Use online storytelling tips to ask better interview questions

By Ruslan Kulski · 

What is your name? Where are you from? Why do we care?

One challenge of doing lots of interviews is having the interview subject tell their story in a unique, engaging way. 

For many of the people we interview, it's their first experience with the business end of a microphone. Often they are a little guarded and not at their most fluent. 

To get past that initial reticence, ask questions that give the subject an opportunity to tell unexpected parts of their story.

All you need now are the questions. 

One way to come up with new interview questions is to start mining the vast resources of the internet. Storytelling tips from masters of the craft are very common in the online mantle and transmuting them into interview questions can have surprising results.

Last year Emma Coates, a former storyboard artist at Pixar, posted a great list of storytelling basics that she picked up during her time with the studio. Turning Emma's tips into questions produced the following list...

  • What are the 5 adjectives that describe what we are talking about? What are another 5 adjectives?
  • What is interesting to YOU about this subject that nobody else understands?
  • What is the biggest challenge this presents to you?
  • When did everything change for you? What happened after that? How will it end?
  • Who is your idol in the field? What questions would you ask your idol in the field?
  • Why is this important? What is the belief that fuels your fire?
  • What is the one thing that is hardest for you?
  • What would you never do?
  • What are the stakes? What happens if you fail?
  • Which nugget of pop culture do you identify with? Who would be the actor that would play you in the telemovie?
  • How are you the same as everyone else? How are you different?
  • Why is what you do important? Why should people care?

There you have it, a list of questions that are open and a little different.

It should be said that these questions only serve as jumping off points, you should always listen closely to the answers and follow up. And of course not all are appropriate for each situation.

Turning storytelling tips into questions was a useful exercise and I'd love for you to have a go. 

Link to some of your favourite storytelling tips below, or make some questions yourself in three easy steps.....

  1. Search for storytelling tips from your favourite practitioner 
  2. Use those tips to fashion some interesting and unusual interview questions. 
  3. Share the result, we could all use the help.

Published 21 Aug 2013. 


  • Travis

    I keep coming back to these tips, Great Post Ruslan. Thanks.

  • Wanda

    Thanks for this fabulous list of tips. I think I'll print them out and try one a day and see how I go. They're great fodder for the Art Partners. Super conversation starters! Well done.

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