This morning I have had a shower, dressed in real clothes (not writers’ uniform of old slobby clothes), put on makeup and done hair. It’s quite usual for me to do none of these things on a writing day, I work at home, why waste the time needed for the dressing up thing when it’s just me, the cat (and the wife, equally writerly attired) to see it? So that’s an hour and half gone. I did this because some tv journalism students are coming to interview me about PLR and libraries. These things matter, of course they do, that’s why I agreed to the interview. But it isn’t just the time it takes to get gussied up, or the time it’s taken waiting for them (they’re now half an hour late and have called twice to explain why!), it’s the fact that I just can’t get on with my edit while I’m waiting for them. It takes thinking time, it takes sitting at desk time, it takes concentrated time. Sure, bits and pieces of work can be done while waiting and thinking about other stuff, but not the big edit I’m trying to manage right now. I also downloaded a bunch of PLR and library facts and thoughts for this interview yesterday. Did my reading, marshalled some opinions. I did that when I could have been working on my own book.
And I’m really happy to do this for something like the libraries campaign or PLR or to sell my own work (as any writer is!), but I wish there was also a way to make people understand that it’s NEVER just 15 or 25 or 60 minutes of our time. I wish they realised that when they ask for a chat or a quick interview or whatever, that more often than not it’s half a day’s work gone.
And now I’m waiting for them, while I could be working on my own book.
Still, got a grumpy blog out of it.
(They’ve been and gone now. They were very nice, and smart, and I hope the piece works out well for them, it’s about important stuff and even though it’s only going to be seen by their tutors, it’s an issue that matters. And it still took all my morning.)
Not Writing But Blogging 
Good point well made. As an agent I get many many requests for these types of interviews, which disrupt my worktime for my clients. Now I nearly always get them to make a date and time for a telephone call. It’s still an interruption, but usually takes less time than a face to face meeting.
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and I feel really mean making it, they were students after all (and very nice), but yes, unless they HAVE to have a camera, I almost always ask for phone interview if at all possible. it’s just takes so damn long … (er, as does twitter and facebook and blog of course …)
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Oh boy, don’t get me started on this one. As a naturopath I’ve often been interviewed(and more recently I’ve done a few as a food blogger) – there are the interviews for print articles that get binned by the editor, phone interviews where the equipment magically breaks down (this seems to happen to me a lot) and can’t be recorded and they need to reschedule, then there’s the stuff that gets written and misquoted or all the bits I’ve done extra research on is not used. That’s why I love radio, live to air, your words are your words and not edited out, done and dusted, don’t need to dress up even if you go to the studio – win, win!
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I think that the surrealist painter, Rene Magritte, use to get dressed for work as a clerical worker and then walk around the block. Then going into the Studio in his back garden to start his paintings.
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oh yes Gill, LOVE radio for that very reason.
*considered going for a walk around (40′) garden before sitting at desk, realises is sitting at desk* oh well …
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