Watkins scoops surfing legend Al Mennie’s 'evocative' book on night swimming

Watkins Media has scooped surfing legend Al Mennie’s "evocative" book on night swimming.

Watkins Acquisition editor Sophie Blackman has acquired world all-language rights to Night Swimming from Tracey Rodgers of Style Academy. The book will be published globally by Watkins in August 2025 and will be distributed by Watkins in the UK and by Penguin Random House Publishers Services in all other territories.

Big wave surfing legend Mennie’s new offering ties in with his campaign Swim Through Darkness, and covers the wellbeing benefits of night swimming, combining motivational writing with "evocative" storytelling.

The publisher said the book will "give readers the tools to discover their own methods of navigating the darkness to find clarity and focus".

Mennie wrote the book following the development of his Swim Through Darkness campaign in December 2020, in which he swam off the north coast of Ireland at night to raise awareness of depression, suicide and intergenerational trauma and "the benefits of connecting with nature on the mind".

Blackman said: "When I came across Al’s brilliant Swim Through Darkness campaign I knew there was something special here. Al is uniquely placed to write about not only the nuts and bolts of swimming at night, but about how connecting with nature can soothe us in difficult times and create a sense of community. With illustrations of landscapes, moon phases, tidal patterns and templates for planning routes and logging swims, I hope this book will help readers find a new perspective on life, opening their mind to a deeper connection with themselves and with their local environment."

Mennie said: "Partnering with a long-established publisher like Watkins to create this unique book is an exciting opportunity. I love sharing stories from my night swims in the wild Atlantic. In the book I am aiming to immerse readers in the depths beyond the surface, showing how to cultivate a relationship with water so powerful that its energy flows into all areas of life."