There are several different types of writing services available. There is also flexibility with the option you choose because ultimately, what type of writing support you want is the most important thing.
TYPES OF WRITING SERVICES
– Biography
A book that presents your running experiences and achievements as well as other parts of your life (e.g., growing up, family, other life experiences, travel and so on). It’s not just a proud reflection on your experiences to date, but also serves as a legacy that can be shared with sons and daughters, grandchildren and their children!
– Memoirs and collections
A collection of stories of specific experiences and/or races. This is more focused than a full biography and may focus on memorable moments or achievements. These could be, for example, your first marathon, a marathon in an exotic place, running your 100th marathon, travel experiences, running a race with family members, encounter with a Bear (it happens), overcoming injury or illness and so on).
– Articles
You may prefer to have a recorded account of one particular event or achievement. An article would present all the details of that one experience (e.g., running the Boston Marathon, or running your first marathon after a hip replacement, the race where you first met your spouse).
– Running Club Stories
A collection of short stories from club members may be a perfect way to instill camaraderie among runners and further build the social dimension of the club. It’s a great way to reflect on members achievements and the growth of the club. Some clubs may also want a history of the club written.
– Editing
You may already have the content written and ready to be published. Runplaces can provide editorial evaluation, content editing, copy editing and proof-reading services to give your words the clarity and quality they need before being accepted for publication.
– Publishing
Runplaces works with companies that specialise in publishing books. There is a range of publishing options available that include design, illustration, printing, distribution, social media, marketing and book promotion – all the essential elements required to have a quality book for sale in markets around the world.
WHAT’S THE PROCESS?
Contact Malcolm at runplacesmalcolm@gmail.com
In the email, outline a) what types of services you are interested in, b) what written material you already have (e.g., race reports, blog entries), and c) when you would like the work completed.
Malcolm will get back to you within 2 days with a description of what would be possible in regard to the type of writing support you need, an idea of how long it would take and a general cost estimate.
If you are still interested, the next practical step is to discuss the details of the work.
If there is agreement on the work, a 1-2 page contract would be prepared. Payment would be based on your selection of different payment options available.
Work would commence as soon as the contract is signed by you and Runplaces.
THE RESEARCH AND WRITING METHOD
Unless the writer is ‘there’ sharing the experiences with the runner, what gets written will have to come from different sources.
– Existing written material
Writing about peoples’ experiences will require building on pre-existing written material like blog entries or social media descriptions, or even emails sent to friends that describe your experiences.
– Interviews
A great source of information is the runner. Several interviews can be conducted with the runner (interviewing family and friends and other runners is also an option). These interviews can be enhanced by integrating race reports from the Internet, as well as research on locations and specific places where the runner has visited (they may, for example, have run the Cayman Islands marathon but also went snorkeling in the Cayman Islands, so research on that activity can provide accurate information).
– Statistics
While not critical to all stories, information on races such as completion times, splits, number of runners, number of DNFs in a race, age group winners, and so on, can add to the depth and quality of the stories.
– Photographs
It’s true, pictures tell a thousand words. Going through photos of experiences often brings up numerous ‘forgotten’ memories, all of which can add significantly to the stories being shared.
It is very likely that the completed stories have a little bit of everything listed above. The very exciting thing is that by putting all this content together, the experiences come to life and they are recorded forever. Anything is possible.
Malcolm Anderson 