ABOUT SAMANTHA (XIA) SYMONDS WRITER
talk about life-long writing goals, my dream dinner menu then wax lyrical about my spare time… but you need to know about a writing project.
So let’s talk about what you need from a writer:
I have over a decade of Professional copywriting & marketing strategy experience
From winning an internship at Ogilvy in London before graduating, managing digital strategy for non-profits and charities in the UK, US, Australia & Asia, to overseeing a remote team of almost 200 writers (and proofing their work!) for one of the world’s biggest Fortune companies… and I’ll also support junior writers with career advice and (paid) mentorship!
I genuinely just love working with words.
My specialist knowledge covers a lot of niche topics
Charitable causes (especially animal rescue, conservation, diversity in music & arts), international travel, B2B, scuba-diving, cultural food writing, digital AI technology, rock-climbing, lifestyle, remote team management, mental health and wellness… anything else, just ask!
Recognised & degree-level qualifications back up my work
Getting an Upper Second-Class Honours Bachelor of Arts in English with Creative Writing from Brunel University London, I studied under 2019 Booker-Prize winner Bernadine Evaristo, a poet Laureate that said no to an OBE, Benjamin Zephaniah and British Broadcaster and Author Will Self.
I am also a PADI Open Water Scuba & Emergency First Response Instructor and certified freediver, a qualified Yoga Teacher with TEFL training and in a past life achieved Grade 8 in ABRSM Musical Theatre.
English is my thing, but I speak Mandarin, German & AP/Oxford Referencing too
I can have casual and business discussions in the first two, but can’t promise the third. (Maybe Harvard).
Working internationally means I can write according to a variety of country and cultural conventions:- British, American, Canadian & Australian, along with various Academic Writing protocols. Basically, I have done a heck of a lot of localisation writing (or localization, if you’re in the US *wink wink*)
Head of Marketing for a dog & cat charity in Thailand
Taught yoga to Vogue and escape.com how to feed stingrays
Media appearances taking celebs like Steve Aoki shark diving in Sydney
Biography
Samantha Xia-Quan Symonds (she/her) is an international writer-editor, marketing strategist & communications consultant; and founder of startup, Writing Everywhere.
British Singaporean-Chinese she writes on taste to trauma; her prize-winning short stories, poetry, non-fiction, op-eds and articles feature, or are forthcoming, in Financial Times, Alpinist Magazine, Well+Good, The Breakdown, The Wildlife Trusts, The Australian Multilingual Writing Project & Sentinel. She is a qualified Scuba Instructor, Yoga Teacher and avid rock-climber with consultancy, mentorship and speaking experience collaborating with organisations including RNLI, GetYourGuide, Amazon Lex, Arla Foods/Lurpak, The Linnean Society, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, The Life Centre, Race Reflections, 26 and The Climbing Initiative.
She posts on most platforms @samxsymonds.
Oh, and I’m finishing a poetry collection and travel memoir, dreaming of Sichuan mud crab & gooey cheese and by rock-climbing/falling over ‘handstanding’ enjoy eating more of both. Lots more.
