Interview Analysis Memo Essay

Interview Analytic Memo My one interview over the last week and a half occurred last night in New York. I met my informant at 6:45 in midtown Manhattan. He was waiting for me outside his place of business although I was very early. In his hand was both a printed copy of the consent form and my picture which he downloaded . Bill said it was okay to leave his work for a while (he is employed at a major niche publishing house) and suggested either a local Starbucks or Herald Square. At first we tried the former but the piped-in music was simply too loud to hear each other (and I was concerned it would overwhelm our interview on the tape). Bill led the way to Herald Square, which is now apparently equipped with small café-style tables and

Most of the questions elicited detailed answers. More than once Bill apologized for not bringing his notes (?) which he left back at work – he had anticipated some of my questions and wanted to give some rehearsed answers. (I was silently glad for his forgetfulness). Just as before he talked in rapid-fire clips which often threatened to derail the conversation at some points. As he spoke his hands would flitter about like excited butterflies. At some points he would suddenly stop and stare off into the distance for ten-or-twenty second pauses as he sought for just the right word or phrase. (He apologized for each of these pauses.) More than once – a few times, actually – he would ask me to repeat the question, which I patiently did. I found that I had to interject a number of times to ask him questions which would hopefully re-focus him. This worked for the most part, although once he said “I’m getting to it!” (which he did, about five minutes later). I did not use that tactic anything, adjusting my tactics to keep the conversation from completely derailing. For instance, my initial question – “How would you describe yourself?” – evolved into a long diatribe about the perils of publishing (from this I discerned that he harbored no small fears as a copy-editor about his job security). Bill, I decided, was a person who will get to where you want to go by his own