Samantha Xia-Quan Symonds (she/her) is a freelance writer, editor, journalist & poet; marketing and brand strategist; scientific diving instructor, yoga teacher and passionate environmentalist from Europe’s youngest city.
British Singaporean-Chinese she writes on taste to trauma; her op-eds, features & interviews feature, or are forthcoming, in print and online publications including Alpinist Magazine, Canadian Geographic, Culture Trip, Financial Times and Well+Good and her short stories and poetry have won independent literary prizes. She is a qualified PADI Scuba Instructor, certified 200YT Yoga Teacher and avid rock-climber that has collaborated with organisations including RNLI, GetYourGuide, ISO, The Barbican Centre, Lurpak/Arla Foods, The Linnean Society, The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA), Race Reflections, The Climbing Initiative, Empowering a Billion Women, Amazon Lex & Women’s Bouldering Festival.
She studied English & Creative Writing at Brunel University London under three of her idols (Bernadine Evaristo, Will Self & Benjamin Zephaniah), speaks 2.5 languages, and once gave herself a shark bite whilst sport climbing. She posts on most platforms @samxsymonds
