Sean Hillen
Sean worked for national Irish and British newspapers including ‘The Irish Times’ in Dublin and 'The Times' in London, as well as the BBC, before emigrating to the United States, first to the United Nations Media Center in New York, then in American print and broadcast media.
After winning a series of journalism awards, Sean left the US for Eastern Europe just after the fall of the Berlin Wall to establish the first journalism schools in post-Communist Romania with the Human Rights League and to teach at the University of Bucharest.
Sean directed media projects with a range of international development agencies there including the United Nations Development Fund, the British Council, the Soros Foundation for an Open Society, UNICEF and the United States Agency for International Development.
He later became foreign correspondent for The Times, London, then The Daily Telegraph and chairperson of US Fulbright Commission.
Aside from training books on journalism, Sean also penned 'Digging for Dracula' - best described as “an informative, light-hearted intra-country travelogue.” Sean is also a blogger and travel writer for Fodor's and JustLuxe.com
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Sean’s first novel is a contemporary one, entitled ‘Pretty Ugly.’ Published in 2016, it deals with a growing health concern in the US today – the use of nano-particles in everyday cosmetics, their potential danger as they migrate within the human body and the almost complete lack of government regulation governing their ever-increasing use.
‘Pretty Ugly’ transforms a modern-day medical controversy into fiction form by focusing on the challenges facing an unlikely trio – a supermodel, a skin specialist and a struggling newspaper reporter – as they lift the veil of secrecy on a powerful cosmetics company intent on concealing the health hazards from toxic ingredients in its products.
Ironically, in this case, the danger is concealed inside a simple concealer – nano-particles so small they invade nerve and blood cells causing untold damage to users.
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Sean's latest book is a historical fiction novella entitled 'Driver's Diary - Death at the Mouth of Flowers.' It is a fictional version, based in part on verified historical facts, as to who planned, plotted and assassinated Michael Collins. And what they had to gain from such a dastardly act.