by Max Lehmann

Created on: December 20, 2006   Last Updated: May 14, 2007

Part of showing the strength of your writing comes from the editing you impose upon yourself. This is particularly true in the case of interviews.

It is very common these days to see the transcripts of online chats touted as interviews, or to see interviews presented in the question-answer-question-answer style. The problem with this is that it doesn't demonstrate that you are a good writer, only that you are capable of performing an interview. Don't assume that interview technique isn't important - it is, but it's only part of the story.

What you should remember is that your audience was not there for the interview. Every word the subject spoke may well be important but there is more to the situation than that. A reader will probably not usually want to read an interview because they are a fan of your writing rather most interview readers will have been lured into reading by wanting to know something about the person being interviewed. Keep this foremost in your mind when you write your piece. Add information to your writing that the words your subject speaks don't tell. Were they rushed when they answered? Did they speak quickly? Were they cheerful? Tired? Confused? What are the surroundings like? Does your subject pause during the interview to take a sip of water, or to answer a call? What do all these details suggest about them? Are they busy? Glad to talk to you or wishing to end the conversation as soon as possible? Do they volunteer information you haven't directly asked for? Do they answer questions at length or succinctly?

In order to produce a good interview piece, rather than a mediocre one, it is a good idea to capture the moments as best you can. Sometimes you will need to rely purely on your memory and a few choice quotes you jot down. In such instances be careful not to put words into your interviewee's mouth - only put down as quotes those things you know they definitely said.

Wherever possible take along a tape recorder, or maybe even a video recorder. These devices will give you ample opportunity to review what was said and to think about it at length. It might be worth doing a direct transcript from your source material to give you a good idea of what was said and to let you have something to cut and paste from and build your article around.

People don't speak in complete sentences. They say "er" and "um" all over the place. Ignore these foibles unless you're trying to make your subject look foolish. Often your subject will go off at a tangent

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