Richard Ford was without a doubt inspired by events from his personal life whilst writing The Sportswriter. This becomes evident when you compare Richard Ford to the protagonist of the story. Both hails from Mississippi, lives in New Jersey and published a well-received collection of short stories earlier in life. To remain in the headlights after the initial breakthrough did however prove to be tough and as a result their fame died out. The following years they worked as sports journalists for a sports magazine in order to support themselves. Ford did however not give up on his authorship despite the setbacks. He decided to resume his career as an author when the sports magazine he worked for did not renew his contract with them. The Sportswriter is his first book after the…show more content… He also attempts to portray a man who constantly disrespects and reduces everyone he meet as the hero of the story with his convincing way with words. In spite of his brave attempt I think that he failed. There is no denying that Richard Ford can captivate his readers, he can, however, not force me to root for what is essentially a villain. I constantly find myself disagreeing with Franks actions and thoughts whereas the author simultaneously ensures me that his behaviour is justifiable. This becomes especially hard to accept since we get to read Franks every thought and therefore know his intentions. I do not appreciate the confusing nature of the book and also not an author who tells me what to think. The novel is unfortunately rather repetitive, for example, it probably states Franks ”dreaminess” over twenty times. Moreover, when we time and time again get to take part of his dreaminess, it becomes highly redundant. It does not help that Ford uses a predictable prose style. The length and rhythm of his sentences almost never vary, they are mostly two-clause, semi-complex sentences. This along with the gloomy tone of the novel and the lack of plot makes the book