If I were to "interview" someone, what are some good questions to ask?

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Besides questions about their job, I mean.

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:31 (twenty years ago)

Everyone likes questions about food.

― Jordan (Jordan), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:34 (twenty years ago)

Who are you interviewing, for what publication (or semblance thereof), and why?

― Kenan (kenan), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:34 (twenty years ago)

"what question don't you want me to ask you?"

― Porkpie (porkpie), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:34 (twenty years ago)

X post
It's not for a publication. It might be for something important, though.

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:35 (twenty years ago)

Ah, well then you should ask questions about furry animals.

― Kenan (kenan), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:37 (twenty years ago)

Ask them to describe their background, their upbringing. Childhood pets, favorite things to do as little kids and favorite things to do as teenagers.

― the apex of nadirs (Rock Hardy), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:38 (twenty years ago)

It's for someone I'm close to, yet I don't "know" them very well.

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:38 (twenty years ago)

It's not for a publication. It might be for something important, though.

HA HA

― jushinthunderliger (deangulberry), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:39 (twenty years ago)

What's so funny?

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:42 (twenty years ago)

1. Reaction time is a factor in this, so please pay attention. Now, answer as quickly as you can. It’s your birthday. Someone gives you a calfskin wallet. How do you react?

2. You’ve got a little boy. He shows you his butterfly collection plus the killing jar. What do you do?

3. You’re watching television. Suddenly you realize there’s a wasp crawling on your arm.

4. You’re in a desert walking along in the sand when all of the sudden you look down, and you see a tortoise, it’s crawling toward you. You reach down, you flip the tortoise over on its back. The tortoise lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over, but it can’t, not without your help. But you’re not helping. Why is that?

― Nemo (JND), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:59 (twenty years ago)

It's hard to suggest anything sensible without lots more info. I've conducted dozens of interviews that were published, and I didn't have many standard questions - none that I asked every time, only a few that I usually asked, and those are specific to the territory I was in (comic book people).

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 21:59 (twenty years ago)

Nemo, didn't that scene end rather badly for the interviewer?

― Kenan (kenan), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:02 (twenty years ago)

Yes, that's why I left off:

5. Describe in single words, only the good things that come into your mind. About your mother.

― Nemo (JND), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:03 (twenty years ago)

nowell...can you be more specific?

― kelsey (kelstarry), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:24 (twenty years ago)

What do you mean?

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:46 (twenty years ago)

Ask them a selection of unanswered ILX questions, though don't expect much more than "This Calum bloke's a bit of a dick" in response.

― Onimo (GerryNemo), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:50 (twenty years ago)

Presumably the same point as I made is what the 'more specific' refers to - not knowing the purpose or kind of person being interviewed makes this difficult. The questions I'd ask a comic book artist and those I would ask a singer are entirely different, obviously, and those are both artistic areas - if you're interviewing an aged relative about their experiences in WWII the questions are even more different.

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:51 (twenty years ago)

Nowell, if it's someone from your past, you could ask what their memories of you are. (this could be well off target, of course)

― Kevin Gilchrist (Mr Fusion), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:54 (twenty years ago)

I want to interview a regular person. Actually, the inspiration for this was someone "interviewing" me...Well, kind of. It was a "clinical psychological evaluation". I'm not a psychiatrist, so I don't know how to "evaluate" anyone or whatever, but I think if you interview someone you can get an at least get an inkling of their personality and shit.

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:55 (twenty years ago)

Ask them if they like your hat. Be coy.

http://www.broadwaterrosejewels.com/Vintage%20pictures/girl%20with%20hat%20tn.gif

― Kenan (kenan), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:57 (twenty years ago)

I do remember an art project proposal coming out of conversation with Tim H and maybe someone else (Carsmile? Sinkah? Anyway, it was their idea rather than mine, I should emphasise) at one point, where the idea was to go around some captive audience (the idea was about being on a train) with a clipboard, looking smart and official, and telling them we were conducting a survey. We would start with innocent ILX questions and gradually get more outrageous, with the more extreme ILX questions - it would be about finding out how long the appearance of officialness would carry it through, and when people would just refuse to cooperate any more. We were unanimous on the final question from ILX to use: what is the most unacceptable thing to come out of your arse?

I suspect this will be of little help to Nowell.

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 22:58 (twenty years ago)

I'd like to ask this person pretty random questions.

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 23:01 (twenty years ago)

I am an excellent random question asker. Email me - I have lists of them.

― luna (luna.c), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 23:02 (twenty years ago)

The person I want to "interview" also had a clinical psychological evaluation with the same psychiatrist. I read it. Most of what she wrote was OTM, unfortunately. Same for what she wrote about me (again, unfornately).

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 23:04 (twenty years ago)

Are you sure what you're looking for is an interview, and not a conversation?

― Kevin Gilchrist (Mr Fusion), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 23:05 (twenty years ago)

Well, I wanna tape record it...

― Nowell (Nowell), Wednesday, 10 November 2004 23:13 (twenty years ago)

Ask how they came to be in their current job, situation, art, marriage etc.

― Orbit (Orbit), Thursday, 11 November 2004 04:29 (twenty years ago)

4N4LZ? Y/N

― trigonalmayhem (trigonalmayhem), Thursday, 11 November 2004 04:29 (twenty years ago)

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