The 6-stage interview map for articles, guest posts, and magazine stories

Before you think about clever questions or flashy quotes, you need to see the full shape of the interview inside your writing job. This simple map shows you how an interview moves from story idea to approved quotes, so you always know what comes next and why it matters. You will use the same stages whether you are interviewing a startup founder for a blog post, a scientist for a feature, or a community member for a reported essay.

Template_01: Interview Intake Sheet — [Editable] Fill your own data before outreach

Copy this template into your notes or your project management tool. Replace all [highlighted] areas with your own information for each new story. If you keep this intake sheet updated, you will never walk into an interview cold, and you will be able to prove to an editor that you did your homework.

Outreach & informed consent — what you explain before you press record

Informed consent means the person understands who you are, what you are doing, how their words will be used, and what risks or benefits might follow from being in your story. You are not a lawyer, but you can speak in simple, honest sentences that help people decide if they want to participate. When you do this well, you protect them, you protect yourself, and you protect the outlet that pays you.

Ground rules: on the record, background, and anonymity in simple terms

Many beginners hear phrases like “off the record” or “on background” from movies instead of from real newsrooms, so it is easy to get confused. As a freelance writer you should keep as much as possible on the record, and when you do use other levels you must define them clearly with the source before they speak.

Question bank builder — design your interview like a story, not a checklist

A strong question bank feels like a guided conversation, not an interrogation. You will start with easy questions that help both of you relax, then move into structured sections that follow your story angle, and then close in a way that invites anything you might have missed. You will avoid long, stacked questions and you will prefer open questions that invite stories, examples, and concrete details.

Simple structure for your question list

Match the tone of the outlet while keeping your own clear voice

When you interview for a site like WIRED, your questions should feel like they belong to that outlet’s personality: smart, curious, grounded in evidence, and understandable to non-experts. You will adjust your tone sliders before the interview so that your questions and follow-ups feel natural for that readership.

You can quickly calibrate these sliders by reading two or three recent interviews or features from your target outlet, then asking yourself how often they use jokes, how dense the technical language is, and how they speak to the reader. You do not have to copy the exact style, but you want your questions and your follow-up emails to feel like they belong in the same world.

Recording SOP — tools, backup, and your “before we start” script

Recording is your safety net. It allows you to quote accurately, defend your work if someone challenges a line, and stay present in the conversation instead of writing every word by hand. At the same time, recording creates responsibility, because you are now storing someone else’s voice and personal information. This SOP keeps things simple and safe.

7.1 Choose your recording setup

7.2 “Before we start” recording script

At the start of the call, before you ask your first question, you will always run a short script and wait for a clear yes. You can adapt the wording to your personality, but do not skip any of the elements.

7.3 Backup and storage habits

• Label recordings clearly: Outlet_Topic_Interviewee_Date.mp3 or similar pattern.
• Move files same day: Do not leave important audio only on your phone; move it to a secure folder.
• Restrict access: Store interviews in a folder where only you (and, if needed, your editor) have access.
• Keep raw audio: Even if you clean the transcript, keep the original file in case of future questions.

Transcription SOP — turn raw audio into clean, usable quotes

Transcription is where the interview becomes material you can work with. You do not need to type every “um” and pause, but you do need a reliable, repeatable process that gives you accurate quotes and clear notes on what was said. This section walks you through simple steps you can follow even if you are new to transcripts and are using basic tools.

8.1 Decide your transcription method

8.2 File setup and first pass

• Create a transcript document named Outlet_Topic_Interviewee_Transcript_Date.
• Insert time stamps every few paragraphs or whenever the topic changes, like [12:34].
• Mark unclear words with [inaudible] or [word?] so you know to return.
• Keep speaker labels simple: INT: for you and SRC: for the source, or use names.

8.3 Cleaning and selecting quotes

Once you have a basic transcript, you will go through it again more quickly, highlighting the parts that directly support your story angle. You will keep the person’s voice and meaning, but you may lightly trim repeated words or filler noises, following your outlet’s style and your editor’s expectations.

