I’ ve read other authors talk about making their passion their work, only to find that they didn’ t then enjoy the sport or hobby they had initially fallen in love with.
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When, where and why did the idea of writing SUP books come about? Having paddleboarded 162 miles coast to coast from Liverpool to Goole in 2019, picking up litter and fundraising for the 2 Minute Foundation and The Wave Project, I knew the joy being on the water gave me and how it had enriched my life. I wanted other people to experience that same joy, and by exploring, researching and writing about places around England, Scotland and Wales, I could open up opportunities for them to discover it too.
There wasn’ t a GB-wide travel guide dedicated to paddleboarding, and I wanted to change that. I felt that as a community, we deserved our own guides that best reflected our sport. Lockdown allowed me to think about and pitch the idea to different publishers.
‘ Stand Up Paddleboarding in Great Britain- Beautiful Places to Paddleboard in England, Scotland and Wales’ was published in 2022 by award-winning Vertebrate Publishing.
Following the success of the first book, I was commissioned to write‘ Stand Up Paddleboarding in The Lake District- Beautiful Places to Paddleboard in Cumbria’, which was published in 2024 and recently won the Lakeland Book Awards Zeffirellis Guides and Places Award.
Next up is‘ Adventures on the Water – The Power of Paddleboarding to Change Lives’, which came out in 2025.( See Dale Mears’ and Natasha Sone’ s reviews in this issue).
This is a‘ one of a kind’ book that brings together 25 personal essays from incredible and inspiring paddlers across various disciplines, along with scientific research on the benefits of SUP for our wellbeing, and a fantastic resource of top tips, favourite gear, locations, and snacks. It’ s an uplifting, encouraging and interesting read, and I’ m really proud to share the fabulous stories of people I’ ve admired for many years.
What gives you a buzz from publishing? Ooh, good question! Ultimately, it’ s about creating something that will bring joy to others, provide them with helpful information, and open up new dreams and adventures.
I think there is an excitement at each stage of publishing a book – from coming up with the initial idea, working on it until it feels good enough to pitch, and getting the goahead to start researching. Research is always a joy – first at my desk, where I review maps, take notes, and consult with other paddlers; then out on the water around the country.
The next phase is writing up, which requires quiet time to go through my notes and photos – thousands of them!
Then comes the editing with the Vertebrate Publishing team checking every fact and reference. They are very thorough!
Finally, it’ s publication and promotion – sharing the book, the stories and the places I’ ve included.
Seeing my book in a bookshop or in someone’ s hands is a thrill, and I’ m grateful when that happens!
What are the plans regarding future book publishing, if any? I think I’ m going to pause and enjoy the books I’ ve written for a while, really sharing the joy of SUP through them. I have a habit of always looking ahead to the next project, and for now, I want to take a moment to celebrate the three I’ ve written in the last four years. It’ s been a wild ride!
I also just want to enjoy paddleboarding! I’ ve read other authors talk about making their passion their work, only to find that they didn’ t then enjoy the sport or hobby they had initially fallen in love with. I love SUP and want the space to simply have fun! I also want to cheerlead other SUP books coming onto the market. It’ s great to see the bookshelves growing!
Let’ s see what unfolds …
You do plenty of speaking to audiences – how do you prepare, and do you ever get nervous? I do get nervous, yes, but I also know I’ m not preten ding to be anyone else but me when I speak, and I know what I’ m talking about, as I’ ve lived it. My goal is to share the joy of the water, believing in yourself and having adventures that make your heart sing. As long as I’ m professional, authentic, and focused on what’ s right for the audience, I remind myself that I’ ll be OK.
I also have some gorgeous slides with beautiful photos and two small films, so they provide an excellent structure for my talk.
I’ ve read other authors talk about making their passion their work, only to find that they didn’ t then enjoy the sport or hobby they had initially fallen in love with.
WHERE DID THE IDEA OF YOUR LATEST BOOK,‘ ADVENTURES ON THE WATER’, COME ABOUT?
Having written two guidebooks focused on the‘ Where and How’ of paddleboarding, I wanted to pivot and focus my attention on the‘ Who and Why’ of SUP – why we paddle, what it does to enhance our lives, and, most importantly, share the stories of inspiring paddlers. It felt like the right time to branch out to a new type of book within SUP.