Taylor wins first and second place awards from San Diego Press Club

SAN DIEGO – Freelance writer Nathalie Taylor, a Reeder Media affiliate since 2003 – 20 years – took home a first and second from the San Diego Press Club on Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023. The awards were especially significant because the writer only wrote four stories within the judging time frame.

The 50th Annual Excellence in Journalism Awards event held on the grounds of Balboa Park’s International Cottages, featured fine food from top-class San Diego restaurants.

San Diego Press Club stories are judged by other press clubs throughout the U.S., with judges rotated each year. Since 2004, Taylor has won 106 writing/journalism awards. She has also taken many of the photographs that accompany her stories. This year, continuing her record of excellence, the judges were impressed with the writer’s vivid descriptions and thoughtful insights.

Taylor was awarded first place in the Travel-International category with her story, “Marvelous Madrid!” An excerpt:

“When I stepped out of the hotel on my first day in Madrid, a sunny, buzzing street scene welcomed me. I wandered the cobblestone streets of Old Madrid through canyons of mango and yellow-hued stucco buildings, some with intricate yellow and blue tile work. I paused to inhale the mingling of scents – enticing food aromas from restaurants, and an occasional whiff of flowers from planter boxes perched on high iron-lace balconies. Madrid was a blur of restaurants and tapas bars. You can eat all day, and continue feasting well into the night. It’s a paradise for hungry insomniacs.”

Taylor’s second place award was in the Review-Restaurant category, with the story, “‘Get Out There” and eat your way through the San Diego County Fair!” An excerpt:

“The Coconut Guy, a new vendor, lured guests to his booth with retro turquoise webbed chairs, the color of a sixties swimming pool. He offered refreshing coconut water, served in a trimmed coconut, and garnished with a festive umbrella. It’s ‘Machete-fresh,’ according to him, and I could see the machete cut marks on the trimmed coconut! Sounds a bit dangerous, but the end result is delicious and refreshing.”

Taylor holds a BA degree in English from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She was seated on the Alumni Advisory Board for the university's College of Liberal Arts/English Department from 2011 to 2018. Since 2015, for nine years, she has been a San Diego Press Club Honorary Committee member.

Submitted by Krona Publications.