1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

Doing Q&As

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by boundforboston, Feb 18, 2013.

  1. Doc Holliday

    Doc Holliday Well-Known Member

    Sorry, but this is a good way to bore your reader into moving on to another story. If you don't ask engaging or insightful questions, then don't bother doing the Q&A at all.

    That is, unless, you want to get all the boring stuff out of they way in just one big boring epic fail swoop.
     
  2. BillyT

    BillyT Active Member

    The questions are the key.

    You need to research.
     
  3. jackfinarelli

    jackfinarelli Well-Known Member

    If the questions are intelligent and pointed toward a goal AND if the answers are relevant and cogent, then Q&A is an excellent form of art.

    If either of those conditions is absent ...
     
  4. Riptide

    Riptide Well-Known Member

    I like Q&As as a regular and separate feature device.

    Done right, they are great interviews. The subjects get to talk at length more, and I like that as a reader. The right questions set up good responses, and it rolls from there.
     
  5. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member

    You can still cut out the answers that ramble or don't add anything. It's not a historical document.
    If you ask 20 questions and get six good responses, just print the six good ones.
     
  6. Doc Holliday

    Doc Holliday Well-Known Member

    Had a co-worker who did this once and the editor decided to run every quote from begining to end. It was about 200 inches long and boring as hell. I drowned by the third question and didn't read another answer.

    Do NOT run the whole answer for each question word for word unless the individual speaks in fantastic, short, imaginative, creative, insightful, poetic prose.
     
  7. jackfinarelli

    jackfinarelli Well-Known Member

    Steve Rosenbloom did a modified Q&A column in the Chicago Tribune a while back. His modification was that he omitted the questions and strung the answers together with ellipsis.

    It worked...
     
  8. Riptide

    Riptide Well-Known Member

    One good way to use it is in a "Ten Questions With ... " type of format. If the interviewer asks the right kind of interesting and provocative questions, the long-form answers are enlightening and entertaining. Set the subject up well and then let him or her roll with it.

    Five questions, 10, 20 ... A fabulous regular feature if executed properly.
     
  9. Versatile

    Versatile Active Member

    That would work best in a non-quote Q&A. Paraphrase and keep the wording tight.

    Or just don't write those types of stories at all.
     
  10. BobSacamano

    BobSacamano Member

    Shop where I was a stringer ran abbreviated Q&A's which read like briefs with meaty quotes, but always included a note to check out the more in-depth Q&A on the site. Really effective, I thought.

    There's still room to write before a lengthy Q&A. A solid introduction to the piece is just as critical as the dialogue below. I just hate when they're self-serving to the writer. Q&A's suck when (laughs) and irrelevant banter are included. It's like the writer wants to say, "We became friends today!"
     
  11. PaperClip529

    PaperClip529 Active Member

    Do you know who loves Q&As? Readers.
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page