RUTH MILLINGTON

RUNNER-UP OF BRADT GUIDES NEW TRAVEL WRITER OF THE YEAR COMPETITION 2023!

I’m delighted to be runner-up of Bradt Guides New Travel Writer of the Year 2023, part of the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards.

On the evening of 16 March I headed to Stanfords Travel in London, my favourite bookshop in the world, for the awards ceremony. It had always been my dream to be a nominee at the awards so it was a very exciting and surreal experience!

Nominee books for 2023 at Stanfords Travel book shop

I met many of the judges of the awards including the legendary traveller and founder of Bradt Guides, Hilary Bradt, and Hugh Brune and Jonathan Lorie, as well as the book awardees.

Jonathan Lorie, one of the judges, discussing my entry which got cut short when a technical fault lead to the winner being announced prematurely!

Simon Calder and Hilary Bradt

The judges said it had been a particularly high standard this year and deciding the winner was incredibly close. They were unable to agree so they had to make the unusual step of referring it to a third party to make the final decision.

Since I was a little girl, I always wanted to be a writer. I came into the game a little later in life, but with it came a wealth of experience. It just proves that you should never give up on your dreams, set your intentions and let nothing stop you. When the invitation came through by email for the awards ceremony, I had a moment of imposter syndrome, then I remembered who I was. 

You can read my winning entry here:

An Unforgettable Day in Iran

Yours,

Ruthie x

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