Meet the Blogger – Alan Hull

Today in Meet the blogger we feature the first of our writers from CoppernBlue. The SB Nation blog about the Oilers is filled with awesome talent and we’ll have a chat with a few of them during this series. Today’s interview features Alan Hull, here’s what he had to say;

When did you start writing about hockey? What got you into it?

I think that’s a two-part question for me to answer. I’ve been responding to other people’s articles and commenting on messageboards for a number of years…more than I can recall truthfully. I’m glad I used to post under a pseudonym back then because when I think back to how ignorant I was as a hockey fan at the time, I can’t help but laugh at myself.

As far as writing in a more formal capacity, that really began at the start of 2012. This might be a far more personal response than you were looking for but what the hell…I had just moved out to New Brunswick with my wife and son to be closer to her family and left everything and everyone I’d ever known growing up in Southern Ontario. It was a really difficult time for me personally trying to figure out how to fit the pieces of my life together in a new place, and, due to the fact that I knew precisely zero people in town other than family, I found myself with LOADS of free time to kill.

I was thinking of starting my own hockey blog, and honestly, felt like I needed some practice since I hadn’t done a great deal of this kind of writing before, so I started posting some fan-submissions on Copper & Blue’s site, since I had been a fan for the work being done there for a long time, and Derek Zona reached out to me and asked me to join the team.
Are there any writers that you look up to? If so, who are they and why?

There are far too many to list here, but I’ll give it a shot. This is as good a place as any to note my eternal gratitude to Derek Zona. Derek not only sought me out as someone he thought could contribute positively to the team at Copper & Blue, but he’s given me numerous opportunities to improve myself by educating me on different ways to view the game and by providing opportunities for me to do things like interview prospects in the Oiler organization and really learn how to carry a conversation and get the information I want from someone without grilling them.

Beyond that, I think all of the Oilogosphere should hold Allan Mitchell (Lowetide) up on the pedestal he so richly deserves to be perched upon. The man is a tireless workhorse of a writer, he’s very good at it, and he goes out of his way to help others as they navigate the waters of trying to establish their voice as a credible observer of the Oilers and the NHL.

I could go on forever, but a few other names that should be mentioned…Scott Reynolds and all of my other C&B brethren and Jonathan Willis is simply sensational. I really loved what Tyler Dellow was doing with his writing by marrying statistical analysis with video research, and among the professional ranks…Elliotte Friedman is the standard of excellence and Bruce Arthur may be one of the best storytellers I’ve ever had the chance to read.

Everyone should read all of those guys. They’re outstanding.

If you could give any advice to people interested in getting into writing about sports…what would it be?

The logical answer here is to start doing it. Now. Just start creating content, that’s lesson number one. Secondly, try to find a site you respect and communicate with the writers there. Network yourself to establish a bond with them so that they’ll have some interest in reading what you’ve written. Once you establish that relationship, you’ve got some people who can help you find your way.

Beyond the actual step-by-step on how to do it, I think the other thing is to find your voice. Analytics, or “fancy stats” are the big thing right now, but if you’re not someone who likes to make your point with numbers, that’s ok. There are lots of other ways to make your case, but be sure to make it. People don’t comment and share articles that straddle the fence. Form an opinion and state it with confidence. Whether people agree or not, you’ll likely get them talking, and that’s really the main objective.

Do you specialize in types of writing (analytical, post/pre game blogs, prospects, opinion pieces…all of the above)?

I dabble in a little bit of everything. I like to use numbers to support my arguments, but I’m far from Eric Tulsky in that regard. Derek has offered me some tremendous opportunities to interview some of the Oilers’ top prospects, and I’ve enjoyed that thoroughly, but I’d say my favourite stuff is the off-ice stuff…the asset management and roster composition part of the game. I’m fascinated by those things and how some teams justify the moves they make. The same can be said with coaching decisions and the deployment of players. I love trying to figure out what is going on inside the minds of the people who are really in charge of putting the right players in the right place at the right time to try and create success on the ice. Needless to say it hasn’t happened much for Oiler fans in recent years but the process is endlessly interesting.

Do you have a favorite article that you’ve written or one that got a lot of positive feedback or criticism? Tell me a bit about it.

A few things spring to mind. I was blown away by both Dillon Simpson and Darnell Nurse when I spoke with them. Those guys just came across like they thought the game at a very high level. I’m very proud of the conversations I had with them and other prospects as well.

Another would be the article I wrote after Tom Gilbert was traded for Nick Schultz. I think that was the moment where I really hit a point of “I can’t censor my frustration anymore and I’m just going to say how I feel” and that has helped me in the years since.

Lastly, a few months before Steve Tambellini was mercifully fired, I wrote an article that was done primarily to be funny that used the “Do you hear the people sing?” song from Les Miserables and tried to apply those lyrics to show Oiler fans just how angry they should be with the team’s management group. It got loads of views, it was linked to by Grantland and a few other sites. It was really something different for me, and I was glad people seemed to enjoy it.

What sites do you currently write for? Favorite team(s)?

As far as teams, certainly the Oilers are my first love. They are the thing that inspired me to begin writing about hockey and while I love all hockey, it always comes back to the Oilers and Edmonton.

My efforts these days are focused on Copper & Blue, though you’d likely not know that given my scarcity over the summer. My wife and I are expecting our second child later this year and we’ve had a lot going on at home, so I’ve taken the summer off to focus on that part of my life. I’ll be back writing for C&B more regularly in September and throughout the season. The new baby will help me stay up for the late night Oiler games given the time difference on the east coast.

Where can we find you on social media? Twitter/Facebook etc

Really my twitter account (@alanhull) is the best place. The site’s account is @coppernblue and all of our articles are distributed through there as well.

Thanks to Alan for being so open in the interview. There are a few points that stick out for me, being able to interview players is an amazing thing and Alan does a great job of it those prospect articles are always a great read. The other thing he mentions is the C&B fan posts, if you are thinking of writing that is a great spot to start, Oilogosphere is another one that comes to mind. OilersRig writers Jeremy Wright and Romulus both came to us via the C&B fan pages.

Thanks for Reading.