 He decided to write a children's book and said that if it was published that he would donate 50 books to Cromland's Children's Hospital and he has helped with fundraising there over the years as has his mum Eleanor who in fact has volunteered for over 30 years at the hospital. But it turns out that an American publishing company actually picked up the book it's called Sonny a Christmas Tale. So true to his word Morgan did donate 50 books to the hospital and the book is out now for Christmas and Morgan joins us on the line. Morgan a very good afternoon to you if you just bear with me one second. Morgan good afternoon. Hi how you doing? Nice talking to you John. Yeah likewise so you you came good on your promise anyhow you said that if it if it came to be that you got your book published that you would donate 50 copies to the to the hospital and how did well we'll get to the the pledge in just a moment but how did how did the book come about in the first place? I suppose it was just an idea I had I went to film school I've done a lot of traveling with my music over the years I was a singer-songwriter for 35 years still and I was over in London for a year trying to chase that elusive deal and I was in 2008 when the whole belly of the whole police the beast fell out and I came home and I enrolled in Dunleary School of Further Education and it was a film course and one of the classes was screenplay and I've always been writing always writing music poetry bits and pieces over the years and one of the teachers there was great inspiration and I just came up with the idea many years ago and kind of just it kind of just fell by the wayside you know and then when a when lockdown happened so we were stuck looking at each other and I thought you know what this is the time this is the time yeah yeah so it took me a while you know got it done was very happy about it you know so you should be I mean it's it's a brilliant little book in fact it's not a little book it might it feels quite slim but there's it tells a great little story and has a great drawing or great art in it as well and just perfect for this time of the year and a great wee story for kids to enjoy yeah I was thinking that as well like a perfect little stocking filler it's 11 euro you can't go far wrong you know and like I said the dog's sonny is real we got her at the very start of lockdown would you like to meet sonny oh yeah absolutely baby look at this everybody very good just so it's based on her yeah just like the cover her all her markings and she's just the most loveliest dog in the whole world she makes us so happy myself and my wife is going to yeah if I was gonna write a book we'll get something with such a lovely little heart like this yeah brilliant and and well whereabouts are you because and you you work between Belfast and Berlin so between Dublin and Berlin actually sorry thank you pardon yeah where are you at the moment I'm in Berlin actually yeah we're just out East Berlin a little place called Cooper Nick hey and yeah planning to move out to the country so I would like everybody else but the lockdown got in the way you know so yeah in Berlin and yeah just what's what's Christmas like in Berlin at the moment oh it's beautiful the Christmas markets are finally coming back it was the last two years was quite harsh a lot of them closed down and stuff you know but Berlin at Christmas time is beautiful it's beautiful at the moment now we're in a very harsh peak we've got three inches of snow outside and it is it was minus 13 when I woke up this morning all right you see we think it's harsh here at the moment because it was like minus one minus two overnight so yeah minus 13 and three inches of snow that's a different story yes yes and there's so they say there's a book in everyone and you realize that during during lockdown did it take you to take you long to complete it didn't it didn't you kind of go through phases you know like my wife is the technical side of the family if I just look at something digital it breaks down I still write my music with pencil and paper so yeah I just got out to sat on the kitchen table and started writing ideas ideas ideas and then would pass it over to her we'd read through it and she'd get her you know fingers out and start typing in for the publisher and stuff and it just slowly but surely came you know I worked with the with the guy from Dublin Brendan is his name and he he helped just edit it and kind of point me in the right direction and stuff you know the story to begin with was all the dogs were heroes and he said to me make sunny the hero I was like she's a baby how do we do that but anyway we did it and we got through and we changed little bits and pieces like everything it has a start and has an ending and you know so we got it done I'm very happy with it you know I mean and we all love a book that's you know it's it's got a Christmas at its heart and we you know kids love books with an animal Christmas huh exactly exactly and you know animal characters in them or animal characters at the heart and that's exactly what what Sonny is in this and how did how did it come about that you got an American publisher we just followed it out we sent it off to different people like you know to be honest with you it's not actually published per say by them we published it ourselves with them so if there's that there's us and there's them in between it like you know so it's not a full on publishing deal I'm still waiting for that contract but but it's self published with the with the company in America okay okay but widely widely available especially online yeah yeah you can get it on pretty much any Amazon you cannot get it on amazon.co.uk because of Brexit but every other amazon.com you can pretty much get it on anywhere else you can get it on and most bookshops if you order you can get it on in there as well like you know and the association with Cromland's Hospital and know that it goes back for your mom a long way and you've helped over the years as well with fundraising well me for a long way myself I was in a pretty bad accident when I was five years old and they pretty much saved my life I was in there for good few good few weeks so I've always had an affinity to them my mom has been working with them for my god 40 years 30 years you know I mean so a long time she's been doing the raising money for them and stuff like that you know I'd always just had a little place my heart for for them because they saved my life well if you can't be good to or someone like that then then who and you donated the 50 books anyhow through to your word yes yes which is great so that's that's in the children's words that they're yeah yeah yeah hopefully they're enjoying it like you know hopefully they're enjoying it okay so if someone's looking for the book it's it's the title is sunny and it's called sunny Christmas tale and it's by Morgan Mooney and it is out now just go online and just put in the title and and again it's if we go to sonny's tale calm you can it's a little website that brings you to that's easy enough it's just sonny's tale calm and if anybody would like to speak to us it's sonny's Christmas tale at gmail.com if they'd like to send us a quote or you know what they might think of the book or anything like that they can get in contact with us as well you know because it's always nice to get a bit of feedback and let's get ready for the next one you never know where Sony might end up next time I think she's an environmental activist to be honest with you okay never know she looks very adventurous anyhow so we wish Sonny well we wish you and your wife well and have a great Christmas thanks Morgan for having a chat with us. YouTube take care and happy Christmas to everybody bye bye