Laurence Mitchell (laurencemitchell.com; eastofelveden.wordpress.com) has variously taught English in Sudan, surveyed historic farm buildings, pushed a pen in local government and worked as a geography teacher. Travel has been an important part of his life ever since his first tentative steps overseas in the 1970s, well before the term ‘backpacker’ was invented. Nowadays, he is a freelance travel writer and photographer, contributing to publications including Geographical, hidden europe, Walk and Discover Britain alongside writing walking guides, Westering (a lyrical account of a slow coast-to-coast walk in Britain), Bradt’s Slow Travel guidebooks to Norfolk/Suffolk, and Bradt’s guidebooks to Serbia, Belgrade and Kyrgyzstan (alongside updating Bradt’s guide to Georgia). Mitchell regularly forays to forgotten places, border zones and territories in transition, but also enjoys exploring closer to his Norfolk home, pursuing interests in walking routes, wildlife, local history and Slow Travel. He is a member of the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild.