Gill Winter made a major life change in 2008 when she did a CELTA course in teaching English as a second language. This led to a three month stay in Dharamshala, India, teaching Tibetan adults at Tibet Charity's English school. Fascinated by the experience, she wrote her first non-fiction book, "Between Monks and Monkeys" in 2010. Following another stint at Tibet Charity she produced the sequel "The Yeti in the Library" which dealt in part with the rise in self-immolations by desperate Tibetans in 2013.
Gill has returned several times to Dharamshala to teach, both at Tibet Charity and in a nunnery, and has become a strong supporter of the Tibetan cause. In 2018 she published her first novel, "Before the Magic Fades", an adventure story loosely based on the invasion and occupation of Tibet. She lives in New Zealand.