Winter Park, Fla. – At the 15th annual Boating Writers International (BWI) Writing Contest, Bonnier Marine Group, the largest and most diverse collection of marine-media properties in the world, collected 26 honors in all, including seven first-place awards.

The yearly writing competition honors the top marine journalists in the United States and beyond for their "excellence in creating compelling stories about the boating lifestyle through entertaining, educational and inspiring journalism." The latest BWI contest attracted 200 participants, with more than 520 entries.

Bonnier Marine Group's Cruising World magazine stood out in the competition, as the cruising title's writers took home 13 awards. Jim Carrier, Tom Linskey, Stacy Collins and Ed Sherman all earned first-place awards for their work. Gary Goodlander, Tania Aebi and Tony Bessinger each captured second-place honors. Six certificates of merit were also issued to Cruising World writers.

Yachting magazine was another big winner at the Awards, claiming six honors in all. Dudley Dawson earned a first-place award, while Chris Caswell took home a third-place prize. Four certificates of merit were also issued to Yachting writers.

Three awards were given to Salt Water Sportsman, including a first-place prize and a certificate of merit to C.J. Chivers. T. Edwards Nickens took home a second-place honor.

In addition, Boating Life's Robert Stephens claimed a first-place award in the boating column category, while Motor Boating's Wendy Mitman Clarke took home a second-place prize. Michael Lovett (Sailing World) and Jon Meade (Marlin) were each awarded a certificate of merit for their work.

BWI is a nonprofit professional organization of writers, broadcasters, editors, publishers, photographers, public-relations specialists and others in the communications profession associated with the boating industry. Members include active marine journalists across the United States, in Canada and around the world, supporting marine manufacturers and service entities, as well as associates in communication roles.

A division of Bonnier Corp., the Bonnier Marine Group has more than 30 magazines, websites, events and television shows. Covering the boating, sailing and fishing markets, the group reaches more than six million active participants with offices in locations across the United States, including New York, Florida and Rhode Island.