How far do you go to do your research?
Google? Wiki? BBC News? CNN or Fox News? (Yeah, ok I put those in to see if you were paying attention...)
So far, I haven't really had to do much actual, factual research because I write fiction - I make just about everything up.
I research historical fact because I like to weave my stories into historical events. The War of the Roses, Jack The Ripper, The Battle of Blore Heath, they were all intensively researched. I have walked battlefields on a few occasions - Blore Heath has stuck in my mind since and I dare say I'll return to that one.
@s0u1 took me to Scotland to Bannockburn for my birthday and I thoroughly fan-girled at the birthday presents he bought me!
A hog-faced helmet, replica of Henry 8th's battle helm and a Hand and a Half 'Bastard' sword - BEST. BIRTHDAY. PRESENTS. EVER!
I suppose it's because I adore history.
I digress!
Now I have an idea for a story that's current. It has a lot of background and more detail than I'm used to.
Do I go at it like a bull at a gate and just write?
Do I keep with popular myth and legend and throw random interesting snippets of my imagination in there for added colour, or do I immerse myself in research - library, wiki, google, books, papers, documents?
I suppose you'll just have to wait and see...
No, I'm not telling you what the story is about. I'll keep you guessing... I may not finish it today. I may not even finish it this week...
AND, I may not even tell you whether it's part-fact, part-fiction...
You see, I'm a little bit evil like that.
I can give you just enough to get you interested and then leave you hanging...
Was that a clue?... Who knows...
Keep watching.
When I write content for my Subcultures series or for my American Heritage series, I generally do a fairly deep dive into resource materials because I want to be factually accurate and I want to understand the subject matter well enough to tell a good story.
I would say the depth of research really depends on thenthoe of piece you are trying to create. If fiction with a smattering of fact is your wheelhouse, maybe don't do a deep dive into research. Just do enough for contextual accuracy.
My $0.02 anyway.
As an aside, that is a badass birthday gift
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Upvoted, so you're half-way there. :)
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Haha! :) Nice!
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I like to know as much as possible about a subject I'm writing about, even if it's fiction. That's just me... picky, picky, picky ;)
It certainly was the birthday gift to beat all others! :)
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I was just thinking about this today - I write everything originally too, but then I research as well because inevitably some minor detail strikes me that leads onto another detail and before long these small bits add up and deepen the story. Occasionally I allude to events, names or facts that most readers ignore but I feel it works on the subconscious level and contributes to the ambiance or the sense of verisimilitude ( sorry for the big word!) Good post, michelle!
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Thanks. The post evolved. I was going to write about something else... but you know... side-tracked :)
Though I never get to see anyone actually reading my books, I do like to think they may be set off on their own thought-process, wondering if a particular fact in the book is real or made-up.
One day, someone may take the time to tell me they did their own research and found mine accurate... you never know :)
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ha ha ...you never do...and some readers are like that - they tell you things you don't even want to know LOL!!
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And that set me off on my own side-track... ew! ;) hahaha )
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One of the reasons I like to write sci-fi and fantasy is because it does not demand any research, but the fiction stories and comics I have written that takes place in the real world are very thoroughly researched. I don't know why I have to do it really. Some kind of uncontrolled perfectionism probably.
But I do think that it does give back something too. A supporting character can suddenly stand out in a new way because you got an idea from reading about the social class or subculture you want him/her to come from, for example.
I plan to write a bit about how I have made my comic about Phill from GCHQ. And I guess that a good topic is rearch as everything in it is researched. I suddenly know a lot about Land Rovers because my contemporary 007-parody is a Scottish hipster-girl that only use classic British tools. Her gun, her car, her binoculars - everything is pre-1970 - she might even hear Scotland the Brave on one of these...
See... just got an idea.
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The devil is in the detail! Awesome!
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Oh my! Those are such awesome presents! They look to have such amazing quality too!
With regard to research, I love history as well, so I try to take as much as I can, then write what I think is best for the story. It's my/your story, not his-tory so we're free to change whatever we want. That's the beauty of fiction :D I really don't understand those sticklers who rant about the authenticity of the smallest of details. It's not like we're writing history books! haha
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I get what you mean and I agree with it for the most part, but I also think that if something has happened, it has to stay happened otherwise you're writing alternate universe stories and that's complex LOL
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Yeah, you're right, twisting everything does branch out an alternate reality, but what I'm saying is that the little details don't really have to be perfectly captured. Fiction authors have a certain amount of liberty with tweaking details, and we shouldn't be chastised for missing them. As long as the big picture stays, I guess that's alright :D
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I'm enjoying this debate, can you tell?
:)
I have to differ to your opinion here. I wrote a book that used Jack The Ripper as a 'base' for the story. Some was fiction because no one knows who he was so his early life is unknown. I had great fun with that part.
The rest of the book had to be absolutely faithful to historical fact because there are a great number of 'Ripperologists' who know all the facts and if I got one wrong (even deliberately) I would have suffered with bad reviews slating the book for errors.
I even had to research the phases of the moon at the times of the murders - my book revolved around werewolf legend and therefore, the full moon had a big part to play.
I had to research the weather, living conditions etc and there was even a massive warehouse blaze in the area I was writing about and it would have been viewed unfavourably if I had missed that out.
Sometimes, history can be ignored or tweaked, but not always, not if you want your book unmolested by bad reviews. :)
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Ahh yes, I see where you're coming from, and I concede to your argument. That's some meticulous research! The last time I did that was for an academic assignment. My latest story did involve research, but not as much as you did :) Maybe one of these days I would embark on a historical-heavy journey and I shall go down the rabbit hole as well.
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I also agree with your side of the argument - being fiction, the tale doesn't have to rely on actual hard facts.
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