This paper involves interviewing someone close to you, possibly a parent or a sibling. From this, you will build a narrative paper. You will tell their story much the same as one might find in a feature story in New York Times supplement, or elsewhere. Look for themes in their life. That often involves working to find out goals or dreams, which may be one and the same. The late Charles Kuralt, CBS reporter whom I once interviewed, maintained that if one speaks long enough to someone, certain things will arise.
Length: 3 pages (750-800 words)
Use superlative questions. Make a list of which 2/3’s should be superlative questions.
Best not read from list directly all the time during the interview itself. Commit some to memory, and you may elect to draw from them, if and when, the subject of discussion relates.
Try not to dominate the interview. Make your questions brief and let the subject speak. The interview is not about you.
Do not avoid things you already know about the subject. Simply ask to repeat the story about such and such. This time you will be recording it on phone, or somehow, and you will get fresh and elevating details.
Look for a strong theme. Courage through struggle. Some big theme that might form the basis for your thesis statement.
If the subject has moved a lot, do not list all the towns. You might say, “Joe has lived everywhere from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Juneau, Alaska.”
Write in the third person. Do not do a question-answer format. You will transcribe the interview that way, but then summarize from that in building your story.
Use three direct quotes from the interview. Make them short, though. No quarter page. Try for no more than two sentences per.
Include description of the person and environments, possibly.
If you could do the paper on my sister who is named Sara Flindt, she currently goes to Missoula trying to get her 4 year degree, she loves dance.
