Interviewing Experts: How Do You Know What to Ask?

by Deborah Ng

Today I received an interesting comment to my post 10 Freelance Writing Multitasks. Nina asked:

Thanks for the list, those are excellent tips. But my question is, when you are interviewing an expert, how do you know what questions to ask? Do you have any pointers on asking the right questions?

That’s a very good question, with some very good answers. Many writers hesitate to interview experts or well-known people because they think they won’t know what to ask. If you know your subject well, the questions will be plentiful and you won’t run out of things to talk about.

Who is the expert and why is she there?

First and foremost, there had to be a reason you asked this person for an interview, right? You felt she had something to offer your project. You wouldn’t have called her if you didn’t think she could answer your questions and those of your readers.  List all of your reasons for inviting the expert for the interview and create questions based on your list.

Do your homework

Even if your interview subject is a famous name, it’s still a good idea to do your homework. If he wrote a book , read it. If he has a website or blog, take it all in. Give him a Google and learn about charitable projects, childhood stories, amusing anecdotes, current projects and more. Did someone write a book about this person? What is he famous for? Research this person and think about why he would be of interest to your readers. Read more