The Boy Scout Commandments (4)
That seemed strange to me because as a reporter I was always on the lookout for that good quote for my own stories. Ten years earlier, talking to Ed Klein, I had given a lot of good quotes.
Looking back on the experience, I suppose I had been entertaining as well as informative in that first interview; I had helped the reporter with that good yarn.
The second time around, I contributed nothing beyond basic, factual answers. I made no effort to excite or entertain the reader; I was, sin of all sins, dull! I could—and should—have illustrated my answers with wit, with anecdotes, with engaging metaphors.
Instead, I just answered the questions as if I had been on the stand in a court-room—offering barely more than “yes” and “no” responses.
Certainly, I had answered the second interviewer’s questions factually—indeed, the facts were there, but the story just sat on the page, drab as a dirty, old, limp mop. It wasn’t his fault; he’d done what he could with what I’d given him. I just hadn’t given him much to work with.
Which just goes to show that while you may be a master at your trade, you may not be a master at all trades—especially if you don’t possess the proper tools or training. This story leads us to our first commandment.
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