[1][2] Amy Liptrot grew up on a farm in Orkney[3] and studied at the University of Edinburgh.

After losing her job, her home, and her boyfriend because of her alcoholism, she returned to Orkney to rehabilitate.

[8] She contributed an essay on wild swimming to Antlers of Water, a compendium of Scottish nature writing produced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It describes a year she spent living in Berlin after the period covered in The Outrun.

[11][12] In January 2022, it was announced that Nora Fingscheidt would direct a film adaptation of The Outrun, and that Saoirse Ronan would star in it as Liptrot, and produce it.