Emily Wilson (S: 1982 - 1986) writes:

Dear Sidcotians,

Hello!

I left Sidcot in 1986 after five very happy years at the school. I ended up going into science, but I was really encouraged to read widely at Sidcot, and also to write poetry, and eventually I ended up as a journalist, working at the Bristol Evening Post, Daily Mirror, Mail and then, for 16 years, at the Guardian. Most recently I’ve spent five years as editor of New Scientist, the ‘world’s leading science magazine’. (I always call it that, and no one has yet brought in lawyers to contest it).

I am still in regular touch with Emily Fielden, who was in my year at Sidcot, by the way; our eldest sons have known each other since babyhood. 

Anyway! Over the years I have also developed a deep interest in history, and my new news is that I have written my first novel, called Inanna and it was published on August 1. It’s a retelling of the Epic of Gilgamesh (often described as the oldest piece of literature in existence), as well as some other very ancient Sumerian myths. Inanna is the first in a trilogy, so book two will be out in almost exactly a year. Inanna has sold out at Amazon.co.uk, but is still available at Waterstones and independent bookshops while my publisher does another print run.   

If you are interested in finding out more about Sumer, the world’s first ‘civilisation’ – where the novel is set - then I wrote this piece about that in Prospect magazine recently. You can read that here: https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/philosophy/language/62344/how-ai-aids-ancient-history

And if you want to know why I decided to write an epic trilogy about Inanna (who went on to become Ishtar, then, partly, Aphrodite) then this piece I wrote for the Guardian on her might be a good place to start: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/aug/05/somehow-i-failed-to-clock-her-magnificence-was-the-worlds-first-literary-hero-a-woman 

All the best to you all, wherever you are now in the world. And thank you to all my former teachers. Emily Fielden and I were just reminiscing this week about our much loved Sidcot teacher Mr Trow, if anyone remembers him?

Emily

Emily's book is available from Waterstones at the link here, as well as your local independent bookshop.