Emma Moon

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT EMMA MOON

My love for writing stories began in a 40-year-old man’s house. Going almost 50 miles away from Chapel Hill, N.C, I traveled down N.C. 540 East to a small town called Angier. The task was simple. Write an 800-word piece about a 40-year-old goalkeeper and figure out why he’s playing on UNC’s club hockey team with students half his age. After turning onto Boots Drive, I parked my car in front of his house. My subject, Joel Hughes, stood in his driveway, retrieving his mail with his large Mastiff mutt, Tank. At 6-foot-4, he had tattoo sleeves decorating both arms. He welcomed me inside and offered me a glass of water. I asked my first question at his kitchen table. The same question I open every sports-driven feature interview. Do you remember the moment that made you fall in love with the sport? We talked for two hours. The original draft ended up being words. I realized then that I never want to stop doing this. I tackle every assignment with people first story telling. I work to craft stories that get to the heart of teams, coaches and players. In the past year, I have been fortunate to tell more of the stories that made me go into this profession. Last June, I traveled to Omaha, Nebraska to report on UNC baseball’s journey to the College World Series, writing about the historic season and its heartbreaking end. As a former assistant sports editor of The Daily Tar Heel, I was the beat writer for North Carolina football and men’s basketball. I wrote news articles and breaking stories. Now, at The Charlotte Observer, I am learning how to report on professional sports and better write local news stories. Each step has made my love for this work even stronger. And I owe it all to one thing: an hour-long drive to a 40-year-old man’s house.