I’m back! I haven’t posted in a long time between the last
month of school and other commitments, but I have been writing. The past month
I’ve been writing Kentucky Derby articles for Horse Racing Nation and I love
it. An opportunity to have my writing published is fantastic on one hand, but
on the other…
It’s tough.
I love the horses and I love writing. I’ve even made the
decision to go to grad school for communications and journalism to help me
advance in the path I’ve chosen that combines the two. There are times when I
love writing about horses and I couldn’t be more excited to dive into a topic.
Other times… not so much.
POSITIVES
The positives of wanting a life revolving around writing
about horses? The obvious is that it’s two things I love. To go further in
depth, I love telling the stories of horses. Each horse has their own
accomplishments, their own quirks, their own personality, and their own
PURPOSE. I love all the unique stories out there and that is why I want to
write in the horse industry.
I’ve been lucky enough to write for Horse Racing Nation just
over a month now. I grew up in the Saddlebred industry, but began following
Thoroughbred racing after the 2014 Breeders’ Cup. Writing at Horse Racing
Nation has not only given me an opportunity to get my writing out there, but I’ve
learned a lot. I’ve not only learned things about writing in general, but I’ve
learned more about the history of racing. I’m very thankful they took me on,
and tomorrow I’ve been given the chance to recap a race on the Kentucky Derby
undercard, the G1 Humana Distaff.
NEGATIVES
It can be disheartening trying to write my way into an industry
I’ve only been following a short time. In person, people have been nothing but
encouraging and helpful. Online though… yikes. I’ve seen some nasty stuff in
reply to articles I’ve written for Horse Racing Nation. It makes me wonder if I
know what I’m writing about. It makes me want to not write. It makes me think I’ll
never make it to where I want to be. As much as I tell myself to shake things
off, it doesn’t always happen. Sometimes my gut twists at the harsh words.
What I have to realize is… screw them. They’re not out there
writing. They’re not putting their opinions and words out there. They’re hiding
behind a computer screen with mean words because they don’t have anything good
to strive for.
END NOTE
To all those people who voluntarily put your opinion and
your voice out there, I applaud you and I have so much respect for you. I’m
struggling with this harsh reality on and off, but I’ll keep writing not only
to improve myself, but because I was given this passion and maybe even talent
for a reason. Keep writing because you have something to say. Keep writing
because I need you to write, to remember I’m not alone. And keep writing to
prove everyone else wrong. Keep writing, my friends. Keep writing.
“All I really want is something beautiful to say, to never fade away, I
want to live forever…”
– Seether
Bella carrying me away from your nasty comments...
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