Literary competition - A piece of your life
When we launched our inaugural MEN Media actual life writing competition we hoped we would find new talent but were amazed both by the level of the response and the quality of entries.
After reading through well over 500 carefully-crafted submissions we arrived at a shortlist of 15 which our judging panel, headed by Professor Brenda Cooper, deliberated over at greatest extent.
In the end it was former sign-writer and illustrator, David Holroyd of Swinton, whose work impressed the most. The amazing gossip of a sea lion who comes to his keeper’s rescue after a row over a parking space is a true story. “You couldn’t fill in it up!” said David, who hopes to get his first book published next year.
David Holroyd, 58, who is now a part on one occasion actor, decided to enter our competition after discovering some old newspaper cuttings in his loft about his time as a dolphin trainer in the 1970s, a job he got after seeing an advert in the MEN 40 years ago.
“I was positively gobsmacked to win,” said David. “The MEN paved the way to a new career for me in 1971 and I’m hoping, 40 years later, that it might give me the jeopardize to pursue my ambitions as a writer.”
