The Biography Workshop

Hello ADVRider!

Resources

Association of Personal Historians

Veterans History Project - Library of Congress

Ancestry.com - Secrets to a Successful Interview

Griffin Lapel Microphone

Radio Shack Cables

ACA Audio Recording Software (Windows)

iUniverse (Print on Demand Publisher)

The following photos are courtesy Doug Smith and the story of his father from the 466th Bomb Group 785th Squadron Crew #555, here.

Audio Recording Life Stories

Since there are so many of you with older relatives who have incredible stories, here are instructions for making audio recordings of those stories. I am not addressing the process for making videos. For the sound engineer type of people, you know what to do already but if you have suggestions, please let me know.

Read this whole page before you begin...

Even if the subject thinks the stories are not interesting, history will find the stories interesting. Even if a veteran was stationed at a remote base and did nothing but fix trucks, it's still interesting because someone, somewhere would love to hear about it, especially family members.

Life on the home front is interesting too because so much has changed in the past few generations. Just how did a woman cope with all the rationing during World War II? How did a wife cope with a husband being away for so long? You get the idea.

So, let's get started. Here is an overview of what you will need (details following):

Sound recording equipment and software. The standard personal computer (laptop preferred) should be able to handle everything.
A quiet place to actually do the interview.
Interview questions prepared in advance.
A way of distributing the completed recordings

Typical basic set up:

Netbook or Laptop (I used a Windows-based machine). You can also use a desktop computer but see notes about ambient noise regarding making audio recordings.
Two lapel microphones (I have used the Griffin Lapel microphones with decent results and these microphones are only about $25 each)
Two-into-one stereo 3.5mm plug (Radio Shack). You really need two microphones so both the questions and the responses can be heard equally well.
Extension cord for microphones (Radio Shack)
4 GB (minimum) USB flashdrive - it's important to record directly to a flashdrive in case of computer failure in the middle of an interview.
Recording software - This software should record directly to the MP3 format and record directly to a flash drive (I have used ACA Audio Recorder with success. It's a simple program that costs $25 but there is a 30 day evaluation version for free.)

When are you getting set up for a recording session, here is what you need:

A quiet place for the recording. This means as little ambient noise as possible. Listen for background noise that could mess up the recording. This includes - air conditioning or heating fan noise, running appliances, outside noise such as traffic, aircraft, sirens, gang fights, etc. Don't even think about doing an interview outside. The interview space should be in a room with as few hard surfaces as possible. This includes tile floors, cabinets, walls without art, etc. A kitchen is the worst place for an interview - too much ambient noise and too many hard surfaces.
Also, the interview is between you and the subject. Do not have any other person (or pet) in the room. Another person will be tempted to interrupt and that is really, really bad.
Steady power. Do NOT rely on your laptop batteries. Don't even take the chance. Plug in the laptop to a wall outlet. Seriously.
Water for you and the subject. The subject is going to be doing a lot of talking.
At least one hour of uninterrupted time. Don't expect your subject to deal with a four hour interview. Even an hour can be exhausting, especially for older folks. Also, don't expect your listeners to sit down for several hours to listen to one interview. You may end up with several interview segments and this is actually preferable.

You and your subject should be comfortable. Set up your computer and attach the lapel microphones to you and the subject. The microphones should be about 6 inches away from the mouth.

Start your recording software to do a sound check. Look at the levels of your recording software. You may have to adjust the distance of your microphones to ensure that the two voices are balanced. Don't be afraid to adjust the microphones or the sound levels (if the recording software allows for this). Do this before you start the actual interview. Make sure you are recording in the MP3 format. It's not necessary to use the highest quality sound. Medium quality (22.05 kHZ, 16-bit stereo or equivalent) works just fine.

A note about how people speak - unless you are a trained professional, most people use a lot of "umm" or "er" or some sort of time filler between words and phrases. While it's very difficult to avoid using the "ummm" and "er", try your best. It takes practice. There are some tricks to teach yourself but we'll leave that to the trained professionals. Your subject may also do the same. While you can't control how your subject speaks, you can certainly control how you speak. Do consider having a quick practice interview before the real thing.

The easiest way to handle the interview is to structure it so that the responses provide a relatively linear chronology based on the events of your subject's life. It's also important to go beyond just the basic chronology at the appropriate times. This means capturing additional details and the "textures" of events.

The subject should also share some of his/her emotional reactions to specific events. That will be the most difficult because men, in particular, frequently don't want to share those emotions. Getting an emotional response requires diplomacy. However, when the subject starts talking about the events, the emotional reactions can sometimes happen naturally.

Just by showing sincere interest in what he is talking about can be reason enough for the subject to reveal more than just dry facts. Also, try to get some of the texture of his experiences - weather, smells, sounds, the little routines that every soldier/sailor/marine had, the good and bad of his equipment. In fact, by talking about the day-to-day stuff of his experience can very likely get him to talk about the more intense stuff. Don't just dive in with "So Dad, what was the worst experience you ever had in the war?" That's pretty much a guarantee of a poor interview

Here is a brief outline of a typical veteran's interview (specific questions to be posted soon!):

Topic

Example Questions/ Statements

Notes

Introduction - You and the Interview

Introduction - Your Subject

Background

Joining the Service

Basic Training

Further Training

First Deployment/Duty

First Combat/Duty Experience

Addition Combat/Duty Experiences

Returning Home

When the interview segment is completed you have some options. If you feel ambitious, you can edit the audio recording using a program like Audacity (free - here).

Email the file(s) to family and friends
If recording a veteran's story, go to the Veteran's History Project at the Library of Congress and download their information package (PDF) to complete the necessary paperwork to submit for permanent archiving
Post the files on a website
Send the files to me and I will create a page just for you and the subject and then email you the appropriate link. You can also send me images (JPG only) and I will post those along with the interview(s). Note - if you send files to me, you agree that the that files are available to the general public. Sorry, but I will not transcribe the interviews.
Create a slide show with photos and use the interview as the sound track.
Burn CDs for distribution
Have the interviews transcribed. You can do it yourself or pay a professional transcription service.
Send files/CDs to local library (contact them regarding their policies)
Send files/CDS to other relevant historical associations
Contact local newspaper(s) and other media outlets to see if there could be a newsworthy story to cover (just give me credit for helping)
Write and publish a book. Print on demand technology is very cool for publishing your own book. For more information, check out iUniverse (an example of a print on demand publisher).

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me. I will try to respond within 24 hours if the volume of email is not too great.

And remember - if the stories are not preserved, they will vanish.