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little threads of who they are and how they lead their life. I need to understand the context of their life
in order to understand them. Now someone’s home isn’t always the relevant context. If I were
interviewing a Wall Street power-player, a hot restaurant might be as much their “home” as anything
else. The thing I try to avoid is meeting someone in a place with which they have no connection. For
example, I interviewed Hillary Clinton at the photo studio where the magazine was taking her picture.
It was awful. There was nothing there of her. It was completely sterile. But I couldn’t think of where
else I could ask to interview her. Her schedule was pretty busy.
I try to interview people in places that feel natural for them. For instance, I got Laroche to take me
to orchid shows because that was where he was most himself. But I’d rather have the person I’m
writing about decide where to take me. It feels more natural that way. I once wrote about the artist
Frank Stella, and we went to a squash tournament together. He is an avid squash player, so it was
natural for him to go to a squash tournament. But it was also a chance to write about him in a
completely surprising—but natural—environment. I love stumbling on something like that, rather than,
say, going to an art museum with him.
How do you start an interview?
With small talk. Chitchat. I conduct an interview like a conversation. Which means I have to go
back and fill in all the questions I forgot to ask. But I like the interview process to be organic and take
on a life of its own.
Do you ever prepare questions?
No. Being vulnerable is an important part of the dynamic between me and a subject. People tend to
be distrustful of writers from places like New York. You have to make clear that you’re not arrogant,
that you’re not here to make fun of them, but that you are open and genuinely want to learn from them.
It is important for the person you’re interviewing to feel a bit more powerful than he might otherwise
feel. It evens out the relationship somewhat.
Do you take notes or tape-record your interviews?
I take notes in a sloppy “medium-hand,” which is a combination of longhand and shorthand. I’m not
a great note-taker. I’ve always got my notebook at the ready, but I often walk away from a long
interview with very few notes.
Why don’t you tape your interviews?
So much of the time I spend with people is spent just blabbing. I talk about a lot of stuff that isn’t at
all relevant to the story, just so I can get a sense of who they are. I can spend hours talking to a subject
about something like makeup. Do I really want to transcribe hours and hours of tape of that?
Do you adopt any particular persona in order to motivate people to talk?
If you asked the people I write about to characterize me, I think they’d say I was a little younger