Blog Post #5

Writing about people is never easy, but always rewarding. To me, the hardest part and the best part is getting people to start talking. Why? Because your interviewees’ own words will always be better than yours. Therefore, the number of quotes is the key to keeping the audience and yourself awake. But in order for that to happen, there will need to be a series of questions that are able to elicit answer about what is most vivid in the interviewees’ lives. In the story of Bernie Goetz, the Squirrel Vigilante, we can tell that Molly Socha successes in getting Mr. Goetz talking.

“I took the test; I don’t know how many years ago,” … but “They can come to your apartment any time they want,” Goetz says. “Now I say, ‘screw that.’ I just told them that I’m not going to do that and they said, ‘Well then you’re not getting the license. You’ve got the wrong attitude.’”

Bernie’s words also carry his enthusiasms for the squirrels, something Molly Socha or any other writer could never master to the same level.

“Does the mother do that?” Somers asked Goetz.

“No, the mother doesn’t do a lot of the things I do,” he responded.

Though it might not be a surprise, but the person you interview has a lot to do with whether you’ll come out with a good profile. Your roommate might be an amazing person to hang out with, but he or she probably doesn’t have many interesting things to say. You’ll have to push yourself out into the real world and choose someone who can touch the readers’ lives in whatever aspect. Nika Knight chose Sean Casey, a pet rescuer to draw a profile on. A pet rescuer’s life is something that most people want to know about but don’t see on the news every day. “And I realized that whether it’s a cause or effect of his life’s work, Casey’s stoic personality suits it: every day, all day, he has no control over what the next moment will bring. He can only rise to meet it.” And those are the people who should have other write profiles about.