Category: Recording a Life Story
Interview Transcription Cleanup Checklist
You sit at a kitchen table with a recorder, a notebook, and a cup of tea, ready to capture a family member’s story. The interview will run anywhere…
Verify Backups of Irreplaceable Family Files
You have scanned old family photos, recorded oral histories, and saved digitised letters onto a single external hard drive. Weeks later the drive fails, and the cloud account…
Use Silence in a Life Story Interview
You sit across from a parent who has just finished describing a childhood farm. The story pauses, and the room feels empty. In moments like this, the silence…
Use Old Photos as Memory Prompts
You open a dusty attic box, pull out a faded Polaroid of a birthday cake, and notice a cracked porcelain mug beside it. The objects sit on a…
Take Notes While Recording an Interview
You sit at the kitchen table with a handheld recorder, the faint hum of the refrigerator in the background, while your mother begins to describe the house she…
Run a Group Family History Interview
You have gathered three cousins around a kitchen table, a recorder set on the table, and a stack of old photographs. The goal is to capture each person’s…
Redirect a Family Member Who Goes Off Topic
During a family history interview, a grandparent may launch into a story about a childhood trip that bears no relation to the question about a wartime occupation. The…
Preserve Original and Edited Interview Files
You have just finished recording a conversation with an elderly relative about their childhood, and the file sits on a laptop alongside dozens of other media. The raw…
Prepare Before Interviewing a Parent About Their Life
You have set up a quiet room, placed a notebook and a voice recorder on the table, and invited your mother to share the story of her childhood.…
Plan a Life Story Interview Session
You arrive at the family home with a recorder, a notebook, and a clear intention to capture a life story. The kitchen table is set, the kettle is…
Order Life Story Interview Questions
You sit across from a parent who has just finished a cup of tea, the kitchen clock ticking, and you realize the stories you want to capture are…
Name Family History Audio Files
You open a folder that contains dozens of recordings from recent family interviews. The files are named with a mix of handwritten dates, vague titles like “Interview 1,”…