98 Percent Perspiration...

In addition to the contract marketing work I've been doing the last few months, I've started freelance writing for a magazine called Horn's Illustrated. As the name suggests, the magazine focuses on all things University of Texas sports-related (although it's not an official UT publication).

A couple of things I've learned from this experience: 1) It's pretty funny that I'm writing about sports. I mean, I like to PLAY sports, but I don't necessarily like to watch them or follow them closely (other than the occasional UT game and the Superbowl). 2) Journalism is tough!

I have a lot of respect for journalists now that I've gotten a taste of what this career is like. I started out writing short profiles on up-and-coming UT athletes for a column called "Young Guns". Even these 1000 word articles required research on the athlete, their sport of choice (you have to sound knowledgeable about the sport), and their team's performance. And, it's important to interview a variety of sources, so even for those short articles, I would interview at least five other people--family, friends, coaches, teammates, etc. Trying to find time to do the research, draft questions, contact the sources, agree on a time that worked for both of our schedules (which is tough given my work and kid schedule--it's not really professional to have a source on the phone while Will is ma,ma,ma-ing in the background), do the interview, record it, and listen to it again...and again. And take notes.

Then comes the writing process. It starts with a review of the notes and the recorded interviews, re-checking your facts, and then starting a draft. From there, many more drafts are created, and eventually you get a final version that will more than likely be redlined by your editor. Then, more changes, more fact checking, more digging into the interviews to find the quote your editor really wants to see.

I estimate to complete one short 1000-word article, I spent around 25 hours in total. Now I'm working on a longer, feature article--one that will potentially be the cover story of an upcoming issue. I'm profiling a coaching legend at UT, and given his history with the university, let's just say there is an endless amount of sources that need to be interviewed (many of them professional athletes with agents that have to be dealt with), oodles of facts to be researched, and countless hours getting this story 'just right'--all under deadline. The pressure is on, but it's also fun and rewarding to learn about a topic that I had little to no knowledge of, meet some incredibly talented people, and work on honing my writing skills.

Let's just say I have a newfound respect for journalists who do this on a full-time basis. It requires more time and attention to detail than I realized--if you're going to do the job right.