Imagine if someone from a major news program called YOU up and said, “I’m from NBC and I want to write a story about you.” Most people I know would be like, “Really? Why?”-- not able to fathom that their ordinary life would be at all interesting to the masses. But this is what a TV news reporter did years ago. (The story was relayed to me, so I don’t know the reporter’s name or I’d give him credit.) He would throw a dart at a map, go to that town, find a phone book, flip it open, put a finger on a name, call the person, ask for an interview, and then write an engaging story out of this random, ordinary person. His underlying assumption had to be that everyone was at least a little bit interesting. I think that’s why I have never forgotten this story. I like that notion.
If I were a journalism teacher, this would be a standing assignment to my students. It’s not an easy thing to create a connection with a stranger that is trusting enough that said stranger would open up and share their lives. And what if your stranger truly is an ordinary schmo who started working at the mill right out of high school? How do you find an odd kernel to hang an interesting story on? It would teach great interviewing skills.
What does this have to do with my great biking adventure? A couple things. First of all, the Columbia Trail has a story, which I’ll tell you in tomorrow's post. Second, it might be fun (and good for me) if I challenge myself to deeply engage with at least one stranger per day on the trip, and try out this idea of making the conversation a story. I think I will find both the conversation and the story writing really hard. And lastly, I’ve been looking out beyond the end of my bike trip and wondering what comes next on a variety of levels. It seems surely that this blog about my bike trip would need to end. But I’ve really come to enjoy the challenge of writing something daily. I do a lot of business writing at work, but blogging exercises a different muscle. So maybe this leads to my next blog…
If I were a journalism teacher, this would be a standing assignment to my students. It’s not an easy thing to create a connection with a stranger that is trusting enough that said stranger would open up and share their lives. And what if your stranger truly is an ordinary schmo who started working at the mill right out of high school? How do you find an odd kernel to hang an interesting story on? It would teach great interviewing skills.
What does this have to do with my great biking adventure? A couple things. First of all, the Columbia Trail has a story, which I’ll tell you in tomorrow's post. Second, it might be fun (and good for me) if I challenge myself to deeply engage with at least one stranger per day on the trip, and try out this idea of making the conversation a story. I think I will find both the conversation and the story writing really hard. And lastly, I’ve been looking out beyond the end of my bike trip and wondering what comes next on a variety of levels. It seems surely that this blog about my bike trip would need to end. But I’ve really come to enjoy the challenge of writing something daily. I do a lot of business writing at work, but blogging exercises a different muscle. So maybe this leads to my next blog…