What makes it worth it to you?

Oh, and nothing makes the panties drop like a byline.

 

Unlike most that have posted, I'm a desker and not writer, so my reasons are slightly different, although the thrill of deadline is really shared by all (if not something the desk appreciates more often since we face every night).

The reason I love what I do is that I get to read about sports. It's something I have done since I was able to read and it is something I would be doing every morning if I worked in another industry. I basically get paid to do something I would do on my own and enjoy. I mean think of all our lovely readers who spent time with the section each morning. I got paid to do the same thing they are doing (albeit more involved). It can't get much better than that. Are there negatives? Sure, but I couldn't imagine crunching numbers or doing anything else, for that matter.

 

In the early days, there was a powerful sexiness to doing the job:

To be in your early 20s and influence how subscribers see certain events - games or news - was an incredible intoxicant, as was having access to events that Joe & Jane Doe could only dream about. Even if it's covering junior high field hockey, readers learn about the games through what you write.

Pushing yourself to the limit of exhaustion, physically and mentally, was fun.

Hanging out with like-minded individuals - smart, funny, quick-witted, substance-abusing folks with deep emotional scars and/or baggage - was somehow life-affirming.

And, yes, in the days B.C. (before Clinton), every once in a blue moon you got to have wild and dangerous flings with the nubile young interns, a remarkable and amazing part of the deal, although, sadly, one that's gone the way of the pica pole and the manual typewriter. Damnit.

Nowadays, the satisfaction is different: Competing at a much higher level against better competition; knowing at the end of each day whether you were brilliant, good or totally sucked ass and vowing to better tomorrow, no matter what; creating a body of work over a career that you can be proud of; and just being in the game. There's something to be said for showing up every day and giving it your best.

I love this the way a poker player loves a card game or a star athlete loves the playoffs. Aside from family, it's the biggest part of my identity - it's who I am, what I do.

This can be the greatest gig in the world - and besides, what would you rather do, be a Wal-Mart greeter?

 

Hello, welcome to Wal-Mart!

 

is that jvd void of PEDs?

 

The opportunity to produce something timeless, a lasting impact, to achieve that tangible "greatness" . . . . . . . keeps me going even now.

But the pull of possibly having a family some day, and wanting to spend more time with that family, and also be able to afford good things for them . . . . . . gives me pause.

 

Honestly, I've only spent a little more than a year as a sports writer, and I'm probably a lousy one. Other than my alma mater and favorite pro baseball and pro football teams, I don't even like sports. Other than the obvious matters of how to score, I had to be taught basketball 101 last year. I took the job because I was getting close to five years on the cops beat and was burning out. I'd much rather bide my time writing about high school kids than another dead person until a business or feature job opens. My place isn't so bad, and now that I'm fast approaching middle age, I'm becoming somewhat settled and don't want to leave my area.

And no offense to anyone here, but in my neck of the woods, high school sports -- even football -- doesn't matter, and I'm frankly surprised that this beat exists.

That said, even from a committed news-side perspective, nothing beats chasing a story, getting information that people don't want you to have and putting it out for everybody to see. The thrill of beating deadline, and on occasion, writing stuff that really matters. It's the simplest form of publishing to help feed that ego.

 

you led with "honestly" and you didn't disappoint. that was as honest a post as i've ever read.

 

Honestly, if that is the way you feel about sports writing, you are doing your paper and your readers a great disservice every day you show up to work. You need to find another beat or quit the job you have right now until you find something more suited to you. Right now, the only reason why you are showing up to work is for the paycheck and nothing else.
Any writer who does not have passion for what he/she writes is a piss-poor writer in my opinion and has no business taking up a job that could be filled by another writer who actually gives a damn about what he/she is doing.

 

i don't think so. i think he has his job firmly in his perspective ... that doesn't mean he doesn't give it his all every day.;

 

If you do it long enough, you start managing the adrenaline rush. Writing on deadline becomes easier as you get better at managing your time, and it's not as stressful. So the rush isn't as great, because you don't need to get it done. Once you get to that point, you realize that what spnited says is dead on, and I would add that it's one of the few endearing things about this business that never really goes away. At the end of the day, you can walk out the door and there's proof you were there. There a lot of people out there who will never know what that feels like. Plus, tt's really cool to have someone mention something you wrote in conversation.

fixed ;D

 

I don't think many newspaper writers could accurately be described as being "just in it for the money."