Post by Peter Gross on Jan 17, 2010 14:29:34 GMT -5
I have been advised that there are pretty good numbers regarding the masses who visit this blog regularly. Not to puff myself up too much, but perhaps some of you have a certain appreciation for solid sports writing. If so, this one is for you. My colleague, Perry Lefko, conducts a Sports Writing course at the University of Toronto and apparently, there are still a few days remaining to sign up for the next series.
Lefko has a pretty amazing resume. He has written for pretty well all the major papers and has a long list of books that he's produced. My favourite is Ride of a Lifetime, an awesome bio of jockey Sandy Hawley. Lefko has also written an epic on the Breeders' Cup and one on Pinball Clemens as well. For a couple of years, he has contributed to Down The Stretch, Canada's most informative and entertaining horse racing newspapers. That's pertinent information, because two of Lefko's 2009 columns in Down The Stretch have been honoured by the Jockey Club of Canada with Sovereign Award nominations. Considering the most nominations you can get for writing is two, Lefko has had a very fine year. Lefko has a long history of being blinged by the Jockey Club; in 1989 he took the Sovereign Award for Outstanding Feature Story and in 1994, he walked away with the trophy for Outstanding Newspaper Article.
Perry is an edgy, aggressive and funny guy (ok, not as funny as me), and certainly qualified to pass on the skills that are necessary for compelling and accurate sports writing. Below is information he has provided me about the course. You have less than two weeks to enroll
Have you ever wanted to be a sports writer? Now is your chance.
Perry Lefko, one of the contributing writers to Down The Stretch, is teaching a course on it at the University of Toronto's School of Continuing Studies following the success of the first course that just ended.
It's once a week on Mondays for 2 1/2 hours beginning January 25 at the St. George Campus and runs for eight weeks.
You'll learn the basic tools of writing and apply it to sports. Whether you want to do it professionally or just as a hobby, you'll be given the ways and means to construct your thoughts for multi-media, multi-platform usage.
The course has practical applications for newspaper or magazine work, television, radio and the internet. More than ever, there are opportunities beyond just the traditional ways to express yourself as a writer, in particular a sports writer.
In addition to what I'll be teaching, I'll be bringing in guest speakers, many of them high-profile individuals whose work you have read or whom you have seen on TV or heard on the radio.
I brought in a high-profile retired athlete for the first course and plan to do that again.
Many students from the first course had articles published. One has gone on to become an intern for a major radio show.
Weekly assignments will be evaluated and discussed.
The course is fun and interactive and there is lots of discussion.
And best of all it's not limited to guys. Two women signed up for the first class and one had several articles published, while another interviewed a woman sportscaster for a video.
Get into the game.
For more information, call 416-978-2400 and ask about the Freelance Sports Writing Course. The course number is 2360-002. Or you can go to www.learn.utoronto.ca and look for the Freelance Sportswriter Course in the courses section.
