As a reader, I love a good Q & A.
Yet an easy-to-read, audience-appropriate Q & A takes behind-the-scenes work. It's rarely as easy as just asking the subject matter expert a few questions.
For me, the conversation comes first. Having a few planned questions is important. As is having a general sense of where the conversation needs to go.
From there, I let the person I'm interviewing find their flow.
The story emerges from there.
My job as a storyteller is to polish the raw interview. I maintain the interviewee's voice and write the brand-based questions that support the objective of the piece.
Here are two recent examples:
Q & A with Meg Comeau for CYSHCNet, a national network of pediatric health systems researchers with a mission of making life better for kids with special health care needs. https://files.constantcontact.com/88405c12801/4fd2510a-ae7c-44fa-826b-decfcd9448b1.pdf
Q & A with Alexis McClain, for my personal passion project, MiddleAgedLadyShit. Alexis spoke with vulnerability on so many topics, including grief and getting sober in middle age. https://www.middleagedladyshit.com/blog/losing-a-parent-sobriety-and-healing