8.4 Quick quality check before you start writing

• Random spot-check: Play three random sections of the audio while reading the transcript to confirm accuracy.
• Name check: Verify spelling of all people, organisations, products, and places mentioned.
• Number check: Re-listen to every number and unit (percentages, dates, amounts) and correct them now.
• Emotional tone: Note any places where tone (sarcasm, frustration, humour) could change how a quote is read.

Outreach and consent — what you must clarify before you ask the first question

Before you start any interview you will make sure the other person understands who you are, what you are writing, where their words might appear, and how you will record and use their answers. This is not only about law, it is also about trust, safety, and your long term writing reputation. Laws about recording are different in each country and even inside regions of the same country, and some professional bodies tell journalists to never record someone secretly, so you will treat consent as a strict rule, not as an optional polite step.

Four consent questions you answer for the interviewee

When you contact someone for an interview you will always make sure they can easily answer four simple questions in their own mind, because if these questions feel unclear, they might feel tricked later even if you did not intend it.

On the record, on background, and off the record — simple working definitions

Many beginner writers feel nervous when a source asks to go “off the record” or “on background” because these phrases sound complicated, but you can think of them as simple agreements about how you will attribute information. You should always confirm any change in clear language and, when possible, repeat the agreement back so both of you share the same meaning.

Template — one-page outreach & consent sheet for every interview

You will keep one simple sheet per interview where you summarise the key consent details in full sentences. You will not rely on memory, because weeks later when you are editing or pitching a follow up story you will forget small details like whether they agreed to be named or only described by role.

Build your interview question bank — reusable ladders instead of random questions

A good interview feels like a calm staircase where both you and the interviewee know where the conversation is going, and a question bank makes this staircase easy to climb. Instead of starting from a blank page each time you prepare for a call, you will create reusable question sets or “ladders” for different types of stories, such as personal profiles, product explainers, policy stories, and how-to guides. You will customise them for each person and outlet, but the backbone stays the same, which saves time and produces stronger quotes.

The five-rung interview ladder

You can think of most interviews as walking through five simple stages. You do not have to follow them in a hard order, but keeping them in mind makes it easier to design balanced question sets that give you both emotion and detail, which editors love.

Question templates by story type — plug and play for blogs, features, and guest posts

Here you will keep question sets for the kinds of stories you expect to write most often as a beginner who wants to earn by writing articles, guest posts, and magazine style pieces. You will adjust wording for each interview, but you will keep the structure so that you always cover the basics.

Template A — Expert explainer or how-to guide

Template B — Founder profile or creator story

Use this set when you write for tech blogs, startup magazines, creator economy sites, or any outlet that loves long form profiles, including WIRED-style publications and similar brands that mix narrative with analysis.

Template C — Policy, research, or complex topic

For science, policy, research, or heavy technology topics you want to slow down and confirm definitions, timelines, and risks. This template keeps you from missing basic clarifications that would confuse general readers.

• Definitions: “Can we define [key term] in one short sentence that a smart teenager could understand?”
• Timeline: “Can you sketch the main milestones, from first idea to today, with rough dates?”
• Impact: “Who is most affected by this change right now, and how do their lives or jobs change?”
• Evidence: “If a reader wants to check this for themselves, which public datasets or reports should they look at first?”
• Risk & debate: “What are the strongest arguments against this idea, and how do you respond to them?”

Recording your interview — simple setup so you do not lose audio or break trust

High quality recording is not about buying expensive gear, it is about preparing quietly and respecting the other person’s time and privacy. As a beginner, your safest path is to use one or two easy tools you understand very well, test them before every call, and always ask for permission before you record.

Three-part recording checklist

File naming and folder structure

File names are small but powerful. A messy folder with “Recording 1, Recording 2” will waste your time when an editor asks you to confirm a quote three months later. You will use a simple and consistent pattern instead.

