Research Part 1- Use All The Tools

I research constantly. I question everything. For every fact, I challenge myself to find the opposite. My journey has been a learning one, and I use my research to write, to create fantasies.
Part one explores the basic tools to get started in your research, no matter what you're building, it's nice to have the right tools.

Use all the tools at your disposal

VIRTUAL SEARCH

I start my search here. I'll find an assortment of articles and books to research further. Use; Internet, google search, archives, articles, newspapers, databases of all kinds, follow blogs, subscribe to newsletters. Ask around for specialised sites. Here are a few that get my search started.

Dictionary.com

Online Etymonline Dictionary

Wikipedia

Amazon.com

Monstropedia

Canada History

The important thing to remember is to BEGIN here, not let it end here. Follow links, make contacts, find those specialists to answer your questions.

BOOKS, MAGAZINES, NEWSPAPERS

Our local library allows us to go online to order books from every library in the province. That's a lot of books, and they come to me. Perfect. Order fiction and non-fiction ones. Drown yourself in your new world.

Local newspapers have archives you can search. Go prepared, these archives or not like a virtual search, they take time to hunt through. Know what you want. I'm not sure about provincial newspapers, I've never used these archives, since I've found them in the library historical archives.

ARCHIVES

Don't limit your research to provincial or library archives. Both come in handy. I've dug around virtual data bases and driven three hours to search them hands on, but the best archives I've found, were hidden ones.

Don't limit yourself to your own language. If the language in your area was different a hundred years ago, find someone to help you translate documents.

There are so many boxes lost in attics, churches, old stores. Visit people, let them know you're researching.

A gentleman brought me minutes from a school board meeting, dated back from 1904. Wow, school teachers were underpaid! It supported a few other facts I'd been researching about discrimination in the area at that time. Strangely, it was the opposite of what I'd previously found. Interesting... I dug deeper.

HANDS ON

Not saying you have to go to jail,
but if you did, now that would help.

Visit the scenes that will be in your book, even if you plan to rewrite them, make them fiction. You'll be surprised what little details stick with you. 

Take pictures for inspiration. In fact, travel with your camera, you never know what you might see.

I spent a day in a cemetery to get inside my characters' heads. What were they feeling while they stood in this cemetery a hundred years ago? What smells came to life? The emotions? Why were there 20 stones dated the same day? Got me curious. I dug deeper.

I explored tunnels, toured a jail, went horseback riding... things a klutz like me, really has no business doing.

I have an incredible imagination, but visiting these places made things come to life for me that I would have missed. I had no idea tunnel walls would crumble under my touch and leave my fingers smelling... yucky. I had no idea making ice cream was so hard.

SPECIALISTS

Writers are generalists by nature, we know a lot of weird things, but everyone, anyone, can be a specialist. These guys and girls rock. They know everything about a very specific thing.

Ask them questions, go with your gut 

What started out as an interview about a threshing machine, turned into an hour discussion about a bedroom in 1936. It was the perfect room for the series I was writing. The walls, the smells, the curtain down the middle of the room... It came to life for me, and he was thrilled to tell me about this room he had to share with his 13 siblings.

Ask family and friends the more personal things

Friends will discuss more intense things like how much blood is at a scene when someone slices off a finger, to date rape. Shockingly, people need to talk about these things I don't ever want to experience. They are happy to answer my endless questions. I use their emotions, their facial expressions to build scenes in my fantasy world. Let them read these scenes if you need feedback.

Everyone loves talking about their experiences, knowledge

Know who to ask for help, let them know that you're writing a book and have questions. I haven't met anyone yet who turned me away, and I've asked some strange things.

"Did that tattoo hurt? For how many days was it swollen? Did your parents like it? Did you feel the needles? Where did the artist buy their ink? Can I come watch you get your next one?"

They look at me strangely. "You need to know this for a book?"

I need to know everything.

Even if the scene reads like this;

Damn, that hurt. Mable said it wouldn't hurt. I knew she was a blasted liar. It hurt. How could it not? This guy was shoving soot under my skin by candlelight with a needle that looked as old as him.

He wiped the soot off roughly, reached for a jar of ink, then he ran his leaking nose on his sleeve while he settled in again. Great.

He was too close to me, so close I could smell his gross breath, rancid like... oh crap, was that dizzy cigarettes I smelt? Was he stoned?

Why was I doing this to myself?

Oh yeah, to piss my brother off.

"Got a joint for me?" I asked, afraid he might say yeah.

What tools do you use in your research that might help others?

Oh, So You Think You Should Write, Eh?

Someone actually told me they were planning to write a book, but they hated reading. It'd be a book for those who hated to read, which in their opinion, was everyone. 

For those of you who are new to my life, I've been writing in secret for too many years, but since I announced to the world that I have a writing addiction, and I'm ready to find an agent to support it, I get strange comments like that.

To me, writing is like hockey. You can't sign up to play 42 games this year if you hate the game. It'll show if you aren't passionate about it, and you'll give up as soon as someone sends you into the boards-- and they will, hard, often. It hurts, and you have to get back up and do it all again tomorrow, sometimes friends help you up, but usually, you're alone.

I firmly believe you have to read to write. You have to read EVERYTHING, and you have to make writing an everyday habit, not a one time thing. Practice your craft, it takes time. That first book might be good, but the second will be better, the third, wow... slowly, you'll get to where you need to be. No one is born a writer. (That would be nice.)


Unfortunately, this conversation didn't end there. To spice up my disgust, this happy person said, "I'm not worried about being published, I kinda know a guy who got published. I'll write him and ask for him to endorse it." 
I kinda know a guy? Endorse it? Do people do that?

