A Young British Foodie…
I’m not sure which I’m more excited about: still being able to say I’m young (just shy of my 35th birthday) or being able to announce that I won the Young British Foodies Foodwriting Award 2013!
A joint winner along with Helen of Food Stories, it was a real honour to be nominated alongside her and Sam Muston of The Independent and all these fabulous people; plus I never say no to canapés and a few free drinks!
Meeting Yotam Ottolenghi was a highlight too, so I think this is a great time to announce that I’ll be joining him and other authors such as Mary Berry at Ebury Publishing. I haven’t crossed all the t’s and dotted all the i’s on the project yet, but I think you’re going to love it…
Before then however, I’m delighted to say I’m writing and editing the forthcoming Recipes from Brixton Village cookbook through KitchenPress. Publishing in Spring 2014, it will be featuring recipes from all your favourite restaurants and traders in Brixton Village. We’ve got exclusives from Fish Wings and Tings‘ codfish fritters, Kaosarn‘s green curry and Lab G‘s salted caramel ice cream amongst others. (I sense Jay Rayner will be after a copy the minute it’s hot off the press.)
I’m getting used to calling myself a writer these days since I’m signed with an agent and everything. The fantastic Caroline Hardman at Hardman and Swainson is representing me and handling my wide-eyed wonder at all this beautifully!*
I’ll be continuing to blog here and at the Brixton Blog and at risk of sounding a bit like I’m at the Oscars, I’d just like to thank everyone who has been reading at both sites. I love sharing my cooking and writing with you all. Your feedback and comments are fantastic and a real pleasure to read.
Mister North and I will definitely be keeping up our working relationship, and I’m hoping we might even have time to see each other at some point too! He’s also got all kinds of exciting design and photography projects going on around food, which hopefully you’ll get a chance to see at some point soon.
I don’t know about him, but I’m slightly overwhelmed by how far the blog has come in just under 4 years that I think I need a cuppa and a biscuit followed by a lie down so we can keep going!
*Caroline can be contacted at Hardman Swainson.
Many, many congratulations again. So happy to watch your culinary star ascend and your work receive the recognition and praise it deserves!
HOORAY! This is such exciting news on all fronts and so well-deserved. It has been a joy reading you and Food Stories and I’m sure all your readers will share my massive congratulations. Also: roll on the books!
Amazing! Thoroughly well deserved.
xx
Massive, huge, enormous, titanic congratulations… *so* proud of you, and *so* well-deserved! Cant’t wait to see what you’ll get up to in the near future, and lovely to hear you able to spill the beans about some projects at last. Woohoo!
On a serious note, it’s excellent your writing provides a platform for airing many of the concerns and considerations which food blogging sometimes bypasses. It’s helped shine a light on, start a debate about, and raise awareness of the challenges and inequalities of food poverty in different parts of the country… but also provide hope and inspiration to a lot of people. That’s a huge achievement, and let’s hope you and a new generation of writers can continue to successfully broaden the scope and nature of food writing.
Plus I am LOVING how you, alongside Helen from Peckham, are totally representing South London in the week when the phrase “Firstly, for obvious reasons I don’t like going to south London…” has been trending.
You need to get some joint ‘tour of South London food’ T-shirts printed up 🙂 Clapham, Brixton, Peckham and more!
Delighted! How cool, well done and all the other accolades! Really inspiring to hear and a big up for south London. Seriously well deserved : )
Elly: you gave me my first ever chance to blog about food!
Kat: thank you. Books are going to brilliant, if a little nerve wracking. I’m buying Helen’s ASAP so I can recipe test mine while making sandwiches!
Alibhe: thank you. We really are taking over South London in the nicest possible way!
Many congratulations on your well deserved award
Mister North: love the T-shirt idea. Can we get ‘I don’t go north of the river…’ on the back? That should keep the debate going…
Huge, huge congratulations. So well deserved & I cannot wait to read your book.
Wonderful news and it’s really made me smile today. Well done on all counts. x
Hannah: thank you!
I-say: very kind of you!
Catriona: thank you! My head is swelling here. Can’t wait to pick your brains about a few things…
You whippersnapper you!
Very wonderful news.
You know where to find me & the virtual kettle is always on. 😉 Anytime. x
Many congratulations – you deserve it!
Yay! (Yeah, I know said congrats elsewhere but I need to fill the space here too!)
