Annabel Abbs - Windswept - Deep Ink March/April 22

Despite a couple of technical difficulties, we enjoyed a fascinating conversation with Annabel Abbs, author of March/April's deep read Windswept. Abbabel shared not only the untold stories of a series of remarkable women who found freedom walking in the wild but also how many forgotten women she had to leave out.

With an 'experimental' upbringing in the Welsh countryside that involved walking everywhere and living according to the principles of the philosopher Rousseau, it is no surprise that Annabel developed a passion for the great outdoors and for remedying the oversights of a massively male-dominated culture.

Frustrated that no one, even renowned (male) philosophers, included women in the narrative of the outdoors, Annabel immersed herself in forgotten female-authored guidebooks and the diaries and letter papers of some of our most significant cultural figures. The story that emerged, for the very first time, was the extent to which these influential women used the outdoors to find freedom and "to become".

A truly insightful and inspiring conversation for everyone interested in how the natural world relates to the creative process, and the way that a dominant male culture has for years forced even the most remarkable women to exist in the shadow of men.

Windswept featured in Deep Ink, our subscription which features a deep read every other month, alongside our regular monthly Adventurous Ink selection.