I haven’t always wanted to be a writer. And I certainly haven’t always wanted to write for sports. I used to write stories when I was younger (like most kids do), but it wasn’t until later that I started to dream about actually being published. When I first came to UD, I knew I wanted to write for publication but I wasn’t really sure how I would achieve that. I thought maybe getting into the fashion industry was for me, but that proved to be false. It wasn’t until I realized that I could take the passion I had for hockey and turn that into a writing career.
Here I am with the actual Stanley Cup!
I’ve taken countless writing classes — creative writing, professional writing, fiction, you name it, I’ve taken it. But when I registered for Sports Writing I thought I had finally found the one I’d love the most. As it turns out, you can’t make a career just because you’re interested something. At least, it’s not as easy as it would seem.
Because I love sports, I thought that writing about them would be a breeze. Reporting on what’s going on in sports, attending games and meeting players to discuss the latest news. But it was harder than I thought it would be.
Maybe if I lived on campus and had easier access to the student athletes or games, or maybe if this was the only work I had to do it would’ve come more naturally to me, but the truth is it didn’t. This doesn’t mean I’m going to give up on working in sports, but I definitely learned that if sports writing is what I really want to do then I need to be 100% dedicated to it.
I will say that I did gain a lot from sports writing this semester, though. Through interviews with different athletes on campus I was able to make some new friends, reconnect with old ones, and attend sports events that I otherwise wouldn’t have gone to. I also realized that it’s not always easy working with sports if you love them.
I got hung up on the sports themselves and was just so happy to be around them that I got distracted from my assignment. Also, at times I started hating sports because it was connected with work and stress. So I learned that sometimes it’s not going to be the dream come true I thought working on something I’m passionate about would be.
Every year I go to the Flyers vs. Red Wings game with my faintly. They’re my favorite teams so I can never choose just one to support.
So maybe sports writing isn’t for me, but maybe sports public relations could be. I’ve had a background in social media work for a few years now and I’ve always loved sports so why not try that out and see if I could still have a future in the fast-paced sports world.
College is all about trying new things and finding yourself, and that includes with classes and careers. While I found I wasn’t completely sold on sports writing, I’m hoping that a different form of sports communications/publications could be for me.
I’m not giving up on sports yet, just kicking back and watching them for a while instead of reporting.