LAURA Meyer, from Altrincham, has been shortlisted for the UK Blog Awards for her blog Skinny Kitchen Secrets, sponsored by Roast restaurant.

Now in its fourth successful year, the 2017 UK Blog Awards is the largest awards event for the UK blogging scene, celebrating the best creative writers, photographers and vloggers across 17 different categories.

Laura who started writing in 2012 was selected as one of the eight finalists for the food and drink category.

“When I originally started to write my blog, it was to document the recipes I created and the weight loss journey I was undertaking,” says Laura. “Eight months later, having lost four stone and reached my goal weight, I continued to write my blog to keep a record of all my healthy recipes and share them with the many others who found them so useful.

"Creating healthy versions of recipes is my real passion, and I always look forward to the time I spend in the kitchen coming up with new creations. I get so many wonderful messages from people who love my recipes, and to know that I’m helping other people with their weight loss or eating healthier is the best feeling.

“I couldn’t be more proud to be a finalist in the UK Blog Awards. The calibre of the other food blogs is extremely high and I feel so honoured that so many people voted for Skinny Kitchen Secrets. I have been working on my blog for over four years now so to have achieved this level of recognition feels very special.”

With the continual growth of social platforms and blogging, the potential for brands, businesses and individuals to cultivate mutually beneficial relationships with bloggers is enormous. The theme of the of the UK Blog Awards this year is “Blog Hero” in recognition of the power bloggers have to highlight products, services and individuals that catch their eye and champion them among their audiences.

“The 2017 UK Blog Awards is set to be our biggest and best yet, and we’re so excited by the shortlist of talented bloggers,” says Gemma Newton, UK Blog Awards Director. “The rise of social media channels has changed the way online content is perceived and the world of blogging and vlogging has never been so creative or influential. With 2,400 entries, and over 96,000 votes cast the finalists have done extremely well to get to this stage, and we look forward to recognising their hard work at our awards night in April.”

Panels of experts in each category sector will judge all shortlisted entries and Laura will find out if she has been crowned the winner at the awards event in London on April 21, sponsored by ODEON.