An aspiring Perth author has put himself on the Scottish literary map by winning the 2010 Toulmin Prize for his short story, My Life Through Colin.
Kenneth Paul Stephen’s tale of a young wheelchair user who lives his life through the experiences of his friend was announced as the winning entry at the Word Festival in Aberdeen.
The Toulmin Prize comes with a £500 cheque and was set up by Aberdeen University’s Elphinstone Institute to commemorate the work of Doric writer, John Reid, otherwise known as David Toulmin.
In addition to the cash prize, Kenneth’s story will also be published in the Leopard magazine and subsequently featured on the website of the Scots Language Centre.
Kenneth (37), of Needless Road, said he was delighted to receive recognition for his move into the world of fiction. The former Forfar Academy pupil said, “This is the first competition of this kind that I’ve won and I’m delighted My Life Through Colin was selected for the Toulmin Prize.
“It is wonderful to win the competition in this important year for the Word Festival, as it celebrates its 10th anniversary.”
Dr Ian Russell, institute director, said, “We received some very strong entries but Kenneth’s tale really stood out and was a very worthy winner.”
Image used courtesy of Aberdeen University.