Ryan Stripling “Words Create Worlds” Scholarship for Young Writers

I think it’s a pretty standard idea that writing is done with a pen, pencil, or computer, but when I first started, I used Legos. The first story I ever remember writing was my brother and I with our Legos. Together, we would wake up early before school every day and continue playing out our epic tale: Questrella. We spent years playing through the same stories, revising and editing them as we twisted them down hundreds of different paths. Questrella was the first story I ever created and also the first I ever actually wrote down. Even though I haven’t worked on it in years, I think about it every time I sit down to write a new story. It’s a constant reminder of what writing means to me. Questrella isn’t just some game or story; it’s everything that made up my childhood. It’s innocence and imagination and everything I miss about being a kid. It’s the chance to be completely creative and have the power to do whatever I want because it’s my own story. To me, writing is, and has always been, about having the freedom to go anywhere I can imagine. I’ve been to distant deserts, far away forests, and created entire universes from within the four walls of my room. Ever since those days in my childhood bedroom, I’ve known that I want to be a writer. When I sit down to write, I’m immediately transported back to the innocence and beauty of childhood imagination. I’m taken back to those happy-go-lucky days of being a kid and not having a care in the world. Especially at this point in my life, when all I’m supposed to be thinking about is college and my future, writing is something that will always make me feel young again. And even though life feels scary now, I know that it will only continue to get worse, which is why I am so grateful to have writing in my life. It is something that I will be focussing on in college, not just for my ultimate goal to be an author but as a way to always return to my younger self. In my future college years, I am so excited to study writing as an English major and continue my journey as an author. There is truly nothing that I love more than knitting together character arcs, plot twists, and symbolism into one intertwined masterpiece. I am overjoyed to spend the next four years of my life practicing and perfecting the thing I love most. Writing has been a part of me for as far back as I can remember, and I know that it always will be.

There's something special about seeing your name on a byline under an article you've always wanted to write. I remember getting media credentials to cover FC Barcelona Femeni's friendly match against Dallas Trinity FC during their U.S tour this past August. Growing up as a Barcelona fan, I remember wanting to go to a game during my lifetime. Later, that dream developed to being involved in a game as a reporter. When the opportunity to apply came up, I had to take it. And when I got approved, me and my dad made the four-hour trip from Houston to Dallas in order to make it on time. I remember sitting down in the historic Cotton Bowl press box with my Google Document open as the game was going. While I was working, I took a second to realize what I was doing and my promise to my younger self. This article that I was writing was the culmination of years of dreaming and work. Journalistic writing is concise, and my job that day was to write a very short story (slightly over 300 words) to describe the match and its importance. My other job was to interview one of the Barcelona players in order to get a quote for the article (it helps our company look good if players answer our questions) and fulfill a bucket list moment for myself. The article itself didn't take too long. What I spent most of my time at the game working on was how I would be able to get the interview. There were many writers, reporters, and media people at the game with the same goal as mine. I'm also not the lengthiest person or the loudest, so being able to ask the questions I wanted to ask without getting overblown by another eager reporter was going to be tough. Even though the media team records all the answers to questions, which meant that I could use one of the quotes provided by the team, I wanted to use my own questions for this article. I pursued journalistic writing to tell stories, and I wanted to decide what would be on this one. As the game ended, I scurried to the press area, and I successfully set myself in the front. Being in the front of the pile was big, as that would mean that the players would be able to hear from me clearly. However, if I wasn't the first person to ask a question, my positioning wouldn't matter. As the first Barcelona player passed by, I didn't hesitate. I asked my one question, and she gave me the answer I needed. I had the story. This was the first professional women's soccer match ever in Dallas, and the support was big. The players could feel it, and it was an emotional scene. I had the story. Me and my dad went back to a friend's house, and I plugged in the quote into the article. I had the story. The next day, the article was published, and seeing it go up on the website once again reminded me why I love writing. I had the opportunity to fulfill a childhood dream of mine in a way that was worth something for other people. I was able to spread my love for soccer to an audience, and that's meaningful. Life without meaning is like rice with no condiments. Writing, specifically journalistic writing and experiences for me, is the condiment that helps give my life some flavor.