Lemon Soul Slices - June 2025
My 'not a newsletter' insight into writing life and my top recommendations of the moment
Welcome to Lemon Soul Slices - my monthly(ish) roundup on writing life, book news, what I love on Substack and a bunch of recommendations to help you procrastinate until your heart’s content. I share what I’m up to along with what I’m reading, watching and listening to, and there’s always the possibility of other surprises thrown in along the way. Lemon Soul Slices is free to all subscribers.
If you would like to read all new posts and have access to the full Lemon Soul archives as well as the Book Deal Diaries, please upgrade to paid. If this is not within your grasp when I switch over then simply email me and I will send you a coupon for 3 months free, no questions asked 💕🙏 🍋
Writing Life
In writing life, June has been what I would call a ‘sketchy’ month to say the least. What with 3 funerals and a wedding, Taz doing her GCSEs, Fiver doing Uni visits and Himself ending up in hospital for a week, the writing has taken a little bit of a back seat. Sometimes it can be incredibly hard to find the time to write when life ‘happens’, but on the flip side, I have a lot of reflections about it all, and will be sharing this in posts over the next few weeks.
One of the highlights of the year for me in writing world is The Women’s Prize Live, which took place on 11 June in Bedford Square Gardens. I was all prepped to go along, as I have for the last couple of years, as it’s a wonderful and unexpectedly intimate space to mingle with other writers, listen to readings and meet authors in a beautiful setting in the centre of London. I had invited my sister and my best friend to come with me this year, as they have been my biggest writing champions, as well as early editors of Breaking Waves. I wanted to treat them to a day out, as well as give them an insight into the writing community. I also knew that lovely Substack friends
and were going to be there and was so looking forward to a catch up. This year there was even a Substack workshop by the brilliant and which I was very excited about - not least because it shows how established this platform is becoming.What actually unfolded was my husband getting quite sick (he’s much better now), so I spent that day by his hospital bedside, attending the Women’s Prize vicariously through the WhatsApp updates of my sister and my bestie. They had a lovely time, did some fangirling on my behalf and brought me back a signed haul. I’m particularly glad my sister got to launch herself at
who I had wanted to meet for such a long time due to all her incredible work opening up conversations about grief. The title of Cariad’s book sums up why I wrote Breaking Waves - you are not alone.
Photos: A selection from the Women’s Prize including my sister with the super lovely Louise Minchin and the brilliant Cariad Lloyd.
This month’s scores for writing life:
Life: 1
Writing: 0
Me, he, Fiver and Taz - the latest from Walton’s Simpson’s Mountain
Where to start…
Taz finished the exam marathon that is the GCSEs, and is now in the long, hot summer of her dreams, although I anticipate it being less than 5 days before she gets bored. Their school leavers prom was wonderful, a definite proud mama moment. She’s now gearing up to a summer of gymnastics, and the Reading Festival (which I am utterly dreading her going to). Fiver didn’t go to Reading so this is my first experience of this hideous rite of passage which seems to have become a ‘thing’ here. Bunches of 16 year olds let loose in a 3-day festival the minute the exam results come out. What could possibly go wrong..?
Meanwhile Fiver and I had a fab night away in Cheltenham for a Uni visit, and she was very taken with the University of Gloucestershire - small, central, friendly and very accepting of her coming from a less traditionally academic pathway. It’s gone to the top of the list with a couple more visits to go.
As for Himself..? Well I will be writing about it, but due to lack of accessibility to antibiotics or medical care at a weekend, a toothache turned into near sepsis requiring 5 days on IV antibiotics and surgery. I think what was most startling was the rapidity of the evolving situation, how serious it could have become, and how easily it could all have been avoided. He’s just about fit again now but it scared the bejesus out of me for a short while. We had our 20th Wedding Anniversary just a couple of days ago, and celebrated in a very low key way with Chinese tea. (The traditional ‘theme’ for 20th anniversary gifts is china so I used some artistic licence).
Photos: Taz on prom night, Fiver & I in Cheltenham, me & he & tea
Substack Life
My Substack
On my Substack this month I refreshed my ‘hero’ post as well as celebrating my 2nd Substack Anniversary, sharing what I have learned from 2 years on this platform. I also found hope in the history books as I reflected on how the world feels at the moment, and how we have been here before…
My one from the archives this month is the first excerpt I posted from Breaking Waves. I’ve chosen this for a couple of reasons - there has been a lot to reflect upon in the last month, and this piece is all about ‘noticing’, and the ways we can find our own version of ‘rest’ amid the mayhem. As I write in it:
This is about how I began to inhabit the shape of water, and it is a story of noticing, of rescuing bees, and how cold water can be like sex…
I hope you enjoy it! Only paid subscribers have access to the archives. To read all archived posts you can upgrade here or if this isn’t within your reach then do email me for a 3 month free sub 💕
Exclusive: Breaking Waves Chapter 1
As the copy edits come to a close and Breaking Waves is hurtling ever closer towards actual publication (argh!!), I am going to share an exclusive excerpt from each of the 10 chapters between now and September, when it will become available for pre-order.
