Now that you’ve got your experts all rounded up, you’ll also need to interview people who can actually share their experiences with you. Starting your query with an anecdotal lead is one of the most effective ways to get an editor’s attention, and it’ll save you a whole lot of research headaches if you’ve already got your people stories rounded up.

Whether you’re looking for a person to describe a hot first date, or to discuss his life as someone who is HIV positive, you need to practice patience and compassion. It can sometimes be tough to get people to talk about their most personal feelings and emotions. So you need to be very careful to understand their concerns, and not come across as the reporter who’s just after a story, but as one who cares.

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Be a Pest

It comes with the territory. If you’re looking for stories from everyday people, you’ll need to rely on your social network (at first). That includes your sister, your sister’s friend, your sister’s friend’s brother… you get the idea. Talk to your family members, friends, and neighbors, asking them to refer people they know, further asking those people to refer people they know, and so on. Don’t forget the professionals you come into contact with every day—your doctor, your hair stylist, and your masseuse could all possibly lead you to people with stories to tell.

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Message ‘em and They Will Come

When you’re writing about common topics such as house-cleaning or successful garage sales, jump online. What I do is seek out a message boards on that topic (you’ll be surprised at how many there are!), or if I can’t find a specific one, then one with a broader range, and leave a message for the moderator briefly describing my article and asking if I can hang around the board and solicit potential interviewees. I leave my e-mail address so that respondents who don’t mind being interviewed can get in touch with me briefly (always verify their identity).

Or, if your article is pretty broad in range, and you don’t mind, walk out on to the street and talk to people you see.

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Ask Your Expert

If you’ve interviewed a doctor for a cancer article, ask him if he wouldn’t mind recommending you to his patients and asking them if they’d be willing to talk to you. This can be a little problematic, especially if you’re interviewing detectives or counselors, for instance, who can’t divulge details of their clients. In this case, leave your phone number, and ask that the patients contact you if they’re interested instead of the other way around.