David Silverberg, Author at David Silverberg

The 5 mistake to avoid when you interview sources

You just landed an interview, ideally in-person, and now you’re wondering how to get the most out of your interviewee. After conducting more than 500 interviews in my work as a freelance journalist, I can attest to how important is to prepare thoroughly and learn to be a strong listener during those one-on-one sessions. But I recognize not every journalist boasts that wealth of experience, which is one of the reasons why I became a writing coach: to share my knowledge so others can benefit. That’s why I want to shed light on the five mistakes budding journalists make when they sit down to conduct interviews with folks. Also, if you have any feedback or questions about this advice, feel free to find me on Twitter @SilverbergDave Don’t forget to research and prep It’s never smart to go into an interview cold. It might sound obvious, even to first-time journos, but you should always research your source thoroughly, knowing everything about her childhood, education, career choices, hobbies, public statements, what others have said about her, etc. Then write a few questions that you can bring to the interview. Ideally, these should be in an easily accessible notepad. More soon about the types of questions you should be asking. But coming back to that notepad… Don’t rely on your memory for moments of colour, detail Every engaging profile of someone, if that’s the article you’re tackling, includes vivid details about the interviewee. As much as you want to ensure you have the best quotes to include in your profile, you have to also embed alluring colour: How is she speaking? Quickly, deliberately, anxiously? Do her hand gestures or body movement convey anything about her feelings during a certain answer? If you’re interviewing her at her home or office (both highly recommended), what can readers learn about her through her décor or photos on the wall? That’s why you need that notepad with you to record those details. And that’s why you need a voice recorder to do the heavy lifting of capturing the entire interview, allowing your notepad to take down those colourful descriptions that can elevate your profile from great to amazing. Refrain from asking closed questions Closed questions are usually answered with a “yes” or “no.” They may come in the form of something like, “Were you happy when you left your old job to take on this new role?” That will be a yes or no answer, and will leave you with nothing meaty to work from. That’s why a better more open-ended question of that same topic could be, “Tell me how you felt when you left your old job.” She can’t answer with a yes or no there, and you’ll likely learn something about her emotional wellbeing during that moment in her life. A good rule-of-thumb is to begin question with “why”, “how”, “what inspired you to…” and “explain more about…” It’s not that you can’t ever ask questions that begin with “where” or “who”, say, but just realize you’ll be getting more factual answers than emotional answers with those kinds of queries. Don’t ask the hardball questions first If you’re writing an investigate article that requires you to ask some tough questions, your source will have her hackles up. It won’t be a breezy interview. But there are ways to get the most out of what could be a tight-lipped conversation. What I’ve found helpful is waiting to ask the really tough questions that form the backbone of the interview. When she can feel comfortable talking to you, that’s when you can go for the more important questions. So, in the beginning of the chat, opt for softball questions to ease them into the interview. Ask about her life growing up, what she found exciting about school or her first job, the kinds of books she reads, the mentors she’s had, and so on. Then, maybe halfway through the interview, lob those hardball questions. I can’t guarantee she’ll open up to you or refrain from saying “no comment” but if you’re friendly to begin with, it’ll be easier to lean towards more difficult questions that you truly want to ask. Don’t let your interviewee get long-winded I’ve faced this many times: You ask a question about X, and the interviewee meanders this way and that, talking about Y, Z and every other letter, and you’re waiting patiently for her to finally get to X…but you’re not sure how long it will take to get there. When you’re faced with a long-winded and distracted reply, it’s up to you to steer it back to where you want the answer to go. If it were up to interviewees, they could wax poetic about how great they kids are until you’re ready to leave. The more you can stay in control of the interview, the better quotes you’ll receive. One tactic I’ve used is to say, during a wandering answer, “So that’s interesting, but can you come back to my question about why you decided to take on this new job?” You’ll likely be welcomed with a smile, perhaps an apology, and then the interview will get back on track and you’ll be treated to the answer you sought. Just be respectful and polite with this kind of question. You might be frustrated by long-winded answers, but it’s still critical to realize this interviewee doesn’t HAVE TO speak to you, they’re really doing you a favour, so reporters should remember to ask these kinds of questions with patience and civility.

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Why every writer needs to have an Inspiration File

