Covering an athletic event on a tight deadline is tough enough. It's even tougher when you have to file a new story for each quarter, half and period of the game in question.
But that's what Eric Redner had to when he was covering games two and four of the 2010 NHL finals between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Chicago Blackhawks.
Redner works for SportsNetwork.com, a sports wire service whose clients want separate stories for every period of championship sporting events like the Super Bowl, NBA and NHL finals. So he had to produce a new story after each period of the Flyers-Blackhawks matchup, then a final story after each game had ended.
Reporters working for wire services often have to file continuous updates on major news events. At The Associated Press, the world's largest wire service, such updates are known as "writethrus," and a major story can have as many as a dozen writethrus or more.
Basically, this means writing an initial story based on what happens early in the event or game, then writing stories with new ledes and information as the event progresses. This kind of deadline writing can be tough at first for beginners, but Redner has some tips on how to do it:
Write Background Copy Beforehand
Background copy (B-copy) is just what it sounds like - background material that can be put into your story before the game begins. This might include the records of the two teams, their strengths and weaknesses and star players, and so on. The b-copy will go at the bottom of your story, which will then be topped by the new material from the game itself.
Write As You Go
Redner had an extremely tight deadline: His stories had to be out on the wire within 10 minutes after the end of each period. So he had to write while the games were in progress.
"I'm just writing down the game as it goes along; whenever there's a goal, good scoring opportunity or a power play I'll highlight that," Redner says. "Also, any crazy plays, and if someone takes a cheap shot at another player."
Covering a championship "is a little more pressure than writing a game story in December between the two last-place teams," he says. "I want to get as much pertinent information in the story as possible and just get it out as fast as I can."
Watch for the Good Stuff
Redner knows that a good sports story isn't a transcript of everything that happens in a game. It's a condensation that focuses on the big scores and dramatic moments that make a game exciting.
So writing a game story is as much about what you leave out as what you put in. For example: "You don't need to describe every single scoring opportunity," Redner says. "A shot from the outside wing that the goalie sees clearly is registered as a scoring chance, but nine times out of 10 it won't get anywhere near the net. But on a power play with six guys in front of the net that's a very good scoring chance."
In other words, include the stuff fans will be talking about at the watercooler the morning after the game, and leave the rest out.
At the End, Condense
After producing separate stories for each period, Redner had to write a "wrap," a story featuring the highlights of the entire game. In the wrap Redner focused on the game's biggest moments while condensing or cutting out material that turned out to be less important. This is especially important for wire service stories, which tend to be short.
"With the full game story I condense what I had written in the first two periods," Redner says. "You always have to keep it tight."
For beginners wanting to learn deadline writing Redner adds, "Be quick and pay attention to what's happening in the game. This isn't something you can just sit down and do the first day on the job. It takes practice."
Here are the stories Redner did for Game Four of the Flyers-Blackhawks series:
