m to refer me to the next, until all of these fragments began to make sense. The whole process was like putting together a giant jigsaw puzzle without a picture of what it would look like when it was completed. Every assignment was a mystery to For me, the heart of research has always been the ability to elicit information from others. For years, it never occurred to me to go to the library or rummage through magazines or official documents. If I wanted to know about something, I found experts on that subject and tried to crawl inside their minds, to cram everything they would tell me into whatever time they would give me, and to understand things about which I knew absolutely nothing. Sometimes, I knew so little I couldn’t even frame a decent question.

In those cases, the first interview was always critical because it was the one that provided me with the big picture, key contacts, and politically correct language. This person had to be someone who wouldn’t mind that I knew nothing, someone who would be willing to explain the subject from the ground up. I was always amazed at the number of people who met those criteria. After the first interview, I went from one expert to another, asking each of them to refer me to the next, until all of these fragments began to make sense. The whole process was like putting together a giant jigsaw puzzle without a picture of what it would look like when it was completed. Every assignment was a mystery to b

experts on that subject and tried to crawl inside their minds, to cram everything they would tell me into whatever time they would give me, and to understand things about which I knew absolutely nothing. Sometimes, I knew so little I couldn’t even frame a decent question.

In those cases, the first interview was always critical because it was the one that provided me with the big picture, key contacts, and politically correct language. This person had to be someone who wouldn’t mind that I knew nothing, someone who would be willing to explain the subject from the ground up. I was always amazed at the number of people who met those criteria. After the first interview, I went from one expert to another, asking each of them to refer me to the next, until all of these fragments began to make sense. The whole process was like putting together a giant jigsaw puzzle without a picture of what it would look like when it was completed. Every assignment was a mystery to

ven frame a decent question.

In those cases, the first interview was always critical because it was the one that provided me with the big picture, key contacts, and politically correct language. This person had to be someone who wouldn’t mind that I knew nothing, someone who would be willing to explain the subject from the ground up. I was always amazed at the number of people who met those criteria. After the first interview, I went from one expert to another, asking each of them to refer me to the next, until all of these fragments began to make sense. The whole process was like putting together a giant jigsaw puzzle without a picture of what it would look like when it was completed. Every assignment was a mystery to

ind that I knew nothing, someone who would be willing to explain the subject from the ground up. I was always amazed at the number of people who met those criteria. After the first interview, I went from one expert to another, asking each of them to refer me to the next, until all of these fragments began to make sense. The whole process was like putting together a giant jigsaw puzzle without a picture of what it would look like when it was completed. Every assignment was a mystery to m to refer me to the next, until all of these fragments began to make sense. The whole process was like putting together a giant jigsaw puzzle without a picture of what it would look like when it was completed. Every assignment was a mystery to be solved, often with very few clues.

I would ask myself: What is the point of this story? What do I need to know to make that point? Who should I talk to, and how can I get to that person? What are the right questions to ask? How will I know when I have enough information? Answering those questions was always an adventure in starting with nothing and watching bits and pieces grow and take shape until they became an article.

Little by little, I was learning the art of interviewing; and, over the years, the ability to do it well has proved to be one of my most valuable strengths. The more I sought and gathered information in this way, the greater my respect for the interviewing process became.

1. First, I believe interviewing requires the courage to take risks. It is risky to be in the presence of an expert when you can barely pronounce the name of his or her subject, let alone discuss it intelligently. It is risky to admit how little you know