Anna Wilson

Anna Wilson is a British children’s author, editor and writing mentor whose work spans picture books, novels, early readers and non-fiction for young audiences. She began her career in publishing as a picture book editor at Macmillan Children’s Books and later at HarperCollins, where she worked with titles such as Paddington, before turning to writing full-time.

Anna’s writing often reflects her love of the natural world and imaginative storytelling. She lives near Penzance in Cornwall, England, where she draws inspiration from the sea and wildlife around her. In her children’s writing, she often celebrates the natural world and imaginative storytelling. Her picture book The Wide, Wide Sea (also published in some regions under titles like The Wild, Wild Sea) is a lyrical story about a child’s connection with the ocean and a seal, and explores themes of environmental care and plastic pollution, drawing on her own experiences as a wild swimmer and nature lover.

In addition to her children’s books, she has written a memoir and teaches creative writing through workshops and programmes in the UK. Her adult book A Place for Everything is a personal account of her life growing up with a mother whose autism went undiagnosed until late in life and explores the impact of that experience on her family.

Since her first book, Over in the Grasslands, published in the late 1990s, Anna has written dozens of books for children and teens — from picture books and fiction series to nature-focused non-fiction and her work has been chosen for World Book Day, shortlisted for literary prizes, and translated into multiple languages.