October 2017 NUI Galway Graduate Signs a Six-Figure Book Deal

NUI Galway MA in Literature and Publishing graduate Catherine Doyle has signed a six-figure deal with Bloomsbury Children’s Books for her novel, The Storm Keeper’s Island.

The Storm Keeper’s Island tells the story of Fionn Boyle, who is sent away for the summer to stay with his grandfather on the magical island of Arranmore. His arrival awakens an ancient magic buried deep in the island’s layers – and the adventure that follows sees him face his fears and embrace his destiny as the Storm Keeper’s heir.

The novel will be published in the UK and Australia in July 2018, and the US in early 2019.

Catherine said: “Having grown up listening to my grandfather’s stories of daring sea rescues and adventures on Arranmore Island, it’s wonderful to be able to write a magical island story that has been inspired by them. This is very much the book of my heart and in Bloomsbury I believe it has found the perfect home.”

Dr Rebecca Anne Barr, Director of MA in Literature and Publishing at NUI Galway said: “I’m delighted by the success of our recent graduate, Catherine Doyle. Catherine excelled in her MA degree, where she studied literature, contemporary publishing, and the marketing of YA fiction.

As a writer she unites this understanding of the publishing world with her individual creativity, earning her a huge following among young readers around the world. Catherine regularly returns to the MA in Literature and Publishing to give talks to our students on the genre of Young Adult Fiction and the use of social media in publishing. We look forward to celebrating her achievement and to reading many more of Catherine’s books in the future.”

Catherine’s writing career launched after she secured a three-book deal for her Young Adult Blood for Blood triology with the same international publisher who discovered JK Rowling, the creator of the Harry Potter series.

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