Rebecca Ryan

Rebecca Ryan is an author of contemporary, uplifting fiction. Her first book, My (extra) Ordinary Life was published by Simon & Schuster in 2023. It tells the story of Emily, an ordinary woman on a quest to be extraordinary, and explores the enduring nature of grief and loss. She has since published three further works of fiction, all of which incorporate themes of light and dark, heartbreak, joy, life, and death. It is the texture of regular life that interests her most. Rebecca’s second novel, The Philosophy of Love, was selected as Time’s Book of the Month.

Rebecca believes that everyone deserves creativity in their lives. Since 2024, she has worked to bring creative writing to her local community in Bradford. She has partnered with Bradford Libraries to run creative writing workshops and lectures in Creative Writing at Shipley College. She runs a weekly local novel group and runs creative sessions in schools. Growing up in a deprived area, Rebecca understands the challenges that some people and communities face and how they can feel like writing isn’t for people like them. Her work, beyond her authorship, focuses on widening access to creative writing. 

Before she became a published author, Rebecca worked as a history teacher at Titus Salt School for over a decade. She now lives in Bradford with her partner, their five children, five guinea pigs, and forty-seven sheep. For her next project, she is planning to write a novel for young adults.