Jean Grainger Books

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Jean Grainger is an Irish author that writes general and historical fiction. While she has given history lectures at university and taught English, History, and Drama in secondary school, the playwright’s days as a tour guide did more to impact her publishing career.

Her clients took note of the wealth of stories she had accumulated and encouraged her to collect them in a book. She followed their advice, eventually becoming a self-published bestseller.

The author is proud of her writer friends that have secured deals with traditional publishers. But from what she has seen, they don’t make money. On the other hand, Grainger makes far more money from indie publishing than she ever did from teaching.

The author worked as a tour guide for a decade. American companies would hire her to regale visitors with interesting stories about Ireland’s myths, legends, and history. She loved the job. However, it was unsustainable because it took the author away from her family.

This compelled her to embrace teaching. She went back to school, secured a degree, and landed a teaching position. Grainger was convinced that teaching would consume the rest of her life. Everything changed in 2012.

She wrote a book and tried to publish it. But every agent she approached turned her down. Fortunately, her husband encouraged Grainger to persevere. Her big break came when she attended a self-publishing workshop in Dublin after seeing an ad.

By the time Catherine Ryan-Howard and Vanessa O’Loughlin were done, the author knew enough to kickstart her self-publishing career. Grainger is quick to correct people who think indie publishing is free.

She spends hefty sums on advertising. That doesn’t include the fees her editor, Helen Falconer, charges. The author writes 5,000 words a day because quantity is vital in self-publishing. Her readers are voracious.

She must maintain a relatively quick production pace to satisfy them. Grainger doesn’t bother Helen until she has completed two drafts. Helen is the structural editor. The pair will spend hours unraveling the new manuscript before reconstructing it.

Once she does another rewrite, her copy editor in New York enters the picture and spends the next four weeks refining the manuscript. The final stop is Grainger’s crew of advance readers.

She expects them to point out all the errors, plot holes, and typos. She is eternally grateful to the team because she doesn’t pay them. They read her manuscripts because they love her work.

Life as a self-published author is not easy. Grainger understands the benefits of a traditional publisher. She knows it would be more convenient for them to do the heavy lifting where editing and advertising are concerned, while she makes writing her priority.

But she usually rejects the traditional publishers that come calling because she doesn’t see the benefit. Her self-publishing empire is doing quite well. She won’t rule out a future in indie publishing. But for the moment, she’s happy.

Best Jean Grainger Books

The author encourages readers to leave reviews for her books. She loves reading them and is often humbled by people that compare her work to Maeve Binchy. Grainger’s best books include:

The Star and the Shamrock: Ariella made a difficult decision. Berlin in 1939 was no longer safe. When her husband failed to return home, Ariella assumed the worst. The only way to protect her children was to send them away.

For Elizabeth Klein, life had lost its flavor. First, she lost her husband to the Great War. And then, her child followed soon after. Her heart was bruised. It couldn’t bear to love again, not when it meant exposing herself to more pain.

But Liesl and Erich Bannon needed her. She couldn’t afford to abandon them for her own sake.

The Tour: Conor O’Shea knows what to expect when she meets visitors at Shannon Airport every week. She has seen it all, or so she assumes. This new group is about to blow her expectations out of the water.

The visitors are unlike anyone she has ever seen. Corlene is a gold digger with multiple divorces under her belt. Patrick is a Boston cop in desperate need of love. Then you have the poisonous college professor, the wall street shark, and the goth.

Conor will lead them on a journey of self-discovery, all the while struggling to juggle their unique personalities.

When Does The Next Jean Grainger book come out?

The next book by Jean Grainger is Lilac Ink and will be released on July, 23rd 2024. It is the newest book in the The Knocknashee Story Series.

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