Substacks I love
Here are some of the stacks I’d love to champion this month - and as I write, I realise that as well as discovering their brilliant writing, all of these people I have now met in person and am honoured to count as friends and colleagues.
- . Sue has done a rebrand of her Substack about ‘midlife banter and reclaiming our wild sides’, and RIPE has been born. Sue writes with such honesty and heart, and describes RIPE as ‘Writing about post-trauma badassery, unapologetic ageing, gardening as witchcraft, menopausal resurrection, van life joyrides, better late than never publication, and neurospicy chaos.’ It’s funny, engaging, warm and raw. writes and well…you had me at that title. Amy is the most wonderfully generous person, and pours her heart and soul into creating community, supporting writers, sharing advice and expertise on so many aspects of branding and finding our unique voice. Amy has had 3 books published by Harper Collins, is a huge champion of other writers and is currently organising a huge summer party for Substack writers - WRITE UP. Take a look, she’s an absolute marvel.And on the subject of Amy… at a recent writer’s meet up she organised, I met up with the following two fabulous individuals and somehow ended up dancing with them in a cowboy hat in the daytime last Monday:
who writes Nirja is a doctor…but also… many things including a brilliant writer and amazing dancer. When I first heard Nirja read some of her writing at a Substack writers meet up, I was mesmerised by her candour, insight and the poetic quality of her words. In her publication she talks about life outside the medical world and wellbeing, with a focus on her passion for dance. This week I attended DanceStack with a whole group of other Substack writers, and Nirja taught us a dance sequence to Beyonce’s Texas Hold ‘Em. Despite it being way out of my comfort zone, it was just brilliant in every way - life affirming, friendly, joyful, inspirational. I’m so glad to have met her, and her Substack is filled with so much joy and dance - it’s a treat.Another remarkable woman I met through
‘s Substack meetups, and danced with at ‘s DanceStack, is . Louise is also a doctor and writes which in her words is about ‘finding my way in the creative world after an 18 year career in medicine as a paediatric, neonatal & trauma surgeon’. Wow. Louise has so much to share, and is an exceptional poet. Her work and life experience is immense, and the beauty and poignancy of her experiences shine through in her words. She also curates - ‘the home of in person events for creatives’. Take a look, you will feel so very welcome.The whole DanceStack day was such a joy - thank you to
for organising it with Amy & Nirja, and I loved meeting up with and - cannot wait to dance with you all again!!
Photos: With , with , with , with & , the DanceStack crew
Read more about DanceStack and watch our dance video here!!
Book Life - Breaking Waves
My first book baby, Breaking Waves, has been having a bit of a well earned break in June, although she (and I) featured in
’s Book Room this month
I’ve also had confirmed slots to chat about all things water, women and wellbeing at the prestigious Bridport Literary Festival (check out my Book Deal Diaries series for upcoming post about who I’m on a panel with - very excited!!), the newly formed Swanage Literary Festival at the very place my journey with open water began, the gorgeous Appledore Book Festival in Devon, and the magical Creative Light Festival on the Isle of Harris. So while it’s been ‘quiet’ in terms of active touring this month, there has been a LOT of work going on behind the scenes in preparation for the forthcoming festival season.
My first ‘gig’ of the summer is at the Wild Swimming Festival in Swanage 19/20 July. I’m taking part in the 2k Sea Swim on the Saturday - I really wanted to do the 4k but my health just won’t allow that right now. I’ll be attending various talks throughout the weekend, doing the sunrise Sunday morning swim and then at 10am on the Sunday I’m going to be in conversation with the festival organiser Rich - do come and join us for a chat if you are anywhere near Dorset - it’s free and open to all!! Let me know if you fancy a swim, chat or all of the above, it would be SO lovely to see you.
