Know your perspective is one-sided then move outward, expand, by asking questions. You’re not giving up your perspective by looking at something from another angle. If characters in your story/writing come from different angles, they’ll be more believable to your readers.
Think of ‘the questions you ask’ as the force rotating the turntable on which an issue/opinion/memory/ sits. Doing this usually leads to “Ah!” moments.
It’s expansive. And harmless. Fun even because it enhances your creative side. There are countless ways to view something and that mindset makes writing multi-faceted. There is no fear or paranoia here. Just jump in with questions and see what you come up with.
Don’t be afraid to trim the mediocre, short-sighted, and prejudiced ideas. New life blossoms when you play around with ideas.
How do you get started? Start asking questions and then look for and listen to the answers. There are countless ways to get informal or formal interviews:
Back to #1 of creative writing nuts and bolts: Research You have to contact people. Newsletters from areas of interest are usually free and are full of information. It was The Dawn’s Place Newsletter that advertised the Symposium for Sexual Exploitation at Villanova University. I reached out to the venue coordinator and asked a simple question: Can I attend as a journalist to expand my research? They said yes and at the symposium I was put in contact with more people, asked more questions, and found a very important part of the creative writing process - a Sensitivity Reader. . . all because I read a newsletter and asked a question.
Family I grew up with 12 siblings and send them emails or texts and follow up with phone calls. I accept that I’m limited in my perception of our family dynamics (age/gender/temperament) and am always interested in what they remember. This allows me to write in detail about the differences my characters would have within similar shared experiences. Assuming they will be different is what keeps a mind open and a story interesting.
With 12 siblings and my husband’s 6 siblings (and all of their children) I have familial detectives, comedians, engineers, nurses, educators, principals, therapists, writers, artists, builders, dentists, accountants, bakers, chefs, bankers, analysts, managers, musicians, athletes, doctors, lawyers, military, business owners, police officers, data processors, and so much more! They’re all wonderful human beings thriving in various corners of the world.
That’s a wealth of information. All I have to do is reach out with questions.
The worst thing that happens is people don’t respond. This happens because people are busy, so pass no judgment.
Something interesting still happens even if they don’t respond. By just forming questions and assuming answers will be different, characters become 3 dimensional and respond in realistic ways. Imagination is amazing, powerful, allowing you to understand'/accept a different thought.
It doesn’t hurt to ask questions, so keep asking. Usually, people will get back to you.
Knock on doors, make phone calls, and send emails to neighbors (you’ll find police officers, teachers, hunters, etc in your neighborhood), walk into a local political branch and community shops. Go ahead, just ask, “Good afternoon. I’m writing a story about ___________ and I was wondering if there was somebody available to answer a few questions.”
Make sure you did your homework and have 5 (no more, no less) well-worded questions that can be answered briefly. At the end of the questions, simply ask, “I’d like to send you a copy of my questions/answers to make sure I didn’t misquote you. What’s the best email I can use?” I find that people are usually glad that someone is talking to them about their job, passion, social justice, concern, etc.
It’s free advertising for them. If you have to use that angle to get information, use that angle.
When you’re lucky enough to set up a formal interview, go for it. They’re busy, you’re busy, I get it. But ask for an interview anyway. The things you’ll always have over AI - people skills, so use them! With eye to eye contact (and make sure to wear clothes that say, ‘I care about what you do and what you have to say’), you’ll take the details of your story to a new level. Sometimes, I get a wave of anxiety leading up to an in-person interview and it takes everything in me to actually show up. I get rid of this self-defeating attitude by remembering it’s not about me. It’s about the story.
The story is always important enough to show up.
You asked the questions, now you have to organize it somewhere. I used to take notes but then I’d throw the scraps away or forgot where I put them. I even used to type it all up and save it in a color coded folder (the teacher in me liked this method). But then I’d forget where I put the folder. I had hundreds of folders in about 20 different bags scattered around my house.
With computers, you’d think organization would get easier. But now I forget the file name. Or, I rewrite my notes and have 5 documents with the same name, just little numbers after each one. And no, it isn’t necessarily the latest numbered file that I edited/rewrote. For some reason, I edit the #2 or #4 document. Then, I forget it for a few months and when I go back to edit more, I forget which one I was working on. I actually start working on one that isn’t necessarily the last one I edited.
Such a waste of time. The struggle is real. Creativity is like growing up in a household with 12 siblings…
organized chaos.
The best I’ve been able to do so I don’t lose interview info - type it all up and post the info as soon as possible on my blog. I go back to the post whenever I need to remember an idea or a quote.
I’d like to do this more and am starting to send out interview requests. Maybe I’ll even start a podcast. I kind of like this idea.
But, my twenty-something-year-old kids are telling me that podcasts are on the way out.
Seriously? How and when did that happen already?
Do you have an idea on how to organize your interview information?
Shine a light on it! ……..by sharing your ideas.
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