The Art of the Interview with special guest Isaac Fitzgerald
Date & Time
Saturday, 1-5 p.m.
Apr. 1
Class Size
15 Students
Saturday, 1-5 p.m.
Apr. 1
15 Students
Interviews are an important part of a writer’s life at any stage of their career. Whether you’re working on a reported story, conducting research for a novel, answering questions about your own book, or interviewing other writers as part of a literary event, the big question is how to ask the right questions. In this three hour workshop, you’ll look at examples of successful interviews and learn the right tools for getting people to open up. You'll learn how to prepare for an interview, improvise during difficult situations, and put what you learn to use by interviewing fellow classmates. For the last hour of the class, Michele will interview prolific interviewer Isaac Fitzgerald, editor at Buzzfeed Books. The class will end with a casual wine reception and Q&A.
Writers will leave armed with an arsenal of new tools and proven strategies for cracking even the toughest interview subject.
Michele Filgate’s work has appeared in Longreads; The Washington Post; the Los Angeles Times; The Boston Globe; The Paris Review Daily;Tin House; Gulf Coast; O, The Oprah Magazine; BuzzFeed; Refinery29; and many other publications. She’s a contributing editor at Literary Hub and the editor of What My Mother And I Don’t Talk About, a critically acclaimed anthology published by Simon & Schuster. Michele curates and hosts the Red Ink series at Books are Magic in Brooklyn.
"Michele is the calm soothing voice you want next to you as you burrow into your writing. There is a sensitivity and attentiveness in her critiques- two important qualities that ultimately lead you to finding your way out of the labyrinthine writing process."
"Michele is the kind of woman you meet and think, ‘Wow. She really loves what she does.’ Her passion for writing and teaching writing pervades all aspects of her class. She enthusiastically challenges her students to stop censoring themselves and to explore their writing on a deeper level–the kind of challenging personal writing that means the most in the grand scheme of life. All of us in class were able to share a piece of our individual experiences through writing that we had never shared before."
"Michele gives such precise and inspired notes on work you’ll think she slipped into your head. She has an encyclopedic knowledge of writers (you’ll likely end up with a delicious stack on your nightstand to keep the well full). She’s gracious, kind, funny, and genuinely cares about her students. I was hesitant to spend the money for her class but it was worth every penny."
"Michele is uniquely talented at guiding writers of all levels and stages of the game into expanding the way they look at their work and develop it towards a goal. She has a brilliant knack for identifying what’s working — and what’s not — within a piece, and guiding students to shape an arc, a character, and a story. I would take a class with her again in a heartbeat."
"Michele is a fantastic mentor who shows patience, humility, and generosity to her students. She’s an enthusiastic champion for all of those ‘am I really a writer?’ writers out there. You’ll leave her class with confidence in your ability and gain many opportunities to get to those necessary next steps in your writing life."
"Over years of knowing Michele and reading her work, I’ve watched her guide countless other voices into the public sphere with professionalism and care. Her enthusiasm for new writing and publishing is rare and inspiring."
