Thursday, January 23, 2014

How I Do An Interview




Let me start off by saying that I hate reading articles which claim to be interviews but are actually little more than Puff Pieces.

So ... If you allow me to interview you ... You should probably expect that a solid handful of my questions will come at you from an odd direction. Because I think that an interview should be about so much more than simply telling the world your astrological sign and favorite color.

On the other hand ... I get really pissed at Reporters and Bloggers who seem to think it is their "Sacred Duty" to mug the other person with a bunch of "Gotcha Questions". This type of behavior adds up to being nothing more than a "Bully With A Poison Pen". I don't like this type of journalism and I refuse to get anywhere near it.

So here are the small favors I'm going to ask of the people I interview. And what I'm offering to provide in return.


I: A Short Phone Call - - - Occasionally

There are those times when I just can't get any sort of handle on an individual from the info that's already out there. And not knowing the basics about someone makes it very difficult to write good questions. If this is the case, I may want to chat on the phone with you for about 15 minutes or so. This can be very important if we've never met face to face (or have met only briefly).



II: An On Line Chat - - - About 2.0 to 2.5 hours

My part time job provides me with extra spending money and allows me to be somewhat adaptable to the Time Twisting" nature of your career. So a chat could generally be at just about any time of the day. I've connected with some people at 9:00 in the morning and others after 10:00 at night.

All I ask is that you make a chat date and then do your best to keep it. While each of us has a somewhat flexible schedule ... Neither of us can simply pull a 2.5 hour block of free time out of thin air.

If I have to postpone our chat date ... I will do so as soon as the need becomes obvious. Please do the same favor for me.

Chat Dates can take place on ...

AOL Messenger (AIM)

Facebook

Google Messenger

Yahoo Messenger



III: This Needs To Be Spontaneous

There is about Zero Percent spontaneity if I simply send someone a list of questions and then they look them over and get back with me in 3 or 4 days. That is how so many of the "Puff Pieces" get put together and shoved out into the world.

I usually start off with a pre-composed list of about 15 to 20 question. And then I think of (and add in) additional questions as we go along. Those added questions can really pump the article up a notch or two. But they usually won't get asked if I simply mail someone a list and they mail me back their answers.



IV: You Have The Right To Refuse To Answer Questions On Touchy Subjects

Every individual has that sore spot or two. And a subject that one individual considers totally fine will be something that a different person will run from.

If a question causes you to cringe ... Just tell me that you need to refuse to answer that one and I'll politely move on.



V: You Deserve The Chance To Make Small Corrections.

Like I previously said ... I refuse to play gotcha.

I will take the contents of our on line chat and I will condense it down to what I consider to be a solid interview. Then you get the opportunity to spend a day or two looking the thing over and advising me of spots where you feel that you and I might have misunderstood each other.

Just keep in mind that I do mean "Small Corrections".

There was a time in the past when one individual tried to totally rewrite the thing. And I then had to refuse to publish the article because it was no longer "Our Interview". The "Rewrite" that this person had handed back to me was nothing more than a Publicity Piece.

So this is how I do an interview. And as you go through my Blog ... You will find several that have received a large number of reads and a solid degree of praise.


Among these are ...


Author - Michael Z. Williamson (Freehold Series)



Author - Raymond Benson (Six James Bond Novels)



Featured Dancer - Phoenix Phires



Pole Dance Performer & Instructor - Valerie Mae



And the list continues to grow.


Travis Clemmons



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