In it to win it
Life lessons from the Olympic Games
Twenty years ago, just before the Athens Olympic Games, I spent time with the GB team at their training camp in Cyprus.
I wasn’t there for my sporting ability. I was working as a sports journalist for an athletics magazine and had been invited on a press trip. I was twenty-five, just starting my writing career and, in running, very much a fun-runner. To be involved in the Olympics, combining my love of writing and running, was special.
I spent a week in Paphos, interviewing the athletes and watching them train. I was amazed by their discipline, dedication and determination. They were relentless in their drive to achieve their Olympic dreams.
If nothing else, my time with the runners, jumpers and throwers made me realise that whatever you want to achieve in life, hard work is essential. You have to put in the hours of training, bounce back from the failures and keep striving.
Throughout my life, I’ve applied these principles to my career and hobbies. In athletics, I knew I would never win an Olympic medal, but I achieved things I never thought possible, winning Yorkshire medals and coming fourth and fifth at the British Masters Road and Cross-Country Relay Championships.
In writing, I’ve spent decades learning and developing my writing craft. Alongside my day job, I’ve completed a degree in English Literature, a master’s degree in creative writing, diplomas in marketing, management and life coaching, and taken many courses in novel, short story and memoir writing. Basically, if there was any opportunity to learn and improve, I’ve grabbed it.
I’ve published two nonfiction story collections, written articles for lots of weird and wonderful magazines, and been longlisted and shortlised for various writing awards. But for many years, no matter how hard I worked or what I achieved, it wasn’t good enough.
I saw being successful as landing a six-figure book deal, the writing equivalent of Olympic gold, and because I’d not done that, I thought I was failing.
What I’d struggled to realise is that in writing, just like in sport, not everyone can slog their way to the top. I had the drive, the determination, the discipline, the work ethic, and my tutors said I had talent, but these are not always enough.
Cast your mind back to 2004. It was the Olympics when Dame Kelly Holmes won double gold in the 800m and 1500m, and the British men’s sprint relay team took a surprise victory in the 4 x 100m. It was also the year Paula Radcliffe experienced disappointment in the marathon and Denise Lewis dropped out of the heptathlon.
For all the highs, there were some crushing lows. That’s the way it is with sport.
There are three spots on the podium, but even for the fittest and fastest athletes, there’s an element of luck in who takes them. It’s the same in publishing—writing a book, finding an agent, and selling to a publishing company is a long and painful process, with no guarantee of a book deal at the end.
The real achievement comes in showing up day in and day out and maintaining discipline and focus, despite the challenges. It’s important to enjoy the process and remember why we do what we do.
What makes me get out of bed to run or write at 5am? It’s not the thought of a medal or a publishing deal, it’s because I love to run and write.
In the twenty years since 2004, the publishing world has changed. There are more opportunities for writers to take control of their writing careers. It’s no longer about the big book deal, something I’ve really embraced.
For me now, success is about being creative and getting my work out into the world for people to read and hopefully enjoy. There is no better feeling than when a reader gets in touch to say one of my books, stories or Substack pieces has resonated with them or made them laugh. On days when this happens, I’m winning.
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It's easier to do what you love than love what you do. That doesn't mean that you shouldn't push yourself to do new things though.