How to ask guests questions to make your podcast feel like a movie

The first audio story I fell in love with was about Christopher Daniel Gay. He grew up a little outside of Nashville, Tennesse, lived through an intense childhood, and eventually became the kind of man who would steal things to get by. Eventually, he found himself in jail. But he was a small man. Every time he went to jail, or was on his way to jail — he would find a way to dodge the cops. That gifted him the name “Little Houdini.” Until one day, he met a woman. They had a baby, and that baby turned into a little girl, whose relationship with her father Chris was built on broken promises. He would promise to come pick her up and go trick or treating, but then he would never show up. Because of a lot of things, but mostly because he was running from the law.

Essentially, Chris had to choose to keep running from the law or to serve his time so he could be there for his daughter. And that’s where the story ends.

The first time I heard that story was 14 years ago.

It was the first time I cared for a man I would never meet and a face I would never see. The first time I would be in a grocery store, reaching for eggs, and randomly thinking to myself, “I wonder how Chris is doing?” As if Chris was a cousin of mine I talked to regularly enough to think of him. “Did he ever transform his life? Did he ever go to jail in the short term so he could be with his family in the long term?” I would wonder.

It was the first time I cared deeply and sincerely for a stranger I heard on a podcast.

After almost a decade in the podcast/radio industry, I think about the Christopher Daniel Gay story often and hold it as a high bar. Those are the most powerful stories. The ones that make me think about people as if they were my relatives.

There are many reasons why Chris’s story sits with me, and why I can tell you the vivid details from memory. One of the reasons is it’s an incredibly visual story.

Audio can be one of the most visual mediums. When someone describes something to you with their voice, they allow you to paint a picture of their words in your head. Their words help you build your own version of a movie. It’s a picture that is both deeply personal and effective.

There are scenes that I can see that take me through Chris’s life, take me through different turning points, that make me understand who this man is, and why he is who he is.

But all of those scenes are intentional.

When you’re the writer, producer, and interviewer how do you make your listeners see a movie? How do you make people connect more deeply to the story you’re telling and the people in front of your microphone?

#1 WRITE NARRATION IN THE PRESENT TENSE

When I wrote Apple Podcasts’ 2021 Episode of the Year “WILD: How Do I Love Someone?”, I intentionally used present tense to tell my story.

For instance, the first time I meet James (the man I eventually fell in love with) for the first time, it went like this:

Megan Narration: So I arrive at this parking lot 20 minutes early — and I’m not not nervous.

Megan recorded tape: I’m going to have a little snack beforehand.

Megan Narration: So I start to ease my nerves with a little comfort…

Megan recorded tape: Man this snack is good.

Megan Narration: And mantras…

Megan recorded tape: No expectations, no expectations, no expectations.

Megan Narration: And I start playing a game that I make up.

Megan recorded tape: That’s not him.

Megan Narration: To pass the time…

Megan recorded tape: Nope. not him.

Megan Narration: Two minutes later.

Megan recorded tape: *laughing*...Nope. not him.

Megan Narration: Five minutes later.

Megan recorded tape: What about an Audi? mmmmm...That is him — hahaha. What’s uppppp! You made it!
James recorded tape: I made it!

What present tense does is it creates urgency. As I’m telling a story, listeners are standing right beside me as the story unfolds. It feels like they’re witnessing my life in real time, even though I (as the narrator) already know how the story ends.

When I write narration in past tense, the urgency deflates. Subconsciously, the energy shifts. Listeners aren’t necessarily beside me anymore, they’re being “talked to.” They know I’ve already been here before. This is already in my past, and I’m retelling it to them. The story feels less immersive and less like a movie unfolding before their eyes and their ears.

#2 KEEP YOUR SENTENCES SHORT AND SWEET

In a recent episode, I made for This American Life called “Every Day is Father’s Day” I talk about how I transformed my relationship with my father after he had a health scare. The beginning of one of the scenes starts like this:

Megan Narration:

In January of 2022, I call my father three times and he doesn’t respond. Wednesday, nothing. Saturday, I leave a message. Monday, I leave another message. Just as I’m putting my phone down, he calls me back.

Hello? Dad?

His voice is scratchy and dry. I can barely hear what he’s saying. He’s calling me from the floor. What do you mean you’re on the floor? He’s been on the floor for five days.

When you hear me speak these sentences into my Samson microphone, you can see what I’m saying. I’m also saying it in a voice that is the most natural to me. The sentences are short. They’re just enough to keep the momentum moving but descriptive enough to keep listeners engaged. That’s how I talk. Naturally. In short sentences.

