CONDUCTING IN-PERSON INTERVIEWS

By Elizabeth Bardsley

A writer told me that he makes a point to take the interviewees to dinner the night before he intends to start interviewing, and I think that is a fabulous idea. It gives everyone a chance to become comfortable with one another, and it is the perfect opportunity to encourage the subject(s) to ask whatever questions they may have before you begin the interviews. If interesting stories are shared, remind the subjects that you would like to also include those in the subsequent recorded interview. Interviews with individuals whose rights have been optioned are typically transcribed and often become the skeleton of a script annotation. For the interviews to be most effectively utilized, a transcriber must be able to clearly hear the recording, decipher who is speaking, and understand what is being said.

Avoid conducting your interviews in a restaurant, bar, automobile, while eating a meal, or in any other location where there is background noise. Eliminate any possible distractions to the interview such as children, pets, or cell phones. Remember, for your recordings to be as potentially useful as possible, they need to be clear.

Be open to looking at whatever these individuals are willing to share with you but remember to memorialize what you observe on the audio recording. If they are showing you articles, books, etc., do state the name of the publication and the date and let the subjects(s) talk to you about the items as well; if you end up using this material, the recorded documentation will prove helpful.

Digital recorders can truly be a writer's best friend as they are fundamentally easy to use, offer an enormous amount of recording time, and the audio can easily be transferred to a computer or a flash drive. Phones are certainly another option for recording in-person interviews and a variety of apps are available but do confirm that there are not restrictions on the amount of recording time before you start your interview.

No matter what means you use to record, take the time to be confident and comfortable with your recording device prior to your interview. And before you start recording, do remind the interviewees to verbally respond to questions [no one can transcribe a headshake or a nod], speak clearly and avoid speaking over each other.