So who is this Emma Simpson?

What award?! Tea & books? Open water? Air traffic control? All sounds a bit bonkers...

Well...where do I start? For some reason at this point I start talking in my own head in an Irish accent. Both my parents are Irish, from County Offaly in the Irish Midlands, but more to come on that in book 2. When I start to describe myself, it comes out in the soft lilting tones of my dad, the most gentle and wise guiding light of my life, and the quiet centre of my world, even now, when he is no longer here. How lucky I have been.

I have an ‘About Me’ section on my website, which outlines how I became who I am today, what I connect with, what I write about; my love for tea, elephants, the colour purple and how I save bumblebees just like my dad used to. How the open water rescued me after my darkest days, and how friendships, nature and community feed my soul. But there is so much more...

I am fascinated by people - by what we experience and the capacity of our emotions; our strength, resilience, curiosity and sense of adventure. How we thrive and where we struggle, and what and who we turn to for survival and hope. As an air traffic controller and incident investigator I spent years as an observer of human behaviour in high stress environments; trying to understand why we make the decisions we do and the extent to which our ways of being are influenced by our wider contexts - past, present and future. I have studied psychology as well as the impact of natural hazard, disasters and crises on humankind, yet I am drawn to the soul over the science, and the power of connection, humanity and understanding in an increasingly complex society.

I have felt the exquisite pain of loss, as so many of us have. The experience of having life wrenched away from me in the blink of an eye, and it is so important for me to help others to know that they are never alone in their moments of darkness, regardless of how their feelings may manifest. I feel impassioned to share with others that they will again experience light and laughter, that even the hardest times bring unexpected joys, and that lost loved ones live on in so many ways. My brother who died had written a book that he never got published - I have a single typed copy of it tucked away in a box. He was a dreamer and an adventurer; he took risks, and he believed in himself. He also believed in me, and I feel that by dedicating my life to writing I am honouring his memory, as well as doing justice to that belief.

Life is all about connection, and it is a privilege to be able to listen to and share stories with others, often around the shores of a lake, and always with a steaming mug of hot tea. I write to capture the slices of kindness, warmth, pathos and humour I experience; I write to preserve the storytelling traditions of our past; and I write because I can’t not.

And as for that award...well that’s one for another time...

Love and lemons,

Em x