Ebury, eh? Well done. Very well done, indeed. Weirdly, I interviewed the head of Ebury for a feature only last week (about one of the other imprints she manages) but we also ended up talking food and blogging and recipes at the end of the interview. I shall be snapping your book up when it’s published.
Excellent news! Looking forward to seeing you in hardback….
Great news to hear! I shall look forward to it!
A huge well do to you both…… as they say in Geordie Land…. Canny well done bonnie lass and lad!!!!
Will certainly buy your books or get them ordered in the library.
From what you have told us about yourself in terms of health ect I am really happy that you have found a kind of niche for yourself… writing is not only therapeutic but also hard work as I am sure you have found out.
Mr North is certainly right you have brought a level of insight to the food world with a level of seriousness yet fun which has ignored or deliberately ignored the reality of people feeding themselves and their families in economic times that are dreadful for some.
I really do hope all goes well, you both should be proud of yourselves and just think back to the bad times in the past and give yourselves a pat on the back for the hard work, the perseverance and dedication that it takes to keep writing…..
Will raise a glass of cheap plonk to you both….. eat as many canapes as you can…… shy bairns get nowt as they say up here….. be the first at the buffet of course in a dignified way!!!!!!!
Well done to you both….. I hope your family and friends are really proud of you.
Congratulations. You deserve it. You are an example of how integrity and passion can make the world a better place. And your food and the words you use to describe it are fantastic.
Audrey: that means a lot coming from you! Thank you so much…
Stuart: thank you! I feel very lucky that so many people have trusted and supported the blog and us with it. It is my little niche now and it’s been great for me. I feel honoured to have been listened to but hopefully not speak over anyone else’s voice or experience. And if I’ve made someone smile, then that’s brilliant!
I’m not going to forget how I got here though and those who haven’t had the chances I have. Hope I can share it with them somehow!
Lindsay: thank you! You’ve been a real help along the way!
Chrissie: ooh, as long as there’s no dustjacket to fall in the soup…
The Lone Gourmet: ha, you’re better connected at Ebury than I am! And I owe you a big thanks for all the Brixton book testing. I won’t forget that ham hock!
Sandie: blushes…
Alicia: thank you my lovely!
Brilliant! And very well deserved. May your star shine!
thanks for the reply Miss South….. well done and keep going… well done to Mr North as well. you both cease the day together… Regards, Stuart
Congratulations. Looking forward to the Brixton Village cookbook!
Truly deserved, well done x
Hi
Sincere congratulations on your much deserved recognition!
Goes to prove that us ‘expat’ Northies make the world a better
place, wherever we go 😉
I only came to your blog recently, however I greatly enjoy your
musings whenever they appear in my inbox.
Every success and happiness in the future.
Michael 🙂
Hi Miss South, I too only came to your blog recently, after listening to You on Radio 4s Skint Foodies. It’s fabulous to hear you are doing so well, your talent and attitude has paid off. Will enjoy continuing to follow you! Xx
Jane.
Awesome news! – well done!
I know I said it on Twitter, but blimmin well done.
I have literally hundreds of cook books, but I will def be getting this one when it comes out, can’t wait. Let us know when we can pre-order. You write so well about Brixton, it makes me want to move there.
I was talking about you with some friends the other day and saying how I was envious of Brixton market, and the husband said, Oh I LOVE Brixton market. I forgot they had moved down to East Sussex from London!
Fantastic news! I have been a fan since your piece in The Observer. Your award is richly deserved. Having just read a blog about Jamie Oliver’s new programme – I’ve not watched – I think you could teach him a thing or two….. Will look out for the cookbooks as I have long thought everything should come together in one place. Well done, and keep up the excellent blogging.
Well done Miss South! Most roundly deserved! I’m a long-time fan and lurker of your blog. Can’t wait for the cookbook….hope they ship to the Antipodes! If only Brixton Market could somehow be shipped here too….
I’m a bit overwhelmed by how many messages of congratulations and support there have been here. Thank you Allie, Mike, Christine, Lesley, Jane, Becs and anyone else I’ve forgotten. So pleased to be representing Brixton!
Wow…. Well done you! I can’t think of anyone who deserves it more. Long may your success continue x x x
Oh Well Done! And well deserved congratulations too!
I’m so pleased for you – many, many, many congratulations! Bring on the cookbook 😉
Woo hooooo. Congratulations. How did the snails go?