Breaking Waves
Emma’s first book, Breaking Waves, was published by Icon Books in March 2025 to consistent 5-star reviews. Breaking Waves is a warm, reflective and uplifting memoir about healing wounds, reclaiming a voice and discovering freedom through the open water. Emma discovered wild swimming during a period of immense grief and there she found an
unexpected source of hope and strength, a profound sense of connection and a glorious sisterhood of women. Interweaving the tales of these inspirational women with reflections on her own experiences, Emma explores themes ranging from devastating loss to birth and rebirth, and from chronic illness to body confidence. Whether describing the taste of an iceberg or a kiss from a baby whale, Breaking Waves is a love letter to womanhood and the open water. It’s also a celebration of community, renewal and the power of going with the flow.
Excerpt:
‘Recently, while circumventing a particularly large swan, I came across a little bee on her back on the surface of the water, trapped in the meniscus, fighting for her life.
Suspended in that liminal moment between life and death, she almost appeared to be peacefully sunning herself without a care in the world, the deceptive reverie interspersed with intense yet futile spasmodic efforts to right herself and fly away. The lifeguard approached, noting that I had stopped swimming, him caring for me as I cared for the bee.
Together we flipped the little bee onto the rescue board, where she crawled into a patch of sunlight to recover. In that moment I felt a unique sensation of joy and connectedness to something bigger in the world, a feeling of playing a part in the greater symphony of life on earth. My kind and gentle Dad used to rescue poorly bees, scooping them up and feeding them sugar and water in the palm of his hand – I could feel his smile behind the sunlight.’
Emma says:
"The most magical thing about having Breaking Waves out in the world is the connections I have made – with the incredible women featured in the book, and with all the people who have got in touch with me to tell me how much they’ve loved reading it. It was my dream to hold my book in my hand, and for my words to make a difference to someone just at the time they might need to read them, and in both of those ways it has been a dream come true."
