Annual Writing Awards

American Society of Journalists and Authors Announces Winners of 2010 Writing Awards

New York, NY – The American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) announced the recipients of its annual writing awards, honoring the outstanding nonfiction work produced on a freelance basis during the prior calendar year.

“The publishing world may be changing, but we all still recognize and honor the first-rate writing and honest, accurate reporting exemplified in these awards. Once again, it’s a pleasure for ASJA to foster the very best in nonfiction writing, as we have for more than 60 years,” says Salley Shannon, ASJA president.

The awards will be presented on April 23, 2010 during the 39th Annual ASJA Writers Conference, which is being held in New York City, April 23-25. ASJA is the professional association of independent nonfiction writers. Founded in 1948, its more than 1300 members have each met exacting standards of professional achievement.

2010 Award Winners

We are pleased to announce the recipients of our annual writing awards, honoring the outstanding nonfiction work produced on a freelance basis during the last calendar year. “The publishing world may be changing, but we all still recognize and honor the first-rate writing and honest, accurate reporting exemplified in these awards. Once again, it’s a pleasure for ASJA to foster the very best in nonfiction writing, as we have for more than 60 years,” says Salley Shannon, ASJA president.

ARTICLE AWARD WINNERS
June Roth Award for Medical Journalism

Winner: “What’s Wrong with Cancer Tests?” by Shannon Brownlees (Reader’s DigestArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “Going After Las Vegas’ Medical Mafia” by Katherine Eban (FortuneArticle PDF

Donald Robinson Memorial Award for Investigative Journalism

Winner: “Bad Bargain” by Katherine Eban (SelfArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “A Wing and a Prayer” by Linda Marsa (DiscoverArticle PDF

Arlene Award – Articles that Make a Difference

Honorable Mention: “When the Fine Print Applies to You” by Abby Ellin (New York TimesArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “In Africa, Justice for ‘Bush Wives'” by Jina Moore (Christian Science MonitorArticle PDF Article on CS Monitor

First Person Narrative

Winner: “Township 13 South, Range 92 West, Section 35” by Michelle Nijhuis (High Country NewsArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “No Small Mercy” by Jina Moore (The WalrusArticle PDF

Personal Essay

Winner: “Iowa Black Dirt” by Perry Glasser (Good Men Foundation ProjectArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “The Other Love of His Life” by Amy Paturel (NewsweekArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “The Childhood She Couldn’t Remember” by Beatriz Terrazas (MoreArticle PDF

Reporting on a Significant Topic

Winner: “Shots in the Dark” by Shannon Brownlee and Jeanne Lenzer (The Atlantic MonthlyArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “Cook Vs. Peary” by Bruce Henderson (SmithsonianArticle PDF

Profiles

Winner: “Lost in Migration” by Mary Wiltenburg (Christian Science MonitorArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “Elegy to a Scholar” by Todd Pitock (MidstreamArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “Man with a Mallet” by Steven Beschloss (American WayArticle PDF

Trade

Winner: “What’s Old is New Again (Benjamin Button)” by Barbara Robertson (Computer Graphics WorldArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “How Facebook and Twitter are Changing Data Privacy” by Michael Fitzgerald (CIOArticle PDF

Service

Winner: “Is Your Doctor Out of Date?” by Meryl Davids (Reader’s DigestArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: For Goodness’ Sake” by Kim Pittaway (MoreArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “Thirteen Symptoms You Should Never Ignore” by Cheryl Platzman Weinstock (GlamourArticle PDF

Lifestyle Narratives

Winner: “No Price. No Menu. No Waste.” by Jennifer Margulis (MoreArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “An Old World Finds a New Path” by Todd Pitock (AfarArticle PDF

Business/Technology Article

Winner: “Born Again” by Timothy Gower (ProtoArticle PDF

Honorable Mention: “How Innovations from Developing Countries Trickle Up” by Michael Fitzgerald (Fast CompanyArticle PDF

BOOK AWARD WINNERS
Arlene: Books that Make A Difference

Winner: If I am Missing or Dead by Janine Latus (Simon & Schuster)

Winner: Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption by Erin Torneo (St. Martin’s Press)

Honorable Mention: The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Green Living by Trish Riley (Alpha/Penguin Books)

Service/Self Help

Winner: You’d Be So Pretty If. . . by Dara Chadwick (De Capo Press)

General Nonfiction Book

Winner: Under Siege! Three Children at the Civil War Battle for Vicksburg by Andrea Warren (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)

Honorable Mention: American Idle: A Journey Through Our Sedentary Culture by Mary Collins (Capital Books, Inc.)

Honorable Mention: The Alzheimer’s Project: Momentum in Science by Susan Golant (Public Affairs)

Memoir/Autobiography

Winner: My River Chronicles: Rediscovering America on the Hudson by Jessica DuLong (Free Press/Simon & Schuster)

Honorable Mention: The Coolest Race on Earth by John Hanc (Chicago Review Press)

Founders’ Award for Career Achievement

Winner: Sally Wendkos Olds

The ASJA Founders’ Award for Career Achievement is presented to Sally Wendkos Olds, who has written extensively about intimate relationships, personal growth and developmental issues throughout the life cycle, and has won national awards for both her book and magazine writing. In addition to her newest book, Super Granny: Great Stuff to Do with Your Grandkids, she is the author or coauthor of seven other books for general readers, three college textbooks, and more than 200 articles in major national magazines.

Olds’s first book, The Complete Book of Breastfeeding, first published in 1972 and now in press for its fourth edition (Workman Publishing, July 2010), has become a classic. She is also the coauthor of three college textbooks, on psychology and child and adult development, which have gone into more than 20 editions and have been translated into several languages.

She is a former president of the American Society of Journalists and Authors and has also served the Society in many other capacities – as Program Chair, Conference Co-chair, and chair of various ASJA committees. She is currently a member of the First Amendment Committee.