To find a would-be performance-boating photographer, throw a stick at any pier during an offshore race. Now, if you want a skilled performance-boating photographer, you’ll have to aim your throw. Still, chances are good that you’ll hit one or two.
New speedonthewater.com contributor Henry Duerr’s feature on Visual Imagination founder Mark Morris went live this morning.
Now, try the same approach to finding a performance-boating writer. You’ll throw a whole bushel of sticks before you hit one—if you connect at all.
Because despite the considerable talent great go-fast powerboat photography takes, at least it looks fun. Plus, you get to carry all that cool gear and assume the “serious photographer crouch” in public.
Even on its best days, writing doesn’t look fun.
That fact—plus the general lack of basic writing skills in the general population—make competent writers hard to find. And if you believe the solution will arrive in A.I., you’re sadly uniformed.
A.I. can take what you feed it and puke out a “story.” It also can polish that story. That much it can do.
But it can’t do interviews. It can’t form relationships and establish trust.
Put it this way: No matter how smart A.I. becomes, it never will be able to get Peter Hledin of Skater Powerboats on the phone on a late-Friday afternoon.
Which still leaves any publisher with the problem of finding talented new writers. The solution is—first—sucker them into the profession with promises of fame and fortune. Then excuse the group that responds to those teasers. That will weed out the first-round of would-be scribes, as fortunes are rare in this game and there could not be a worse reason to do it than seeking fame.
At that point you’ll be down to people with basic aptitude for the craft. Interest in the subject helps but is not essential. For as the saying goes there are no boring stories, only boring writers. New writers need to be passionate about—go figure—writing.
Then as an editor/publisher you work with them. A lot. That’s your job.
Why this subject now? Speedonthewater.com published an excellent piece by Henry Duerr this morning. Duerr, who is 27 years, old has a bachelor’s degree in English and a professional background in marketing. He joins 23-year-old J.R. Bellis and 26-year-old Antonio Martinez as the daily powerboating news website’s newest contributors.
All three have desire and talent. All three have fresh voices. All three make speedonthewater.com stronger. And I plan to work them to death.
Welcome to your dream-job, lads.
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