Winners of the 2007 NATJA Awards

Here’s some travel writing inspiration as we head into 2008—whether it compels you to travel or to write. The North American Travel Journalists Association has announced the winners of its 2007 Awards Competition.

You can check out the top winners in each of the 47 categories (including photography and PR), but worth mentioning are the four Grand Prize winners:

• “Space Cadets,” Jill Schensul, The Record, Hackensack, NJ

• “Three Perfect Days,” Hemispheres Magazine (inflight magazine of United Airlines; Randy Johnson, Editor). Series includes In Island of Kaua’i of Hawaii, by Rita Ariyoshi with photos by Todd Pearson; In Rome, Italy, by Tom Mueller with photos by Andrea Pistolesi; and In Hong Kong, by Robin Lynam with photos by Dave Lauridsen.

• “100 Greatest Trips,” Nancy Novogrod, Travel+Leisure

• “MTV Road Trips USA,” submitted by Eva Lesiak, John Wiley & Sons/Frommers

As a writer, I want to know what makes an article stand out and how to make that same magic in my own writing. And as a marketer of my writing, I want to study potential outlets for pitching—a quick look at the list and I’m introduced to TravelToWellness.com and Home and Away magazine. You might want to take a look yourself.