I work for my success, and I don't rely on the success of others. I write diligently. I never miss a day. Not one. It means, I write in the car, at the dentist office, that I sacrifice TV time, sleep. I gave up a lot for my novels. I study the craft. I research everything, three times.  No one can say that I got lucky because I knew a guy. I know lots of guys. geesh.
I might never be published. But damn it, I earned it anyway. And, I'm proud of that.

Do you get these types of comments? Should I encourage someone like this? It's my nature to want everyone to succeed, support the team-- but writing is hard, and they clearly had no idea how hard. It's the hardest thing I've ever done. Honestly, no amount of money will justify the time and work I've put into my writing addiction.

The conversation got worse, when it turned to exactly that-- making money off novels. (I mean, they planned to make a fortune selling books to people who hate reading... Even someone with no marketing experience knows that won't fly, don't they?) 

This is how the conversation ended;
"A book for people who don't read. Who the hell is gonna buy it?" At this point, I was annoyed.

Wanna know the answer? The big secret?

With a wink, they said, "Audio book."

Next time, I'll nod and smile, and avoid asking for details. I have fun writing, but it's still a business I take serious, and comments like that, insult me. How do you handle people who think writing is just that easy?

Stick To The Truth, Liar

-FIRST-

ALL CRUSADERS ARE NOW A PART OF MY LIFE.

I double checked, and I am following EVERYONE. 217. Done.

All new friends, welcome to my home away from home, I do a lot of nothing here, it's where I procrastinate, dream, gab, share stories-- in no order. Please, make yourselves at home. Bienvenue chez moi!

Now, onto the lying...

Wow, I read some real whoppers in this contest. Nicely done, crusaders. So, three SOMEONES guessed my lie, well... close enough that I'm proud of them, because really, we just met.

What we choose to lie about is very revealing to our character. How we choose to lie, even more so. I studied the art of lying briefly, because my characters in the Notebook Chronicles like to play a little game that involves lying to each other or not lying. Like cubs, wrestling to learn, they push each other to their limits.

Now, I am not a liar. Not even a little bit. I love the truth, and if I can't tell you the truth, for whatever reason, I'll keep my mouth shut. You can read my silence, as you want. Still, I'll share with you, a few of the points I learnt about lying, or not lying. I've included examples from my last post.

• Exaggerating the truth is not a lie, if you warn everyone that you do this. (Ok, so the blades were not exactly flying at me. I warned you that I exaggerate for flare, so that's not a lie.)
• Telling the truth, but not ALL the truth is not a lie. (I did write 11 books, but they aren't all ready for representation, only 2 are. 5 need work, 4 are shelved in my written word cemetery.)
• Being sarcastic is not a lie. (The witty remark. I still can't discuss it without giggling, sorry.)
• When you do lie, surround it by distracting truths. (I was in fact printing a newsletter with the music blaring.)
• Most importantly, believe what you say to be true, and others will too. (I really am a storyteller.)

I suck at lying, in real life, probably because I hate it when people lie to me. So, I practiced on my puppy for the entire summer, and this was her reaction to my efforts; (true story)



When you said the water was warm, I assumed
you meant warm enough for me.
This sucks.
Why do I believe anything
you say?

(Witty, I know, I know.)

The lie in my crusader challenge?

Anyone who knows me would have glanced at that page and snorted.

"No one's gonna believe you baked!" 

Congrats to Julie, L.A., and Liz who sorta detected my lie!

  

I was eating chips with yummy dip (a rare treat- it would normally be chocolate but I'd already finished it off while writing the newsletter), not a cookie I baked myself.

I have no ingredients to even bake a cookie. Sad, I know. The last time I baked, it was to teach my daughter how not to burn things. We failed, but ate them anyway. Yum.

"I like the lie better. Let everyone believe you're at home baking cookies, it's safer than admitting you torture yourself by trying to write. No one would believe you're that stupid anyway."-- my conscience.

NEVER EVER Judge a Blogger by Their Site

Today is the First Crusader Challenge!! I must reveal the following:  one secret, one lie, one interesting quirk, one annoying habit, one of my best character traits and one of my favorite things in the whole world. All while using a few fun words. And so I've written a piece about my blogging experience so far:

Here it is

NEVER EVER judge a Blogger by their site

I know, I know, I shouldn’t judge a blogger by their site, but I must confess; it's instinct.

If you have stars, rainbows, or rabbits around your name, I'll be by when I need a virtual hug. Not a doubt.

Sites with blades flying at me and in my face script, (oh, yeah) are my new source of inspiration. See ya, soon.

Those specialists using interesting words like bloviate or fuliguline, well… I will be back for help. I have tons of questions, about both.

The butt kickers write with a GET HER DONE attitude. They don't pause at swear words, and their sidebars mean business. I’ll stop by for motivation, promise.

Then there are the quiet sites, where I gab about life. Home.

Like it or not, voice shines through in our choices. I reserve the right to change my opinion as I get to know my new friends, but first impressions count, like it or not.

Got me thinking... How do others see me? I've been called witty three times. I don't even know what that means. Does it mean almost funny?

I love telling stories, it’s my favourite thing, and I don’t mind sharing my experiences as a writer. I just finished my eleventh book. I must have learnt something, right? They took research, and focus. (I generally do several things at a time, a little quirk I can’t break. Even as I write this, I'm listening to music, copying a newsletter, and eating a cookie I baked.)

I wrote this piece as part of a challenge, and something I wrote is an outright lie. Sorry, I don't normally lie. I might stretch the truth for flare, a habit others find annoying, but I am a storyteller, after all.

What is the lie?