Hello, I’m Aoife

I started swimming in the sea one October because a friend dared me to, and I have not stopped since. I go down to the slipway most mornings, whatever the weather, and I write about it afterwards while my hands are still shaking. The writing began as a way to remember what the water felt like. It turned into a weekly letter.

The essays are not about being brave. Most days I do not want to get in, and I get in anyway, and the essay is what happens in the minute after that. I write about the body, the weather, the people who swim beside me and the small decisions that add up to a year.

I am not an athlete or a trained writer. What I sell is what I use: collections of my essays, a journal for noticing the seasons, a workbook for writing your own personal essay, and two video courses for people who have something to say and no idea how to begin.