Thursday, March 19, 2009

Tooting My Own Horn


With so many magazines folding, with so many writers and editors sweating about losing their jobs or getting wage cuts, with so much uncertainty in our field, it's damn nice to hear some good news once in a while.

Yesterday, the American Society of Magazine Editors announced the category finalists for their 2009 National Magazine Awards, and let's just say it was an overwhelmingly awesome day for Backpacker magazine. We received four nominations, including one each in the brass-ring categories of General Excellence for both print and online.

The oft-used analogy for these awards is that they are the Oscars of the magazine world. That would make "General Excellence" like "Best Picture." The other nominees in our category are The Atlantic, New York, Texas Monthy, and W. Pretty stiff competition. To paraphrase my elated boss, Backpacker, a niche publication with a funny name getting more nods than titles like Vanity Fair who can throw millions at a single story "is as unlikely as squeezing a grizzly into a Nalgene bottle." But we did. Not only that, but every facet of our brand was recognized with nominations: print, online, and maps. It was a good day (and the 18 year old scotch tasted mighty fine during our mid-afternoon toast yesterday).

Beyond patting ourselves on the back, though, the National Magazine Awards give us a great opportunity, as writers and editors, to celebrate what we're doing right in our ever-changing industry. Winners, who receive the coveted Ellie trophy (top left) will be announced on April 30th in New York City.

Shannon Davis, Backpacker magazine