Wannabe wildlife writers urged to enter competition

Mar 3 2010 by Alison Rennie, Paisley Daily Express

WANNABE wildlife writers are being urged to enter a fantastic competition.

The 2010 BBC Wildlife Nature Writer of the Year Award is open to everyone aged 18 or over, whether a previously published writer or not.

Top prize is the publication of your story in the summer 2010 issue of BBC Wildlife magazine and a place on one of three expeditions with international environmental charity, Earthwatch.

Competition judges include one of the BBC’s leading natural history presenters, Kate Humble, and Earthwatch writer and editor Rob Stringer, who also writes fiction and for theatre and is passionate about the natural world.

Rob said: “The winner of this competition will need to impress us with their unique approach to writing, and their empathy for their chosen subject.

“Don’t be put off if you haven’t written before – once you start writing you might discover you have a hidden creative talent just waiting to be unleashed.”

Each entry must be no longer than 800 words and be a piece of non-fiction, not imagination.

It must not have been entered in or won any prize in any other competition and must not have been previously published, in print or online.

Closing date is Friday, April 30 and the winner will also be required to write an additional 1,000-word article about their Earthwatch project experience by the end of 2010 to be published online by the charity.

Full details about how to enter the competition, including the terms and conditions, can be found in the March issue of BBC Wildlife magazine or online at www.bbcwildlifemagazine.com