These two pieces provided me with some really useful food for thought in considering my story pitch for the upcoming profile assignment. Specifically, it has me thinking about the various techniques of interviewing.
A lot of interviews/profiles about interesting people wind up being really, really boring, and I think this is mainly the fault of the interviewer/profiler. After all, it's his job to make the subject seem interesting, even if it's not. I've noticed that this happens a lot in the typical celebrity interview. Because he only has only fifteen minutes of the Famous Person's time, the journalist is forced to ask a bunch of cookie-cutter questions that he prepared ahead of time. The artist, having answered these questions a million times, usually gives the interviewer a bunch of short, sullen responses.
Both Orlean and LeBlanc present alternate models of "profiling" that are far more effective. In reading their articles, I have gleaned the following general tidbits:
1. It is necessary to invest a lot of time in a profile if you want it to be successful. LeBlanc's profile of Trina was three years in the making, and Orlean spent a solid couple weeks with Colin. Spending time with your subject allows the interviewer and subject to grow much more comfortable together, facilitating genuine conversation. LeBlanc presents an extreme example of this, getting intertwined with her subject to the point that she becomes almost like a parental figure to Trina. Furthermore, the more time you spend researching writing, the greater depth you are able to achieve.
2. Actually have a conversation with the subject. If anything, these two pieces prove the inefficacy of showing up with a list of questions hoping to dictate the pace and length of the interview. I think it's necessary to have an idea of what you want to talk about, but I also think that having a genuine conversation with the subject allows for an interview that goes much deeper while remaining much more organic.
I think Marc Maron does an excellent job of this on the WTF podcast series. He never seems like he's asking questions, but he always gets fascinating stuff out of his subjects.
Case in point: http://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episodes/episode_338_-_j_mascis Here, he interviews J Mascis, one of the most legendarily sullen musicians of all time. Maron's conversational style turns J downright garrulous.
I also love Orlean's approach to finding subject matter. I am inspired by the way she finds the fascinating amidst the mundane. Reading her little author's blurb was an eye-opener, and has made me think
Finally, in thinking about interviewing technique, I was reminded of a TED talk that Nardwuar gave. It's pretty ridiculous, but I think it also contains some interesting insights.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkSUazeI2nM
Reporting for narrative is a whole different ballgame than your typical celebrity Q&A, as you've noted. We'll definitely talk about techniques and troubleshoot as you go along. Even more important than interviewing is observation of the subject in action. Always keep that in mind. You want to hang around someone who does something.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, the commitment to the subject (especially in LeBlanc's case) is something that makes both of these pieces great. LeBlanc is able to share certain facets of Trina that one wouldn't know by just meeting her. She has seen her at her struggles and triumphs.
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