Book Life - Little Tufts of Tea
I haven’t been able to spend as much time as I’d have like on Little Tufts of Tea this month, but I did have an absolutely wonderful day at The Chinese Tea Company in London this week. The owner, Juyan Webster, was one of my tutors at the UK Tea Academy when I undertook my Tea Sommelier training in 2023. We drank tea together in her gorgeous tea shop just off Portobello Road and chatted for 4 hours on the most remarkable array of tea topics from the practice of circling graves of loved ones with tea mixed with rice to ward off ‘robbers’ from the next life, to the storytelling traditions of ancient tea houses, to how tea has become one of the five daily essentials of life in China. Absolutely fascinating and I could have stayed there for many hours more. Check out the Book Deal Diaries for future book excerpts.
All photos at The Chinese Tea Company in Portobello Road
My recommendations:
Amidst all of that, here are some of the highlights of what I’ve been reading, watching and listening to over the last month:
Reading
Books I’ve read:
Tiny Moons: A Year of Eating in Shanghai by
- this is an absolute bitesized delight. Nina is an award winning poet, and the lyricism and beauty of her words shines through in this small anthology of (as titled) a year of eating in Shanghai. From sesame pancakes to banana fritters and sticky rice dumplings to pineapple buns, this is a gorgeous collection of memories, relationships, seasons and insights into life in one of the world’s most populous cities. I could happily read her words every single day.Orbital by Samantha Harvey - I actually read this earlier in the year but haven’t had the chance to comment upon it. It was only when this was chosen as my book club book recently that I realised it was quite ‘marmite’ (love it or hate it). I am definitely in the ‘love it’ camp. I found myself frequently turning down pages, closing the book and having to pause to absorb the magnitude of what may have appeared to be a simple sentence, or just to appreciate the sheer beauty of the words. Whilst some people mentioned there was too much ‘geography’ or ‘science’ in the book, for me this is missing the point entirely. Those bits are merely the context for a book that causes you to reflect on what it means to exist at all. Quite remarkable and more than once it made me hold my breath in the best possible way.
I listened to a couple of books on audio this month, and they were both brilliantly narrated by their authors. Firstly My Name is Why by Lemn Sissay - the story of a young boy placed into foster care and then ejected into the wider care system at a critically formative life stage. Lemn is now a lauded poet and author but this book provides a heart breaking and shocking background of the neglect and misfortune over which he triumphed. Hugely insightful, warm, sad and a force for change.
The other brilliantly narrated book I have just listened to is One Ukrainian Summer by Viv Groskop. Described as ‘A memoir about falling in love and coming of age in the former USSR’, this ticks SO many of my boxes - travel writing, memoir, humour, language… It’s all the more poignant considering the war in Ukraine as this speaks of times of peace in that country after the collapse of the Soviet Union, but it is fascinating in its portrayal of a time of flux between the ‘old ways’ of the USSR and the burgeoning independence of the countries of the former union. Viv is truly hilarious, and as a language geek I LOVE all the translations and ‘lost in translations’ throughout. It’s delightful.
Finally this month I treated myself to another slice of healing fiction with What You Are Looking for is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama. I read this cover to cover in about 2 days. It tells of (spoiler alert) a library, and the librarian who seems to know just what to recommend to her enquiring customers. There are so many delicious details - from the tiny felt gifts she gives alongside her book recommendations to the subtle nuances laced within every interaction. The way the apparently independent stories knit together is so clever, never feeling contrived, just very natural and right. I very much want to go to this library…
Next up:
I’m going on holiday on Tuesday which is my opportunity to indulge - particularly in fiction. I read a LOT of non-fiction, and holidays give me the chance to go into real escapism mode. I have downloaded Butter by Asako Yuzuki, The Satsuma Complex by Bob Mortimer and The List of Suspicious Things by on audible but I need help choosing a few hand held books to pack in my suitcase alongside my audio selections. I am dying to read the follow on from My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (I read this in Italy last year and we’re back in Italy later this week), as well as the latest from Victoria Hislop but I feel I should be SENSIBLE and take some books from my extensive ‘To Be Read’ piles. Here is what I’ve pulled off my shelves - what would you recommend? Are there any of your ‘must reads’ here? I’d really need your help!! (I could literally open a bookshop with my TBR pile…)
Watching
On the tellybox this month I’ve done a couple of the big hitting streaming series. the first was one that Taz and Fiver convinced me to watch - The Last of Us. I really didn’t think it would be my thing, based as it is on a video game - I hate video games, but it is just so well cast I got totally sucked in. It’s quite strange and the narrative is very fitting of a video game - very episodic, relentless challenges, lots of fighting, but the pairing of Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal is sublime. They captured my heart.
