Weekends Wonderings and Wanderings.

Hi. Sorry about the day delays. I haven't posted anything since Wednesday morning.

Tuesday evening's class was interesting. We studied shape, structure, and interview skills. Since my health deteriorated, I now mainly conduct my interviews, not in a face-to-face format, but over the telephone or via email. I now find that email techniques are my favoured. Please find this example from my Tuesday evening class Copyright © CityLit 2023 & Mark Starkey.

Interviewing Techniques - Strategy:

 Do your research. Pull out anything they have said before or any

interviews they have done

 Choose your location – it is important both to set the tone and for

your writing

 A good interview is a combination of apparent spontaneity and

responsiveness, good research and searching questions

 Plan your strategy carefully. Start with the easy questions first to

get them talking about themselves. Make the interviewee feel

special - strategy, ammunition and weapons are the key to

successkeys to success.

 Listen, engage, interact and make eye contact

 Body language is useful – mirror, pace, lead

 Do not read off a list of questions but allow the interview to flow

 Tick off what has been answered on your list so that you know to

come back to questions later

 Allow for reflection – in doing so your interviewee will feel more

relaxed and engaged

 Ensure your questions illustrate your knowledge about them or

who they represent

 Leave a door open – for contact afterward in case there are further

questions

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Here's an example of a recent interview conducted by me via email: (questions in black, responses in red)

Dear (editors name),

1)    How many dog(s) do you have?

1 Dog

2)    What are their names, gender, breed and ages?

Rosco, Male, CockerPoo, 3 years 6 months

3)    Is/are your dog(s) a pedigree or crossbreed?

Cross bread (Poodle/Cocker Spaniel)

4)    How long have you owned your dog(s)?

Since he was 8 weeks old

5)    What activities do you do with your dog(s)? e.g. Walking, running, ball games, dog shows, taking your dog to work etc.

Mostly walking, no shows, he comes to work once a week as I now don’t work from home.

6)    What makes your dog happy?

Being around people and other dogs, he is very social and affectionate.

7)    What does your dog do to make you happy?

Rosco is always there, he gives us as much love and attention as we give him. He snuggles when we feel sad. He knows when we are getting stressed and sits with us all day if needed, just stroking his back, head and belly gives us some much-needed mental release as we feel instantly happier in his presence. He is always happy to see us as we are him. Walking him gives us purpose and meaning for exercise. He is a good dog, a great dog, and we love him.

Great responses, but this doesn't always work. Interviewees can either forget (follow up with a gentle reminder) or just choose not to reply. The above example was sent out to eight recipients, but only four responded, answering all/most of my questions. As mentioned earlier, interviews can also be conducted via telephone or face to face.

You can read a (rough) article 'Writing for Magazines' written by me which you can download by clicking here.

That's all for now - tomorrow I'll cover recording and transcribing your interview(s) - so you've probably had enough by now - back to my homepage.