So You Interviewed Your Great Aunt Mildred About Her Pie-Baking Secrets (and Now You Need to Cite Her in Chicago Style)
Ah, the personal interview. A chance to delve into the fascinating minds of...well, anyone you can get to sit still long enough to answer your questions. Maybe it's a celebrity for a school project, a neighbor for your local newsletter, or, in this thrilling case, your Great Aunt Mildred, renowned for her legendary apple crumb pie.
But here's the rub: you snagged these juicy quotes, but now your paper needs citations, and Chicago style, that notorious rule book, seems determined to confuse you with its cryptic ways. Fear not, intrepid interviewer! With a little humor (and perhaps a slice of Aunt Mildred's pie), we can navigate the world of Chicago personal interview citations.
First Things First: Unpublished Interviews are Our Focus Today
Let's be honest, unless your Great Aunt Mildred is Martha Stewart, that interview probably isn't going to be published in a fancy magazine. Unpublished interviews, like the one you conducted with Mildred about her secret ingredient (hint: it's love), are cited differently than published works.
Underline this one: Unpublished interviews are usually your secret weapon in the back pocket of your citation holster. They're snuck in through footnotes or endnotes, not a formal bibliography.
Breaking Down the Citation Breakdown: Name, Title (Wait, What Title?), Date, and Location
Here's where things get fun (or maybe a little scary, depending on how much caffeine you've had). We need to include a few key details in our citation:
- The Interviewee: This is the star of the show, your Aunt Mildred (unless she requested anonymity, then things get a bit more cloak-and-dagger).
- Identifying Information (Optional): Is Mildred a world-renowned pie architect? A Nobel laureate of pastry? If she has some claim to fame that adds context, you can throw it in here after her name in parentheses.
- "Interview with" (Dramatic music plays): This little phrase sets the scene, letting everyone know this is an interview, not Mildred's grocery list.
- The Interviewer: That's you, my friend!
- Date of the Interview: This helps folks track down the exact conversation where Mildred spilled the beans (or rather, the flour) about her pie crust technique.
- Location (Optional, But Helpful): Did the interview take place over a slice of pie at Aunt Mildred's kitchen table, or on a park bench feeding the pigeons (hopefully not while discussing pie-making)? Including the location can add a dash of detail for the curious reader.
Here's an example to put it all together:
- Mildred Jones (baker extraordinaire), "Interview with" [Your Name], April 12, 2024, Mildred's Kitchen.
See? Not so scary after all. Although, beware, including the "baker extraordinaire" part might inflate Aunt Mildred's ego.
That's It? You Got This!
There you have it, folks! With this knowledge, you can confidently cite your personal interviews in Chicago style, whether it's Aunt Mildred on apple crumb or your neighbor on the best place to find a rogue frisbee. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a sudden craving for pie...
