Everybody has a story to tell, but not everybody knows how to tell it - and that's where you, the writer, can shine.
Knowing how to interview is one thing, but learning how to listen is key.
I remember when I was in college, studying Radio and Television Communications in Alberta, Canada.
The first few times I interviewed somebody, I spent so much time preparing a list of questions - obsessing over them for hours lest I should be missing something - that by the time I got to my interviewee, I wasn't able to really listen, to hear the story they were sharing with me. That is why I'm not big on making a list of questions.
When people ask me "what will you want to know?" I say one of two things: "Don't worry. We're going to talk about something you are the only expert in the world on: You." Or, "Let's just see where the conversation takes us."
The key word here is "conversation."
While a list of prepared questions can guide you, it's not very conversational to ply your interviewee with questions like you're a physician with 10 minutes to spare before the next scheduled appointment. Think about how you talk to your friends or family. Pretend the person you are interviewing is a friend, and you're sitting at your breakfast nook having a nice cup of tea. Let the conversation take you places.
Prepared questions make me nervous. I'm so busy worrying about the next question that I'm not really hearing what my interviewee is telling me. I'm not listening, because I'm too busy thinking.
Sometimes just listening will reveal your "aha" moment, that is, the nugget of information that will define the tone of your whole story. You would be surprised what that might be.
Example: A woman recently turned 105-years-old. One of her caregivers, after chatting on the telephone with me for awhile, revealed an incredible moment between the two of them that was so powerful, I knew I had to use it to lead the story.
That brings me to different styles of writing.
I prefer what I call "full circle." Personalize the story. If you're writing about foreclosure, find that person who is willing to describe to you the devastation of that final notice. If you're writing about women in the housing market, find a woman to tell you how empowering it was to hold the keys to her own home.
Begin with the personal story, put the facts, numbers, statistics or quotes from the professionals in the middle of the story, and end the story by re-visiting that person you wrote about in the lead. That's full circle.
You can write chronologically - a timeline of sorts. Or reverse chronologically. Start with what's new, end with what's old. Newspapers often write stories that way.
Sometimes a simple Question/Answer format works well - but in my experience, that only works for a very specific topic, such as with the author of a book or an expert in a particular field.
The most memorable lesson I learned in college was how to keep things simple. We even had an acronym for it. KISS, meaning Keep It Simple, Silly (or Stupid, depending on who you were talking to.)
To drive the point home, my professor wrote a rambling paragraph on the chalk board. It went on an on, waxing poetic about nocturnal slumber and visions in one's mind. He asked us: What is a better way to say this?
The answer: "I have a dream."
Yes, the famous quote by Martin Luther King Jr. Four words, that in their simplicity, had the power to move a nation.
Kim Hughes
Freelance Journalist
Kim Hughes - Guest Writer
