Rory Callan Biography

Born in 1976, Rory Callan was educated in the Christian Brothers’ School in Dundalk, Ireland. He attended the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, where he studied Theology and History before completing his post graduate work in University College Dublin. He has worked as a secondary school teacher since 2001.

It was in his role as a Special Educational Needs teacher that he encountered the difficulty of getting good quality books that could hold the interest of reluctant teenage readers. After many frustrating searches, he decided to write a series of football themed books for his students. Football All Stars was the result.

The books generated much interest and lively discussion amongst the students. For the first time, many of the pupils were enjoying rather than enduring a reading experience. With this positive feedback, Rory knew the series would appeal to a much wider audience.

Rory lives in Ireland with his wife and three children.

How I Found the Agency

My search for a publisher started with the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook. I selected the agents I thought would be interested in my work. I proceeded to read through the websites of over 30 agents. Only one impressed me, www.andrewlownie.co.uk . The content on the website is vastly superior to any comparable site. I submitted my work taking care to follow strictly the guidelines set out by Andrew. To my surprise, I received a response early the next day. Everything I had read and heard about the publishing world told me that I would be waiting for months before receiving contact from a prospective agent or publisher. Andrew’s approach is the polar opposite of this. My emails and phone calls are responded to post haste and from the beginning Andrew has being encouraging and positive about my work and ideas. In the current market and as a hitherto unpublished author, I realise that I have been very lucky to find a publisher for my books. I think Andrew’s dedication and hard work had a major part to play in my good fortune.