so I never felt overly stressed which can really hinder the creative process.”

The divide between traditional and independent publishing over quality and quantity do not deter these authors from taking pride in their work.

“It’s the way things are. There are closed shops everywhere. I’m very conscious of that,” concluded Benny. “My book is available in the shops and very much available in other places.”

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Eileen added: “That attitude is changing. Since the pandemic it has gotten even harder to be published by traditional publishers so many more people have turned to self-publishing or Indie Publishing as many prefer to call it. Indie Authors Ireland started as a Facebook group for indie authors in Ireland or Irish authors living abroad and it is growing by the minute.”