What is one interview question that you wish someone would ask you but rarely, if ever, has? What’s the answer?
Q: “How does it feel to have had a book topping both the NY Times and the UK's Sunday Times bestseller lists for the past month?”
A: “The first time it happened I couldn't believe it - and this third time is just as wonderful.”
Ah well, back to reality.
To be honest, I’m not sure I’m terribly good at interviews. If they’re written interviews (where the questioner sends you written questions and you supply written answers) I spend ages pondering each word, then I read them when they’re published and am wracked with horror at what I’ve said, or at least how I've said it.
If I’m asked something face-to-face, I tend to respond rapidly and from the heart…which usually means I spend ages afterwards wishing I’d said something more witty/pithy. These days, with interviews being recorded for podcasts, Zoom events etc., I choose to NOT re-watch my performance. Too terrifying.
Either way, I know I’m quite a serious/earnest person (yes, it’s true) so I worry that my answers might not be entertaining enough, even if they’re truthful/from the heart. And that can be a bit of an issue, because – usually – the interviewer wants an entertainer interviewee, and folks attend interviews to be entertained. So I become really nervous before interviews - a bit like I do when I know I have to go to the dentist. Oh joy! What always surprises me is when I say stuff and folks find it amusing - you see, I don't think I'm funny at all. I'm just me. But, if folks find me being me entertaining, well that's great...and a great relief.
So I hope you've been entertained by any interview I’ve given that you've seen, heard or read. Know I'll be sooooooo pleased that was the outcome.
As for the question I’m supposed to answer today: to be honest, I can’t think of any REAL question I’d like to be asked that I haven’t already been asked. But, if you’re an interviewer, or if you’re not an interviewer but are reading this and would like to become one, maybe you’d like to ask me something in the comments below – in which case, I’ll do my best to answer 😊
Meanwhile, if you'd rather just read my books, you can find out more about them at my website: CLICK HERE
Ahem, as an interviewer who was once lucky enough to get you on a stage for an hour, I must respectfully disagree. You were wonderful!
ReplyDeleteLOL, Catriona...I had absolutely no doubt THAT interview would be entertaining, knowing you were there. To be honest, the nerves I felt that day mean I recall little of it...though a discussion about a silk evening coat especially made for the late and great MC Beaton sticks in my mind...which you told me about while we were "warming up the mics". After that? A blur! But I knew I was in safe hands, thank you x
ReplyDeleteAgree with Catriona and with you - that was a terrific interview! And, Cathy, we indulged the same fantasy answer to this week's question. Great Minds and all that...
ReplyDeleteHi Susan...the dream I think many of us share *sigh*
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