Sports Psychology and Writing

gothicangel

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I'm not sure if there are many sports fans out on AW, but wondered if anyone thinks [like me] that writers can learn a lot from sports psychology?

I'm a HUGE tennis fan, read a lot of tennis autobiographies. I was watching the final of the Australian Open today [:cry:] and was amazed that how within a few hours Andy Murray could come back within a few hours from a devastaing defeat to promising to go away to train harder and come back stronger.

Sports stars seem to have an amazing attitude to bouncing back from failure. A great lesson to all writers?
 

Ken

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... definitely.
I've read a lot of sports bios and have seen a number of movies, too. One that stands out is The Monty Stratton Story from 1949 with Jimmy Stewart playing the lead. Based on a true incident, it's about a major league baseball player who looses his leg in a hunting accident. He mopes about feeling sorry for himself, but eventually learns to pitch on an artificial leg and makes a comeback. Goes to show just how much a person can overcome if they set their mind to it.
Don't think I've ever read a tennis bio. Will have to pick one up.
 

Lost World

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Certainly. Athletics is every bit as mental a pursuit as writing. I find the stories of athletes who have lost their careers and then made a comeback to be quite inspiring, such as Ben Hogan (golf) recovering from a horrific car accident to play again at the highest level. Horse racing history is loaded with jockeys--and horses--who went on to ride great races after suffering injuries no one thought they could possibly recover from. We all can learn a bit about drive and striving for greatness by studying the careers of legendary sports figures.