‘Grief became my brand’: Freya Bromley on writing about personal tragedy
Freya Bromley, whose brother died from a rare bone cancer when she was 22, describes how writing her 2024 memoir The Tidal Year helped her process grief that had once left her isolated and numb. The book, ostensibly about swimming in Britain's tidal pools, became a means of connecting with readers who shared their own experiences of loss, though its success eventually left her wrestling with guilt over having turned her family's tragedy into a public "brand".
Bromley recounts years of pretending everything was normal after her brother's death, likening her life to a video game where mentioning death meant "game over" in social situations. Once published, the book prompted an outpouring of messages and confessions from readers, including late-night Instagram DMs about PTSD and emails detailing personal losses; she found that simply listening, rather than offering wise responses, mattered most. Touring extensively for events and bereavement charity work brought a sense of privilege and even addiction to these conversations, but also mounting guilt that she was profiting from and commodifying her family's private pain.
- Author Freya Bromley reflects on writing a memoir after her brother's death
- The Tidal Year connected her with readers sharing their own grief
- Success brought guilt over commodifying her family's tragedy
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Freya Bromley's brother died from a rare bone cancer when she was 22, an event that left her isolated and emotionally shut down for years. In 2024 she published a memoir, The Tidal Year, framed around swimming in Britain's tidal pools but rooted in her experience of grief. Writing it became a way of working through loss that she had previously kept hidden from those around her.
The book struck a chord with readers, many of whom got in touch to share their own experiences of bereavement, from Instagram messages to detailed emails. Bromley became known for this openness about grief, taking part in events and bereavement charity work as well as ongoing correspondence with readers.
This piece looks at the effects of that experience, including the personal reward Bromley found in listening to others, and the more complicated feelings that came with turning a private family tragedy into a public and, in her words, commercial "brand".