As a writer you
will (and should) have many opportunities to interview others: you might be a
journalist doing a profile of a community leader; win a magazine assignment to
interview a celebrity; a blogger featuring guests on your site; a student fulfilling
a class project on family trees; or an author needing more insight into a
character. While you are promoting yourself, or writing a mini-bio to go on a
book jacket or publisher author page, doing a self-interview will help you
flesh out the highlights others want to know about you.
There are a few
different ways to conduct interviews — you can conduct an interview in-person,
by phone, or via email. Q & A, the question-and-answer interview, is
usually the most basic and used frequently by bloggers who often use email;
using questions and answers and publishing them verbatim is an easy way to
learn facts about a person. A phone interview allows you to tailor future questions
based on the subject’s verbal responses and thus allows for a more in-depth
interview; interviewing a subject by phone doesn’t allow you to read facial
responses or physical gestures and might cover up more truthful answers and
facts. Interviewing someone in person will usually give you the most revealing
answers as you note physical responses as well as verbal answers (her eyes filled
with tears as she spoke about her deceased parents); busy people will often
prefer to be interviewed in person as they go about their normal day, this in
itself can provide a deeper insight into the subject. In person and phone
interviews take a more relaxed and conversational tone.
Coming up with
questions for an interview: If your subject is well known, has a blog of his
own, or is a member of a larger unit (school board, witness to an event, has
won an award, etc.) then research before compiling questions so that the questions
you ask are specific to the subject. The subject will often feel more apt to
talk with you if you can ask them more personalized questions or about issues
near and dear to him. Who is the audience you are writing the interview for?
Think about the type of things your audience relates to — moms might want to
know how a busy actress makes time for her family; celebrity fans may be
curious what goes on “off-stage” and their idol’s personal likes and dislikes;
readers will want to hear what is their favorite author’s next project; and busy
executives like knowing how their counterparts manage their teams. What do you
want to know about this subject? If you are conducting a real-time interview
keep your prepared questions basic and modify them as you go along and hear
your subject’s responses. And don’t forget the most important question in any
interview, (variations of) “Is there anything else you would like to add?”; add
this towards the end.
Most interviews
should leave the reader with a realistic but positive view of your subject; one
of the techniques I’ve always used is to verify responses that “sound” harsh about
the subject, I’ve found often the subject thanks me and re-words the response.
I also ask about specific statements if I could quote him and then read back
the quote (or major phrase). Many times business owners and such will make exclamations
such as “this is the best computer out there” — if they want that assertion
made then make sure you include it as a direct quote and attribute it to the
subject or company hand-out. Newspaper reporters may need to do a hard-news
expose (ie: the town supervisor caught skimming) interview; this type of
interview is best done in person as it makes it difficult to lie (look for
those physical responses), never make an assumed statement on your own, always
attribute alleged facts to the source, and be very careful about exposing
things that are protected by law (have the newspaper’s legal department review
it if possible).
Not everyone
wants to be interviewed and the reasons vary. The subject might be wary of a
negative view; if your editor permits it, offer to let the subject read what
you’ve written before submitting but always let them know the editor has the
final word. Your chosen subject may be too busy for an interview; offer to meet
the person on a site of his choosing (be prepared to wear good walking/running
shoes) or to conduct the interview by phone or email. Always let your potential
subject know your credentials, provide him with an actual example if possible.
Ask your subject if he has a preferred topic to talk about such as an
organization he sponsors. Find out if the subject would like to prepare
beforehand with a short list of possible questions. If your subject still says “NO”
and you really need the interview (editorial assignment?) find out if there is
someone else to answer questions like an administrative assistant or publicist.
Worst case scenario and suggested ONLY for hard-news stories is to inform the
subject that you will have to rely on the information that is already “out
there” to write an article (use care with this option).
Writing Exercise: Find a published interview (online or
in a magazine). If the interview was published as Q & A, rewrite it as an
article; if the interview was published as an article, rewrite it Q & A.
Writing Prompt: Make a list of 10 to 15 questions you
would want someone to ask YOU to reveal the most important information about
what you do; make sure this interview gives the audience a positive look at
you.
Challenge Assignment: Go out and find someone to
interview and then post it on your blog. [If you don’t have your own blog, send
it to The Potpourri Parlor http://bit.ly/1znc2D8
at ChelleCordero@gmail.com] Remember to research your
subject and compile your questions based on the facts you find and the audience
you are writing for [the audience for Potpourri is mostly authors and readers].
Use either Q & A or article format as you feel most comfortable.