In a note on my Evernote app, titled Inspiration File, a list of random words and phrases might seem confusing to a stranger’s eye, but for me, they represent five years’ worth of curating the most intriguing pieces of writing I’ve come across. In both the fiction and non-fiction I read, I pay attention to any sentences or even verbs that cause me to crane my attention and think, “Hmm. Haven’t used/thought of that one in a bit.” I contend that every writer, no matter the vertical, should have an Inspiration File on their phone or notepad. We can’t rely on our memory to pull up that moving phrase we want to tweak with our voice; at least I don’t claim to have an impeccable memory, so that’s where my iPhone’s Evernote comes in. I’ve long had my phone nearby when I’m reading a book or article (which isn’t going to help you ignore texts and notifications, so adjust your settings when appropriate). When a certain phrase strikes me oh so splendidly, I head to my Inspiration File to input le mot juste before I can forget it, and I might even add a parenthetical note to it, such as “Use to describe next restaurant I profile,” or “Potential poem ending.” These standout words and sentences don’t have to be groundbreaking metaphors; they might something as simple as the verb “amplify” which I’m using more often in some copywriting for tech clients. It’s a chewy word when used appropriately, and it’s more succinct than, say, “make more prevalent.” My file contains phrases such as, “She noticed how manicured her life had become,” thanks to the unique adjective “manicured” peppering that sentence. I also remember swiftly writing down a Harlan Ellison line that struck me as potently apt when I read it: “She looked at me like a house that’s been on the market too long.” When it comes to exact metaphors or turns of phrases you crib down in the app, this tactic isn’t inviting you to plagiarize. A strong writer will see a phrase that speaks to them and find their own way to personify it, perhaps switching out one word for another or allowing that metaphor to inspire another thought. The more you can read with intention and flex your vocabulary muscle when it’s time to face the blinking cursor, you’ll have a deeper repository of interesting and evocative writing designed to elevate your work from great to memorable.

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Freelance Journalists: What you should do (and not do) after you send your pitch to editors

Once you click SEND on your emailed pitch to an editor, relief washes over your bones and you unclench your jaw. Done and done! But are you, really? In one sense, sure. You just sent a pitch for a story idea that fills you with such confidence, you even told your parents you might get published in Wired in a couple months. Based on my 20+ years in journalism, I’ve come to realize my work isn’t over once I’ve sent off the pitch to an editor. If I don’t get a reply within a week, I should be proactive. I need to ensure I follow up on each pitch, tracking when I sent a reminder email, and analyzing which types of ideas have attracted the most commissions. Track and feel it out When I coach students in my Become a Better Writer courses, I suggest they track their journalism pitches in a cloud-friendly database, such as Google Sheets. They should include fields for date sent, story idea, publication, editor’s name and email, if accepted, and one more important field—followed up or not? Let’s be straight up about editors: They aren’t opening your pitch the day you send it, and most likely they will only get to it a week or two from reception. That means you can’t expect quick turnarounds with editors at the more prestigious pubs, which may often take a month or two to net a reply. Still, editors expect a nudge email. That email reminds editors about your idea that you sent X days or weeks ago. It’s as short as possible, and never goes over the same idea that you already passed along. Use the same thread as the sent email so the editor just has to scroll up to read the pitch. In that followed-up field, I’ll write the date of the nudge email. I generally wait a week for most outlets, and two weeks for the higher-paying ones, such as The Walrus or Toronto Life. But wait, you declare, what should I write in this nudge email? Keep it Simple and Short For starters, I’m not looking to drag the editor into paragraphs of woe-is-me rants on how this timely story has to be developed ASAP; I’m just here to lightly poke the editor into reading my first email. The text of my nudge email usually reads: Hi ____, I’m the freelance journalist who sent you this pitch two weeks ago, and I’m wondering if you had a chance to read it recently. I look forward to your reply. Best, David Silverberg Boom, that’s it! Nothing more, nothing less. That kind of pithiness can be enough for an editor to scoot up his cursor to find the original pitch, give it a read then, and reply to me within the hour. It’s happened. And you might be curious what my success rate for nudge emails have been. I’ve only started tracking these emails in the past five years, so anecdotally over my career I estimate around half of my follow-ups have elicited a reply, a yay or nay, and of those, around a third were greenlit. The lesson here is that if I never sent those nudge emails, my pitch may remained in the slush pile, forever to be leapt over by fresher pitches that, for some reason, caught the editor’s attention immediately. There’s no reason why certain pitches get accepted within the week or within the season. Well, the editor will know why she’s not replying to you ASAP, but you’re not privy to that info, so rest assured that most editors will reply to you in some way…at some point. Nudge emails take minimal effort and planning, demonstrate your professionalism to editors, and ease your anxious thoughts circling around if that editor will get back to you about your gold-star idea. But wait one more minute, oh fearless writing coach! What say you to TWO nudge emails? To that I say, go for it, but I usually end it at one email. If I don’t get a reply to that message, I don’t pester the editor, and instead assume the idea was turned down and the editor didn’t or forgot to reply to me. There’s no harm in sending a second email, but I can gauge when an editor or a pub is interested in a story, and when it’s time to move on. To that end, too, I’d suggest assessing your accepted and rejected pitches once a year, while also tracking which editors needed that nudge email to yield a reply. That way, you can have a solid view of the kinds of ideas winning favour. You can then determine which editors have been most lax in getting back to you in that first email, and remind yourself to continue to send nudge emails to those editors, especially. If you have questions about pitching as a journalist, contact me anytime, or check out the writing courses I’ve made available to freelance journalists of any level.