Having finished the 50 million available seasons of Virgin River, I needed to find a new sweeping epic and decided to dive into Yellowstone. For me it is the love child of Succession and Dallas. A growly patriarch lording over his battling offspring with backstabbing and infighting galore, but set in the Wild West with sweeping vistas and a backdrop of barfights and rodeos. It’s far fetched and a bit ‘soapy’ but all the better for it, and Kevin Costner is magnificent. Get your stetson and boots on and crack open a beer.
In ‘traditional’ TV world, we came together as a family to watch the only programme that I think we now actually watch ‘live’, and pretty much the only thing we watch together - BBC’s Race Across the World. I can’t bear reality TV, but somehow this does not feel at all like reality TV, despite it following real people as they race each other from destination to destination with a tiny budget and no mobile phone. In this series the pairs set off from the Great Wall of China towards southern India, and it was as brilliant a series as ever. If you’ve never seen it and are sceptical of such programmes, trust me, it’s proper life affirming stuff.
On the big screen, I’ve had a bit of a cinema month, with mixed experiences. Two film adaptations of great books were truly disappointing, and not because I’m a ‘oh the book is always better’ purist - they just weren’t very good. The first one was The Salt Path. While it was well cast and acted, for some reason the most compelling parts of the book (why the couple became homeless in the first place, and the betrayal of a friend and the drama of the court proceedings) were all but glossed over. This part of the story was given a cursory mention in the form of the flashback, but the focus was almost entirely on the ‘walk’ around the Cornish coast itself. While the walk is truly beautiful, and it made a great read, on film it was strangely, well, repetitive and boring (in my humble opinion).
The other film that I was VERY disappointed with was The Penguin Lessons. This made me quite sad as it is actually one of my all time favourite books. The original story is joyful, centring on its young (23 year old) adult protagonist who rescues a penguin, and how the consequences of his relationship with the penguin change his life forever. There are gorgeous connections in the book between the penguin and various characters, and not only are these largely omitted from the film, but the ‘23 year old’ is played by Steve Coogan - a British actor in his mid-50s. This totally changes the story arc, requiring a back story, and a completely different emphasis. A large part of the charm of the book is that the man who befriends the penguin is so young, and only just out of education himself. I spent the whole film puzzling as to why on earth Steve Coogan had been cast, until I saw at the end that he is the executive producer. So ultimately it became a vanity project at the expense of the story.
The one film I couldn’t recommend more, however, is Ocean by David Attenborough. It is insightful, terrifying, extraordinary, beautiful, anger-inducing, educational, hopeful and necessary. David Attenborough has made the most extraordinary impact through his lifetime of filming and educating us on all manner of aspects of the natural world, but never moreso than this. It is an absolute unqualified ‘must-see’, for everyone.
Once again, there is never a dull moment!
I’d love to hear if you’ve seen or read any of the above, what has piqued your interest in my June roundup, and what your favourite recommendations are too.
As always…
Love & lemons 💕🍋
Em xxx
You can order my 5-star rated book BREAKING WAVES: Discovery, Healing and Inspiration in the Open Water here:
For access to the inside track on the book publication process (what it’s REALLY like) read my dedicated Book Deal Diaries series. This includes the ultimate VIDEO MASTERCLASS ‘From Book Inception to Book Deal Moment’.
Paid subscribers have access to this and the full Lemon Soul archives.
Oh Emma, this is delightful, and I am just so humbled to be included in such auspicious company! It has been the greatest privilege to meet you, twice now, and to feel the instant warmth of a kindred soul. If anyone is curious, there’s a little video on LiveStack where I go totally fan-girl, whispering “Emma Simpson is over there…!!”. And now I get to call her a colleague and friend.
I was in a tiny branch of Waterstones this weekend. Not even really a branch, a concession within another store. And there on the shelf was Breaking Waves. And I pointed it out to my young children, proudly telling them “my friend wrote that book!”, and my boy child (7) got all excited and said “oh yes! I’ve seen that one on your shelf, mummy!”. Anyway. I love these little slices of joy. Emma, you’re amazing. Have the best holiday ever. Also, we need to organise the next gathering. SwimStack?! Xx
What a month Emma! 🙌🏻
If you're still picking from the TBR pile can I put in a vote for Hot Milk and Half a Yellow Sun? Both I read years ago but the stories live rent free in my head so vividly. Hot Milk you could probably do in a day.
Interesting points on Penguin Lessons - I've only seen the film (by chance!) and enjoyed it though no idea it departs so much from the book. So much of the films story relied on the professor being middle aged man with grief and other baggage, so can totally see how a younger character would change the meaning.
Thanks for sharing! X