15 year old Brennig Davies has been announced as the first ever winner of the BBC Young Writers’ Award with Book Trust. His winning entry, ‘Skinning’, is a dark tale of one boy’s transition into manhood, and was one of thousands of entries from across the country. The news was announced on BBC Radio 4’s ‘Front Row’ last Tuesday, and his story was later read aloud by Sir Ian McKellen on the Huw Stephens’ show.
As part of the award, Brennig will receive a mentoring session with bestselling author Matt Haig, one of this year’s judges alongside author Samantha Shannon and Radio 1 DJ Alice Levine. Haig says of the entry, ‘I hadn’t dared expect to read something this strong. He’s good enough to be published now, and – not that I am entirely sure he needs it – I am really looking forward to mentoring him.’
‘Skinning’ is said to have been inspired by Lord of the Flies and Brennig’s own family cats. He states that his cats, who regularly hunt mice, ‘inspired me to think a lot about the savage and the civilised, and made me wonder whether we all share these same urges and instincts deep inside, and whether it’s just that we’ve all become better and better at denying their existence’. You can read the full story here.
Brennig, an aspiring writer from Wales, was the youngest of five writers shortlisted for this newly-launched award. Runners-up include Clare Chodos-Irvine, 16, from London for ‘Stars, Sparks and Lightning’; Hannah Ledlie, 17, from Scotland for ‘Floor Twenty-Two’; Cassie Beggs, 17, from Wales for ‘the Sun and the Moon’; and Jessica Phillips, 18, from Merseyside for ‘Safe’. Their stories can be read online at www.bbc.co.uk/nssa.
The BBC Young Writers’ Award calls for 14 – 18 year olds to submit entries of up to a thousand words and aims to inspire and guide a new generation of writers. Levine said of the award, ‘there was such a range of styles, such a range of ideas. We came to the judging process from different angles – Matt and Samantha came to it as novelists, I came as someone who loves reading and loves writing. We were looking for something original, something unique that showed real promise and real quality. And there was so much of that! We were definitely inspired’.
For more information about the award, please visit www.booktrust.org.uk/bbcywa.
