Feature Story Brainstorm
1. Who is your main subject?
My main subject is my Grandpa.
2. Supporting interviews (who else do you need to talk to, minimum 2 other people)?
My two supporting interviews will be done with my dad and my grandma. 3. What is the topic or potential topic?
The topic will be about his time in the police work force. My potential topic will be interesting stories about his time or service.
4. Which angle from above will you write the story?
I will be writing this in a first-hand experience.
5. Then to help you get going faster, come up with 20 questions that you can ask your main subject. Type these in your blog.
- What kinds of things did you experience while you worked as a police?
- Was there anything that surprised you when you first applied for the job?
- Would you recommend this profession to others? Why?
- Did you enjoy working as a police? If so, what did you enjoy most?
- Were there any dangerous or scary situations you found yourself in while on the job?
- When did you decide you wanted to be a policeman?
- What was your main role in the police work force?
- What was your most memorable experience when you worked there?
- Did you meet grandma while you were working as a police?
- How long did you work as a police man?
- Did you always want to be a police?
- Did having kids affect how you worked? If so, how?
- What was your best accomplishment while working there?
- At what age did you become a police?
- When did you retire from the job?
- Were there any political movements during your time in office?
- Did you enjoy working as a police?
- What type of education or training dod you receive before you could become a police?
- Were you always a police or did you move up in rank?
- Did something influence you in childhood to want to become a police?
6. Once you complete that portion, you need to come up with 5-10 questions you need to ask your supporting interviews. Type these into your blog. You may need different questions for each supporting subject.
Grandma:
- Were you ever worried about something happening to grandpa while he was working?
- Did you like what grandpa did as a job?
- Were there any nights you wished he had not worked as a police?
Dad:
- Did you ever feel a sense of pride knowing that grandpa was helping people?
- Were you ever nervous about him getting injured while working?
- Do you have any thoughts or opinions on the job?
- Did his profession influence you and your profession?
7. You will need to do a little research on the topic you expect to interview your main subject about. Take a little time and do some google searching - find at least 5 new things about the intended topic you should know before you interview your main subject. List those on your blog.
- Many police stations and car's got bombed in the 70's
- Police did not have billet-proof vests in the 70's
- Police reports were hand written and filed manually
- Being a police takes courage
- Police in the 70's had to fight regular crime and violent protests
- Police were commonly targeted as a source of violence
8. Write when you plan to conduct the interview(s)?
I plan to conduct the interviews over thanksgiving break.
9. Where you will interview them (some interviews are better to do in the persons environment, while others should be done in public places, ALL interviews should be done in person)?
I will interview them either through facetime or over the phone since we cannot travel to Dallas over thanksgiving break.
10. How will you record the information? (taking notes is ideal, and if you want to record the conversation you MUST get permission. You can do both if they will allow you to record, this is a really strong technique that you could use.)
I will take notes, but also record the conversation (with permission).
My main subject is my Grandpa.
2. Supporting interviews (who else do you need to talk to, minimum 2 other people)?
My two supporting interviews will be done with my dad and my grandma. 3. What is the topic or potential topic?
The topic will be about his time in the police work force. My potential topic will be interesting stories about his time or service.
4. Which angle from above will you write the story?
I will be writing this in a first-hand experience.
5. Then to help you get going faster, come up with 20 questions that you can ask your main subject. Type these in your blog.
- What kinds of things did you experience while you worked as a police?
- Was there anything that surprised you when you first applied for the job?
- Would you recommend this profession to others? Why?
- Did you enjoy working as a police? If so, what did you enjoy most?
- Were there any dangerous or scary situations you found yourself in while on the job?
- When did you decide you wanted to be a policeman?
- What was your main role in the police work force?
- What was your most memorable experience when you worked there?
- Did you meet grandma while you were working as a police?
- How long did you work as a police man?
- Did you always want to be a police?
- Did having kids affect how you worked? If so, how?
- What was your best accomplishment while working there?
- At what age did you become a police?
- When did you retire from the job?
- Were there any political movements during your time in office?
- Did you enjoy working as a police?
- What type of education or training dod you receive before you could become a police?
- Were you always a police or did you move up in rank?
- Did something influence you in childhood to want to become a police?
6. Once you complete that portion, you need to come up with 5-10 questions you need to ask your supporting interviews. Type these into your blog. You may need different questions for each supporting subject.
Grandma:
- Were you ever worried about something happening to grandpa while he was working?
- Did you like what grandpa did as a job?
- Were there any nights you wished he had not worked as a police?
Dad:
- Did you ever feel a sense of pride knowing that grandpa was helping people?
- Were you ever nervous about him getting injured while working?
- Do you have any thoughts or opinions on the job?
- Did his profession influence you and your profession?
7. You will need to do a little research on the topic you expect to interview your main subject about. Take a little time and do some google searching - find at least 5 new things about the intended topic you should know before you interview your main subject. List those on your blog.
- Many police stations and car's got bombed in the 70's
- Police did not have billet-proof vests in the 70's
- Police reports were hand written and filed manually
- Being a police takes courage
- Police in the 70's had to fight regular crime and violent protests
- Police were commonly targeted as a source of violence
8. Write when you plan to conduct the interview(s)?
I plan to conduct the interviews over thanksgiving break.
9. Where you will interview them (some interviews are better to do in the persons environment, while others should be done in public places, ALL interviews should be done in person)?
I will interview them either through facetime or over the phone since we cannot travel to Dallas over thanksgiving break.
10. How will you record the information? (taking notes is ideal, and if you want to record the conversation you MUST get permission. You can do both if they will allow you to record, this is a really strong technique that you could use.)
I will take notes, but also record the conversation (with permission).
A. There was a lot of open ended questions and a few closed- ended but i'm sure you'll be able to get more information out of those.
ReplyDeleteB. You can also ask "Was there someone in the police force that ever mad things hard for you?"
"Who did you work was easiest to work with? why?"
C. You could ask your dad, "when you were younger did you want to work in the police force like him?"
D. You could also interview your dad's brother
E. The audience is us and the purpose for this writing is for her to get to know her grandpa a bit more. Her main point is to fin out a bit more about what her grandpa used to be like. What interests me the most is when she asks what made him want to work as a police or the dangers he faces because it's so interesting. I think more detail on the questions she asks grandma would be good just to get a good view of what grandma thinks. None of the questions are un clear.
a. I think you have mostly open-ended questions but some could use “and why?”
ReplyDeleteb. “Were you ever scared?” “Was it hard to find a job?”
c. “Did you approve of his job?” for either source
d. If your grandpa had siblings maybe them, or other kids if he had them.
e. The audience is people who enjoy hearing about police experience and the purpose is to share her grandpa’s story. The writer’s main point is to learn about and share the story with others. I’m most interested in question 8 because it sounds like it would have a good answer. Maybe you could add “and why,” to some questions but other than that you did really well and I didn’t find any unclear questions.
f. Well done! ☺