Your advise is so valuable. I really like all your tips about feeling in the body when interviewing or researching. Very often when we write especially for an assignment we are concentrating on our brain…
I also thought about giving some details about the person we are interviewing. I realised that when reading portraits of people, the journalist feels allowed to describe how a woman is dressed but doesn’t do the same if it is a man 🤔. I do agree with you that describing the environment where is the person you are interviewing gives lots of information also. That’s why it was so frustrating during COVID not being able to actually meet people and itw by phone…
All the best to you and looking forward to read you !
Thank you, Elena! You're so right that we often use our brains when interviewing but don't think about our bodies as much. A mentor of mine once said that the best journalists work with both their hands and their feet. They're not just typing away at their laptops; they're walking around in the world — finding ideas, talking to people, observing their surroundings, etc.
Your point about physical descriptions of women v. men is so interesting. I have noticed this, too, especially when it comes to descriptions about bodies. I tend to shy away from including physical descriptions in journalistic stories — 1.) because I'm not particularly good at writing them but 2.) they often feel forced, and I sometimes worry they'll be misinterpreted in a shorter piece of writing where readers don't really get to know the characters/people as well.
When writing my book, though, I had to challenge myself to get better at writing them. I remember one of my grad school professors reading a chapter about my dad and saying something to the effect of, "I can't SEE him; I still have no idea what he looks like. Help me see him" I had to work hard at weaving some physical descriptions in, without having it feel forced or cliched.
Dear Mallory,
Your advise is so valuable. I really like all your tips about feeling in the body when interviewing or researching. Very often when we write especially for an assignment we are concentrating on our brain…
I also thought about giving some details about the person we are interviewing. I realised that when reading portraits of people, the journalist feels allowed to describe how a woman is dressed but doesn’t do the same if it is a man 🤔. I do agree with you that describing the environment where is the person you are interviewing gives lots of information also. That’s why it was so frustrating during COVID not being able to actually meet people and itw by phone…
All the best to you and looking forward to read you !
Elena
Thank you, Elena! You're so right that we often use our brains when interviewing but don't think about our bodies as much. A mentor of mine once said that the best journalists work with both their hands and their feet. They're not just typing away at their laptops; they're walking around in the world — finding ideas, talking to people, observing their surroundings, etc.
Your point about physical descriptions of women v. men is so interesting. I have noticed this, too, especially when it comes to descriptions about bodies. I tend to shy away from including physical descriptions in journalistic stories — 1.) because I'm not particularly good at writing them but 2.) they often feel forced, and I sometimes worry they'll be misinterpreted in a shorter piece of writing where readers don't really get to know the characters/people as well.
When writing my book, though, I had to challenge myself to get better at writing them. I remember one of my grad school professors reading a chapter about my dad and saying something to the effect of, "I can't SEE him; I still have no idea what he looks like. Help me see him" I had to work hard at weaving some physical descriptions in, without having it feel forced or cliched.
I love the vacuum metaphor! You're so right - all my favorite profiles of interesting people suck up sensory details in the subject's environment.
Yes! I love when stories do that!