Author & Traveller

James Bailey is a bestselling author whose books have been translated into 16 languages and published by some of the world’s leading publishing houses, including Penguin Random House, Hachette and HarperCollins.

His debut novel, The Flip Side, became an Apple Books bestseller and was optioned for television, while his latest book, The Meaning of Life, brings together contributions from more than 100 extraordinary people including President Jimmy Carter, Dame Jane Goodall, Dame Hilary Mantel and Sir John Major.

He now lives and writes around the world, spending ‘mini lives’ in different countries and cities as he searches for new stories, ideas and ways of seeing the world.

A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a black zip-up sweater and black pants. The image has a yellow outline.
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a black zip-up sweater and black pants. The image has a yellow outline.

BOOKS

James’ books range from romantic comedies about fate and second chances, to a search for the meaning of life.

The book cover titled "The Flip Side" by James Bailey features a split background with red on the left and blue on the right. The left side shows a young woman in a yellow jacket and backpack, and the right side depicts a young man in a green shirt and jeans, walking and tossing a coin. The subtitle reads "Who says you can't leave love up to chance?" and the Penguin logo is in the top right corner.
The book cover titled "The Flip Side" by James Bailey features a split background with red on the left and blue on the right. The left side shows a young woman in a yellow jacket and backpack, and the right side depicts a young man in a green shirt and jeans, walking and tossing a coin. The subtitle reads "Who says you can't leave love up to chance?" and the Penguin logo is in the top right corner.
THE FLIP SIDE
The cover of the book 'The Way Back to You' by James Bailey features animated illustrations of three friends riding bicycles, with cherry blossom petals around them. The background color is teal, and the title is in large white text.
The cover of the book 'The Way Back to You' by James Bailey features animated illustrations of three friends riding bicycles, with cherry blossom petals around them. The background color is teal, and the title is in large white text.
THE WAY BACK TO YOU
Front cover of a book titled 'The Meaning of Life' by James Bailey, highlighting a list of notable individuals and the subtitle 'Letters from Remarkable People'.
Front cover of a book titled 'The Meaning of Life' by James Bailey, highlighting a list of notable individuals and the subtitle 'Letters from Remarkable People'.
THE MEANING OF LIFE

TRAVELS

For the past few years, James has been living and writing in different corners of the world - spending months at a time in new cities rather than simply passing through. From Paris, Prague, and Vienna to Bangkok, Seoul, and Tokyo, each place becomes a temporary life: somewhere to work, wander, meet people and collect stories.

A black outline of the Earth with continents visible, set against a black background.
A black and white line drawing of a microphone with musical notes around it.

ALL AROUND THE WORLD

James’s books have travelled almost as much as he has.

They’ve been published in 16 languages across Europe, Asia and North America, including: Chinese, Czech, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, and Turkish.

SPEAKING

Two men engaged in a conversation during an event. The man on the left is speaking, wearing a dark jacket and headphones, and the man on the right is listening, wearing a navy shirt with an author badge and holding a tablet with charts.

James is available for literary festivals, author events, panels, podcasts and talks on books, writing, travel, creativity and even, the meaning of life. He has previously appeared at festivals across the UK and even delivered a speech at the House of Commons. Drawing on a career that has taken him from red carpets reporting to publishing and life on the road, his talks are warm, curious and entertaining - combining stories, ideas and plenty of humour.

BOOK JAMES
UPCOMING EVENTS
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WORK WITH ME

A man in a dark blazer sitting at a white desk with office supplies, a laptop, and a desk lamp.

I help writers turn good ideas into stronger books - and build their author career around them.

From developing a premise and preparing a submission package to creating an author website, launch materials and a clearer personal brand, I offer practical, one-to-one support shaped by my own experience of publishing, pitching and promoting books internationally.

Yellow paint stroke with handwritten-style black text reading 'Writers change the world.'
Black screen with a small, centralized, light-colored object that appears to be a faint outline of an object, but details are indistinct due to the darkness.
Black screen with a small, centralized, light-colored object that appears to be a faint outline of an object, but details are indistinct due to the darkness.
LEARN MORE →
Three overlapping photos: a man holding a flaming torch at a park, a young couple dressed formally at an indoor event, and a group of marathon runners crossing the finish line with arms raised.

James Bailey was born in Bristol, where his first career ambition was to become a tractor driver.

Instead, he somehow ended up interviewing the likes of George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez and Hugh Jackman on red carpets, carrying the Olympic Torch, speaking at the House of Commons, running the London Marathon, living in a Travelodge, leading walking tours, travelling around the world, and trying to discover the meaning of life.

He still can’t drive a tractor, but he has written three books.

ABOUT JAMES

MORE ABOUT JAMES →

Follow James on Instagram

Hello again. I’m back. This may or may not have anything to do with the fact I have a paperback coming out on Thursday and I’m contractually required to remind people I exist. In the meantime, here’s where I’ve been…
📚 This time last week 📚 Thank you so much to everyone who came to celebrate the launch of The Meaning of Life, and thank you to @dauntbooks for hosting us. It was brilliant to be joined by contributors including @lizzie_outside @richardfarleigh
🇳🇴🇳🇴🇳🇴
Camino Portugues 🥾☀️🌳 #BomCaminho #Santiago
Hand-delivered my letter to Santa 🎄🎅
Collection of logos from various news outlets, including BBC News, The Guardian, The New Yorker, Esquire, The Sun, and others, arranged in a horizontal line.
Collection of logos from various news outlets, including BBC News, The Guardian, The New Yorker, Esquire, The Sun, and others, arranged in a horizontal line.

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