Transcribing interviews — fast, accurate, and friendly to your future self

Transcription is where your messy audio turns into usable sentences and facts. Many beginners either skip this step or try to type every single word without a system, which makes editing slow. Instead, you will choose a transcription method that fits your budget and time, and you will follow a simple five-step workflow that always produces a clean working document for your article.

Choose your transcription method

Five-step transcription workflow

1. Listen once without pausing. As you listen, jot down time stamps for key moments like “great story” or “strong quote” so you can jump back later.
2. Create a simple template. Start a document with speaker labels (for example, “INTERVIEWER” and “KHAN”), wide margins for notes, and a top section for summary and consent details.
3. Transcribe in chunks. Work in five to ten minute segments. Use keyboard shortcuts to pause, rewind a few seconds, and play, so your hands stay on the keys and you do not lose focus.
4. Clean up for clarity. Remove filler sounds like “um” and “uh” unless they matter, fix obvious misheard words, and mark unclear audio with a simple tag like “[inaudible 12:31]”.
5. Mark quotes and facts. Highlight lines that could become direct quotes and add margin notes such as “stats to check” or “possible opening scene” so your later drafting session is easy.

Approval and fact-check loop — respecting sources without giving away your story

Many outlets, especially newsrooms and serious magazines, prefer to keep full editorial control and do not allow sources to rewrite or approve entire articles. At the same time, they expect writers to double check quotes and facts, especially for technical or sensitive pieces. As a beginner you will build a small approval and fact-check loop that makes sources feel respected while you protect your role as an independent writer.

Three common levels of checking

Mini checklist before you send anything for checking

• Confirm with your editor or outlet guidelines whether sharing quotes or text with sources is allowed.
• Prepare a short email that explains you are checking details, not asking for editorial approval.
• Highlight or number the items you want them to review, so they do not feel they must rewrite everything.
• Set a gentle time limit by saying when you hope to publish, so your schedule stays realistic.
• Record any changes or corrections in your notes file so you have a paper trail if questions appear later.

How this whole interview SOP helps you earn more from every assignment

It can be tempting to treat interviews as one-off events that only serve a single article, but when you build them with consent, structure, recordings, transcripts, and neat approvals, each interview becomes a small asset you can reuse in ethical and contract-safe ways. This is how many professional writers grow their income over time without working every night and weekend.

• Always check rights: Read your contract or contributor agreement carefully before reusing any interview material in a new outlet.
• Keep a source list: Maintain a simple sheet of people you have interviewed, with topics and contact preferences.
• Note “reuse ideas”: After each article, note three potential follow-up angles you could pitch elsewhere.
• Track your time: Record how long outreach, interviewing, and transcription took so you can price future work fairly.

Practice sprint — run one complete interview cycle in a weekend

The best way to make this SOP feel natural is to test it on a low-pressure interview, such as a local entrepreneur, a teacher, a researcher, or a creator you already know. You will treat the practice interview as if it were for a real paying outlet, so when an editor does hire you, your hands already know what to do.

Glossary — interview and consent terms you will hear often

When you read guidelines for major outlets or talk to experienced editors, you will see the same words again and again. This small glossary gives you plain language meanings so you can ask better questions when you see them in contracts or briefs.

Your interview SOP is now ready for real-world assignments

You now have a full Interview SOP that walks you from outreach and consent, through question bank design, recording and transcription, all the way to approval and fact-checking. You have templates to keep consent details clear, ladders to make your questions stronger, checklists so you never forget to hit record, workflows to turn audio into clean transcripts, and gentle rules for quote approval that respect both sources and editors. When you follow this SOP, each interview you conduct becomes a neat package of story material, ready to be turned into blogs, features, guest posts, or journal-style pieces that can earn you money and build your writing career.

The next time a publication like WIRED or a niche industry site asks if you can handle interviews for a complex story, you can say “yes” with confidence, because you are not guessing any more. You have a system. You have a repeatable way to collect and protect words, facts, and trust, and that is what turns beginners into dependable, well paid writers over time.