Welcome

This is the official website of Sally Hinchcliffe, a writer living and working in Scotland. Here you can find information about me and my writing, contact me directly or through my agent, and anything else I think of to add.

Biography

Born in London in 1969, I grew up all over the world as my father served the Foreign Office in New York, Kuwait, Tanzania, Dubai, Zambia and Jordan.

I was educated at Dollar Academy, Scotland and Cranleigh School, Surrey. I read PPE at Oriel College, Oxford and then took an MSc in Information Technology at the University of the West of England (Bristol) – or Bristol Poly as it was then more prosaically known. In 2004 I did an MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck, taught by Julia Bell and Russell Celyn Jones. As part of the course, we set up and edited the inaugural edition of the Mechanics’ Institute Review, aka MIR

Since 1994 I have worked for the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in the IT department, developing databases to support its scientific work. In 2001 I took a two year sabbatical from Kew to work in Eswatini (then Swaziland) as a volunteer with Skillshare International.

In 2008 we left London to move to southwest Scotland where I work full time as a freelance writer and editor. I also spend much of my time cycle campaigning locally and nationally, through Cycling Dumfries, Pedal on Parliament, and the Women’s Cycle Forum Scotland.

Novels

My first novel, OUT OF A CLEAR SKY, was published by Pan Macmillan in May 2008, and was selected as the May Book of the Month by Radio Five Live’s Book Panel. It also featured as a Book at Bedtime on Radio 4.

My second novel, HARE HOUSE, will be published by Mantle Books on January 6th 2022.