“I had a lot of trouble putting the periods and commas in the right place,” the 22-year-old Loïs de Bont from Castricum admits honestly. Because of her autism, she sometimes got stuck to the grammar rules, but she did not let herself be left. Her perseverance resulted in the book Hockey fencing of men An, About the flagship of Overbos.
Especially for this interview, Lois has moved her work for a few hours. Instead of in the morning she now starts in the old kitchen in Bakkum in the afternoon, a restaurant where the staff consists partly of people with disabilities. Lois has enjoyed it from there as a waitress for a year and a half.
Phone talks enthusiastically about how the idea originated to follow Overbos men 1 for a year and to include their adventures in a book. Her heart has been beating faster for years with field hockey. She played parahockey herself in Overbos for fourteen consecutive seasons. But in recent years, next to her stick, her notebook has increasingly gone to the club.
“I always like to write,” she says. ‘One day I was along the line at a home game of a gentlemen and made notes in my notebook. One of the players saw me and asked what I was doing. When I told him that I wrote a report of the competition, he responded enthusiastically. He said, “How well, then I don’t have to do that myself.”
The cover of the book Hockey Farewell to Men.
Farewell to the ‘Big Five’ at Overbos Men’s 1
It was this kind of enthusiastic reaction that encouraged her to write a book about field hockey. She decided to concentrate on Heren 1. During the 2022/2023 season, she did not skip any home game.
She fell head over heels: it turned out to be the last season of the ‘Big Five’, the five oldest players in the team, who have a cult status within the club. But they not only said goodbye, the entire technical staff also waved goodbye. In sporting terms it was also a season that was not easily forgotten: ninth place avoided relegation of the first division.
“The book takes the reader throughout the season,” summarizes Loïs. Before and after the matches she spoke with the players, who eagerly told her what was going on within the team. She also kept an eye on the messages on the social media of Men’s 1. The result is a mix of non-fiction and fiction. ‘During the winter break, the team went on a training trip, but I didn’t attend that. So I tried to write how it could have been. So some things are made up. After all, it’s a book, so I thought: that’s okay, right? “She laughs.
Despite Her Autism, Loïs de Bont wrote a book about overbos men 1.
The publisher kept just wanting to adjust things. It was quite difficult, but with some help I finally succeeded Loïs van Bdecoupling
Loïs deliberately left her notes a while after the season ended. She first focused entirely on her first book: Madness at ice cream & soA story about an ice cream parlor where employees with and without disabilities experience all kinds of adventures. This book was published in November 2023. She served the first design of Hockey Farewell to Men to the publisher last August.
She says it was a heavy delivery. Because of her autism, she sometimes got stuck to grammar rules during the writing process. “This book was almost never published. It was touch and go. The publisher remained but want me to adjust things. In the end I got a last chance to make the improvements. Then I started working hard to put all the dots and commas in the right place. It was quite difficult, but with some help I finally succeeded.”
The result was released on Friday. She has already held the book. “I am very proud of it. I am also curious what the players of men 1 think. In the coming weeks, life in the club will slowly pick up, so I hope to be able to show them the result as soon as possible. ‘
Does writing about field hockey now taste more like more? “My third book will be on another topic. But I have many ideas. Field hockey continues to fascinate me. So who knows. ‘
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