This personal historian was terrified for the first 100 hours of interviewing people.

Deciding what question to ask next is an awesome responsibility. The way your mother or father tells their life story is as much about their unique storytelling style as it is about how the interviewer asks questions.

The toughest moment is when a client makes a statement about something interesting but there are many enticing details in the sentence. For example, during an interview several years ago, Marguerite, a client,  told me, "I had come upon the army on the Old Roman Road where they had captured an enemy pilot during the war, along with my silly husband."

There are at least seven obvious possible topic lines in that one statement! Is the next question, "Where is the old Roman road"? Would you ask, "What war was it?" or "Who was the pilot"? ...or "Which army?" or "Was this when you first met your husband?" or "Why was he silly?" or "Was your husband captured?". So many questions.

Choosing a question is easy but assisting someone to tell a very personal story is not so easy. If you direct the questioning in the wrong direction, you risk losing their passion, their focus, and they'll probably think you're an idiot! Asking the wrong question will likely cause the true meaning of their statement to be forgotten, never to be retrieved.

After a while I learned to follow the energy of an interview and not get sidetracked by interesting details. As an interviewer I listen to the heart of who is speaking, following the lead of their passion and excitement. And I make notes as I go so I can go back later to ask questions about those other details.

I use a combination of carefully chosen interview questions that I've assembled over the years  and a battery of memory joggers. When I interview your mom or dad, I'll be able to help them easily access those old memories that they think they have forgotten.

Click here to see the 99 Questions That Tell A Life Story.
Over the next while I'm rolling them out on Twitter so you can ask your own mom or dad, one question at a time. To follow me on Twitter click here.

To arrange a Life Story Interview for your parents or grandparents, click here.

To see complete Life Story & Family History Film packages, click here. 

PS: Just so you know, Marguerite was trying to tell me how she had met her husband and no he wasn't captured along with the enemy pilot. Actually, Marguerite was about 20 years old in England when World War II began. During the Battle of Britain, German fighters and bombers were shot down over the fields near Marguerite's home. One day, a German pilot bailed out of a damaged plane and landed nearby. The local "Home Guard" defence began looking for the pilot. Her future husband was among the searchers. He saw Marguerite out on the road, watching the commotion and escorted her home for her own safety. Later he asked her out for tea. They walked to a nearby bakery along "The Old Roman Road", a street that had actually been built by the Romans when they invaded Britain in 43 AD. Yes, it's a love story set in history!