Putting things in place: Karl Whitney looks to Tallaght of the past for context

The combination of the past and place is a powerful starting point for writing, says Karl Whitney

Skyline of Central Tallaght. Photo: Peyton Edward/Wikipedia

When I wrote my first book, I began the writing process by looking at a place I knew well, the southwestern Dublin suburb of Tallaght. In its time, Tallaght acted as lazy shorthand for a kind of working-class ne’er-do-wellism that had the middle-class Irish media frothing at the mouth. Over time, other suburbs or cities have played the same role – as rhetorical spaces onto which can be projected images of danger: no-go zones.

At the time I was writing, about a decade ago, Tallaght hadn’t fully shaken this perception, and alongside my own memories of the place, I wanted to explore the suburb’s wider significance.