No matter how good your questions are or how well you think you understand a race, if you aren't talking to the right people, or to enough people, there will inevitably be holes. Below some tips on finding those people and making sure you don't lose them once you've talked to them.

1. How Big is Your Rolodex? Who's in Your Rolodex
Marty Tolchin, New York Times correspondent, former editor of The Hill
There may be people in there you only talk to once every five or six years. There should be. You need to have a complete range of voices in there to cover politics. Not just the standard party voices and academics. Do you have the political mechanics, the dreamers, the movers and shakers, the ethics cops, the religious people, the business people, the money people? If your Rolodex is light in certain areas, you should be able to identify where and make it a mission to fill it in when you can.

2. Never Throw Away A Phone Number
David Yepsen, Political Editor, Des Moines Register
Make sure you have a system for capturing every phone number you ever get. The governor just called you from his private cell. The Senator just called you from his summer home. The elusive financier just called to complain. As soon as you get the number, take that scrap of paper or that bookmark you wrote it on and transfer it into your Rolodex forever. Also, caller IDs at work and on your cell phone are invaluable. Get in the habit of jotting down numbers from caller ID. Make building the rolodex part of your trade craft.

3. Talk to the Secret Wise Folk
Jack Germond, former Baltimore Sun columnist
Some of the best sources for any political reporter are former elected officials who are not vested in a campaign or a debate but are able to tell you what is going on and give you a starting point. Make sure you talk to people who were very active in politics but who are now no longer in a position to speak publicly. Judges, university presidents, retired politicians, disgraced politicians, etc. These are people you cannot quote, but they know everything. They are starved for attention. Do it in person. Do it at some length. It will be a great lunch or a great dinner. They will be flattered and tell you more than you expect, especially once they know you. Imagine Bill Clinton and Bob Dole telling you everything they could off the record before the next election for president ever started.

4. Get Character Sources
Jim Doyle, former Boston Globe political writer, former Army Times editor
Similar to Germond's "Secret Wise Folks," but this is about character in particular. These are people whose judgment you trust about other people. They were once the people who helped decide things in the smoke-filled room and who know how people, including your candidate, play the game. They are the ones who financial people consult in deciding who to back. They'll tell you what they see in the soul of candidates. These are, once again, background people. They are not on the record.

5. Talk to the Journalists Who Know the Candidate Best
Various Journalists
A great source for anyone covering a race, but especially those newly assigned or assigned to write a longer piece, are other journalists. People who may have been covering a candidate on a daily basis for a period of time -- or an elected official in their state or locality for a period of years -- often have a unique perspective on the candidate that is formed by exposure and proximity. At the very least they have a mental history of the candidate's time in office. They will know these people well. Their attitude toward a person is often predictive of what the public will think of them later on.

6. Spend Time With Candidates Off the Record
Jack Germond, former Baltimore Sun columnist
Spend more time hanging around politicians rather than other reporters. While reporters often focus on the getting the killer quote or the tough policy position on the record, this is only one side of a person -- usually the least revealing. To get a better idea of who the person you are covering is, spend some time when each of you has your guard down. You may not be able to use what you get in your stories, but you will have a deeper understanding of the politician when you do sit down to write.

7. Know the Faces
Jack Germond, former Baltimore Sun columnist
Sure you know what the candidate looks like, but what about those running his campaign? Did you have coffee next to his press secretary's assistant? Knowing ALL the staff, as many as possible, is not only a way to develop sources for your reporting, it is a way to avoid saying something dumb that gets back to the candidate. These staffers are not as close to the top of the campaign, but they can hear a lot and they often like to talk.

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