2 weeks Ago
An esteemed sports journalist has shared his tips from the top for those entering a local football club’s creative writing prize. Paul Hayward was chief sports writer at The Daily Telegraph and has previously written for The Guardian, The Independent and The Daily Mail. Having lived in Brighton for 25 years, he moved to Lewes 16 months ago and will be one of the judges for this year’s Rookers Prize.
“Lewes is a very creative town with a lot of freethinking. I sometimes get a bit smug about living in Lewes and I have to stop myself”, said Paul. The competition is run by Lewes FC, known as The Rooks, which became completely fan-owned in 2010.
Read more: Former Booker prize chair Lola Young to judge Lewes FC 'Rooker Prize' This year, the club has announced that Baroness Lola Young, who has formerly chaired the Booker Prize, will be chairing the competition. All entrants need do is write the opening 250 words of a novel and the winner will receive an hour’s feedback and coaching session at Hachette UK’s offices in London where their entry will be discussed with an experienced editor. Paul, who has authored several biographies, said: “The Rookers is very much in tune with Lewes FC’s whole philosophy of being more than a football club and being involved in the community in a way that is culturally interesting.
“People always say, everyone has a novel in them. Even if you wrote a 250 introduction and put it in a drawer and never showed it to anyone, that would be fulfilling in itself. “To enter a competition around a community FC and to get other people to read and comment on it is a bit special and certainly very unusual.
” So, what are Paul’s tips from the top? Paul said: “As a journalist and author myself, I know that the modern attention span is fraying all the time and it’s harder and harder to get people’s attention. “Everyone is in the race to grab people’s attention and when people’s minds are wandering, it becomes more of a skill to get people to stop longer to give you this chance. To stay awhile and not move on.
“The beauty of the intro is that it has to be really efficient at making you stop. “My tips would be to start with an arresting image, then to set the tone and mood so that the reader wants to go on. “I’m a believer in plain English, in concise English and in taking words out wherever possible.
“It doesn’t sound like much but it’s a real challenge. Every single word has to be right. It’s a fun challenge.
“I entered the Rooker prize last year and, although I didn’t win, I took it seriously. I spent three weeks fretting over these words. I found it immensely enjoyable.
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