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THE first round of Vic McCristal Sportfishing Writer Scholarships have been announced by the Queensland branch of Australian National Sportfishing Association.
ANSA Qld established the Vic McCristal Sportfishing Writer Scholarship to support budding sportfishing journalists on their sportfishing writing journey. Three high-quality recipients have been selected, with two open scholarships going to Toby Cash from Mackay and Matt Leavy from Townsville. Ryan McCosker from Keppel Bay Sportfishing Club has been awarded the ANSA Qld member scholarship.
ANSA Qld originally set its sights on awarding two scholarships, but due to the quality of applications received, this offer was extended to three. As part of the strategy to help recipients prepare their first sportfishing article, the scholarship program has been designed to match recipients with mentors.
ANSA Qld vice president and fellow mentor Adam Royle said, “Warren is a respected member of the sportfish writing fraternity and is a welcome addition to the pool of mentors available for our recipients.” “It’s both a privilege and a pleasure to have Warren join the mentoring team with Bill Bowtell and I and the recipients will gain wonderful insight into the world of sportfishing journalism given the vast array of experience on offer.”
With support from mentors, each of the scholarship recipients will now begin working on a sportfishing article and blend individual passions with sportfishing journalism skills to ensure readers are drawn to the feature articles due for completion later this year. “While critiquing writing skills is an important function of the scholarship it is only one of the major components,” Adam said.
“As mentors, we all agree that it is equally important for recipients to come away from the scholarship with a better understanding of who they are as writers and what sportfishing journalism niche may be the best fit,” Adam said. “Possessing good writing skills and knowing how to prepare an engaging article forms a part of the successful writing recipe for Matt, Toby and Ryan, however this goes hand in hand with developing a network with fellow writers and contacts with publications.”
Over the next few months each of the scholarship recipients will plan, develop and deliver a feature article on a sportfishing topic of interest that incorporates the core values of ANSA Qld – sport, conservation and integrity in angling.
