As I've been thinking about what to do for my profile, I've been really nervous about it since I have not written journalism before or done anything that involves reporting. Telling True Stories was so helpful! While, I can't lie, that I am still a little nervous about writing a profile, it helped to read journalists' experiences with reporting.
Jacqui Banasynzki writes about profiles. I've been trying to figure out how interviewing goes into writing about a place and what types of questions to ask. Banasynzki talks about that when writing about a top Olympic runner. While this runner had the résumé of a "woman who had it all," she was asked what was missing from her life. I don't think I would have thought of that question. I probably would have asked her what was going on with all that stuff that was already listed on her résumé. This example will help me come up with questions that aren't about the obviousness of my subject.
Banasynzki also gives us two questions that someone who doesn't know anything about the subject should be able to answer at the end of your profile. These two questions: "How would you characterize this person?" and "At the end of the piece, do you know whether or not you like the person?" (68) will help me while I'm writing my profile. Am I going to be able provide the right information to the reader so that they can answer these questions after reading my profile? (I hope so!) I'll definitely be thinking about these questions.
I also enjoyed reading "Every Profile Is an Epic Story" by Tomas Alex Tizon. His four insights were really something to think about. Realizing that your subject is as complicated as you are is an important thing for a writer to realize because that's probably where you'll find the story and how the writer needs to create not just a one-dimensional character. People aren't just one dimension and I want to be conscious of that. As he said, "Each person has a dark side" (71). That is so true.
I ended up reading a little bit further than we were supposed to but I'm glad I did. I don't really know how the whole reporting process goes and how people get quotes or how they get the correct quote. I was glad I read the section about to bring a tape recorder or not. Personally, if I was being interviewed I wouldn't really feel comfortable with a tape recorder so that makes me assume other people would feel that way too and I wouldn't want to use them. It was relieving to me to hear that a lot of journalists don't use them. I think it would make me lazy, which some of them also confess and that paraphrasing is another option.
Reading Telling True Stories was really helpful to me and has put me at ease for when I have to write my profile. I took a lot away from this reading.
No comments:
Post a Comment