Emma Bowd

Emma Bowd is a Melbourne-based author and children’s literacy advocate. She worked in London for many years as an Occupational Therapist, before channelling her life-long love affair with shoes into an exciting and successful international publishing journey, with her fiction (The Shoe Princess’s Guide to the Galaxy, Bloomsbury, UK) and non-fiction (A Passion for Shoes/Mad About Shoes, RPS, UK/US) books for adults. She has been a guest author on ‘BBC Radio 4 Women’s Hour’ and featured widely across print and online media.

A vibrant new voice in Australian children’s literature, Emma is delighted that her debut children’s picture book Wonderful Shoes – illustrated by the award-winning Tania McCartney and published by Windy Hollow Books – pays homage to all the small children of the world, who think shoes are just as wonderful as she does.

An experienced speaker and classroom presenter, Emma has a strong interest in writing stories for children with humour, candour and positive themes, which will appeal to reluctant and enthusiastic readers alike. A graduate of the Faber Writing Academy, Emma has been shortlisted in the 'Scribbles Creative Writing Awards' (sponsored by HarperCollins Children’s Books Australia) for her picture book and middle-grade fiction two years in a row.

A passionate advocate of children's literacy in disadvantaged communities in Melbourne for over a decade, Emma became a ‘Literacy Ambassador’ and ‘Writer in Residence’ for the National education charity, Ardoch in 2016. She is an active member of the children's literature community in Australia and enjoys engaging in social media, as well as running her own small business. Her other passions include fashion, family, travel, sewing, design, home renovation, Australian history, nature and the environment (especially reducing plastic waste).