WHEN YOU’RE INTERVIEWING SOMEONE ELSE:

#3 TELL PEOPLE EXACTLY WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING FOR

Before I interview people I literally tell them, “Oh — I may stop and slow you down. Because I like to see what you’re saying. I also may ask you to tell me something again and again in a way that is more descriptive.” I tell people I’m interviewing that I want them to describe an event like a movie. I tell them exactly what I’m looking for and why. In my experience, interviewees want to help you. All you have to do is tell them how.

#4 PRE-INTERVIEW PEOPLE

Pre-interviews are usually non-recorded casual phone calls. I do them when I’m in the “research” phase of a story or an idea. In a pre-interview, I ask folks to tell me a story. And sometimes I literally say, “How did you meet your business partner? Can you tell me the story?” And see what they say. Their response helps me gauge how much I’ll have to direct them in the interview. While they’re talking, I’m asking myself, “When they talk, are they descriptive? Are they reflective? When I ask them for more details, do they give me more details that pull at my five senses?”

A 15-minute conversation with someone tells if they fit a few categories of “talkers.”

Category A) They don’t give me a lot of details when they tell a story. I can’t see what they’re describing. And they are not reflective. This means I’m less likely to interview this person for a podcast story.

Category B) They are naturally captivating. I’m engaged every time they’re talking. I can see what they say. They’re reflective. This means I will definitely interview them for a podcast story.

Category C) They don’t naturally include details in their descriptions but if I ask them to, they will. They’re not reflective on their own, but are if they’re prompted. This means I may interview them for a podcast story. With that said, I know the interview may run long and will take more effort on my end to have the kind of conversation I want us to have.

(Obviously, there are a lot of different types and categories of people. Not all speakers/interviewees can be categorized this way. But for the sake of this article, it’s easy for me to break them up in this way.)

Here’s an example of the categories:

Category A) “Someone broke into the coffee shop down the street.”

Category B) “There’s a coffee shop down the street from my house that feels like my second home. Every time I walk inside there’s something in the oven that reminds me of my grandmother’s house. A lemon tart freshly cooling or banana bread being chopped. But last Monday the oven wasn’t on. The coffee wasn’t brewing. As I walked to the corner, my heart dropped. Everything came into focus. Glass was shattered. Chairs were stolen. The owner was crying outside. This was the beginning of everything that felt safe and warm in our neighborhood.”

Isn’t Category B more intriguing than Category A?

In my experience, if people are willing to share their experience or their story with you, and they can paint some kind of visual, even if it’s brief, people usually fall into the Category C camp. So …

WHAT QUESTIONS DO YOU ASK SOMEONE TO GET THEM FROM A SURFACE-LEVEL STORY TO A STORY THAT FEELS LIKE A MOVIE?

When I hear an interviewee has the ability to tell an immersive, visual story with some direction, this is where the responsibility falls on me and the interview questions I ask.

I create interview questions that are guided by the five senses: sight, smell, touch, hearing, and taste.

SIGHT INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

How would you describe the coffee shop to someone who has never been there?

What does it look like on the outside?

When you walk into the coffee shop, what do you see?

What’s hanging on the walls?

Why does this coffee shop look different than Starbucks?

What time of day do you go?

(Sometimes, I literally close my eyes while someone is talking, and I try and see what they’re saying. If I can’t see what they’re saying, I keep asking questions.)

SMELL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

When you walk into the coffee shop, what’s the first thing you smell?

What does that smell remind you of and why?

Does it take you back in time?

HEARING INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

If there was a theme song that represents the mood of this coffee shop, what song would it be? Why?

When you want into this coffee shop, what do you hear?

If you sit down and slip your coffee and read a book for hours, what would you hear?

TASTE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

When you take a bite of their homemade banana bread, describe it to me.

What does their homemade banana bread remind you of?

What would definitely order?

What is the most disgusting thing on the menu?

TOUCH INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

When you sit on the chairs, what do they feel like? Soft and new? Or aged and worn?

As you walk around, describe the texture of the coffee shop.
Are the floors sticky?
Are the books silky and new?

STORY INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

Walk me through the day you found out something awful had happened.

Describe it like a movie.

What was going through your mind when you saw what you saw?

Why? Why? Why? Why?

I often ask “Why?” “Why do the floors feel sticky?” “Why were you thinking that thought when xyz happened?” The “why” questions help me take the “movie” that people can see to another level. A level that speaks about an idea or an issue or our humanity.

When I make a podcast feel like a movie and I salt and pepper it with ideas, ideally I’m achieving what the Christopher Daniel Gay story did. I’m making listeners feel care for a person they may never meet and a face they will never see, but whose story will stay will them for the next 14 years.