The Art of the Interview Workshop

Peter Gzowski, the legendary host of CBC Radio’s Morningside, used to say of his guest, “We’re both in a canoe. I steer, they paddle.” Done well, the interview leads to interesting and unexpected places.

No matter what you write — fiction, non-fiction, drama, poetry — research is critical. Invariably you must interview your subject. Maybe on the telephone, but ideally in person.

In this four-hour seminar exclusive to OIW members, Lawrence Scanlan will offer tips on how to hone your skills as an interviewer. 

Topics that will be covered:

1. How to prepare, how to conduct and order the interview,
2. When to push, when to cajole, when to let silence rule.
3.  And how to be alive to that all-important question — the follow-up question. 

This will be a highly interactive, and, one hopes, a lively exchange that will offer participants experience as both interviewer and interviewee. We will all then gently critique the process. 

Tentative Schedule:

11:30am: Arrival & Registration

12 pm: Block 1

1 pm: Break

1:20pm : Block 2

2:40 pm: Break

3 pm: Block 3

3:45 pm: Q&A

Please bring a notebook, pen or  laptop. Light snacks and coffee will be available.