Despite first putting pen to paper at the age of 52, Mary Larkin is frequently outselling her contemporaries, as she tells Marjorie McIntyre

SITTING in her immaculately neat suburban home in Darlington, Mary Larkin is the personification of a genial wife, mum and grandma. But Mary is no ordinary housewife, she is in fact a best-selling writer whose romantic novels have outsold most of her contemporaries.

Frequently described as Ireland's answer to Catherine Cookson, Mary was born and brought up in Belfast's Falls Road. And she lived happily in Ulster with her husband, Con, and three sons until the eve of her 40th birthday. It was then that Con secured a new job across the water and the family moved lock, stock and barrel to County Durham never to return to their Irish roots.

With her new book, Painful Decisions, now on the shop shelves, Mary spoke to us about her extraordinary literary life.

In a gentle brogue, which gives away her origins, Mary revealed that she was a mature 52 before she wrote her first book. Born in the notorious Falls Road area of Belfast, Mary has nothing but happy memories of her young days in the community which has so long been torn apart by trouble.

Like so many of her pals, Mary left school at 14 and went straight to work in the local mills as a weaver. She had always enjoyed reading but admits her home was far from a literary environment.

All her knowledge, she says, was largely gleaned from the constant chatter of her extended family. "As kids we loved sitting listening to the grown-ups talking, telling each other of the goings on."

Those tales and snippets of gossip, coupled with Mary's own lifetime experiences, would eventually provide the kindling for her often fiery novels. But if the ideas were there, the transfer of them into the written word would come much later.

"I was contented bringing up my three boys and looking after Con," she laughs.

But reaching her 50s, Mary had newfound time on her hands and began jotting down some of the ideas which had been buzzing around her head for years.

With encouragement from her family the jottings soon began to develop into a full-blown story. Set in Ireland in the early part of the 20th Century, her first book, The Wasted Years, drew on many of Mary's own experiences.

"I remembered working in the mills, going to the dances and those long adult conversations which we were told not to listen to.'' Clearly aware of the deep irreconcilable divisions which lay within her community, Mary nevertheless was keen to tell her stories with honesty and empathy.

Her first book was published in 1992 and was followed by seven more works, some of which pick up the thread of earlier stories.

The publication of The Wasted Years also co-incided with draughtsman Con being made redundant. But the loss of his job saw him turn his attention to Mary and her writing. Always supportive, Con continues to see to the administrative side of his wife's creative work.

It is only 15 years since Mary produced her first book - a decade and a half during which she has accumulated a large following of readers, particularly in Ireland.

Her book signings, especially in Belfast, attract large crowds and frequently see the hard back editions of her books outsell many of her contemporary's publications.

Her works are clearly standing the test of time and the completion of her latest book looks set to prove no exception.

Painful Decisions focuses on life in Belfast in the 1920s, where one of Mary's skillfully drawn characters, Tommy McGuigan, traumatised by action in the Somme, exerts a fierce influence over his family. As in all of her books Mary unfolds a saga of loves lost and found, deceit and jealousy.

They are well-told and well-woven stories with elements which will strike a familiar chord with readers. Mary clearly writes from the heart, but her books are by no means over-sentimental.

Now aged 72, she still exudes remarkable energy and earnestly hopes that more and more people will read her books.

Mary's life in her neat suburban Darlington home couldn't be further removed from the image of a best selling author. With Con in the adjacent conservatory sorting out emails from fans, Mary glances through the photographs of her most recent booksigning. Her writing has she admits "kept her and Con comfortably over the past 15 years".

But it's not money which drives this grandma of seven to keep on writing. "I feel I have so many stories inside me and I just want to be able to share them with as many people as possible," she says.

Judging from the endless lists of emails there are many who already do enjoy the books from the modest author with a gift for telling a tale.