Research, Research, Research

 

"If we value the pursuit of knowledge, we must be free to follow wherever that search may lead us. The free mind is not a barking dog, to be tethered on a ten-foot chain."

~Adlai E. Stevenson, Jr.

I’m not talking about research for writing knowledge.  I’m talking research on story facts.  Doing proper research concerning a story idea does two things:  makes your story more believable (especially for those know-it-alls that have intimate knowledge about the setting/character/profession/etc. in your story) and gives you ammunition for future ideas.

To do proper research, the most important thing to look for is credibility.  The old saying goes “There’s two sides to every story.”  Well, when it comes to information in the real world, there are INFINITE sides to the story.  A basic example is hearing something from a friend that happened TO HIM versus that same friend telling you something that he heard from a friend about her cousin’s great granddaughter’s boyfriend.  One has the credibility of being straight from the source while the second…well…we’ll say kindly that nasty rumors have been perpetuated in the same fashion for eons.  (You can’t tell me all those story scenes drawn on vases and cave walls are strictly truths that happened to the artist–especially the “alien” ones.)

The Golden Ticket—Research & the Fiction Writer

Hiya, Beardies!

Have you ever read a story that has a "fact" in it you know to be totally wrong, that was so implausible given a location or known fictional universe that you couldn't finish the story, or perhaps simply mismatches in happenings when compared to a well-known system of science or magic? These are cases where an author has taken to heart the old adage of "It's fiction. Just make it up!" in the wrong way and neglected to do research.

I have done a tremendous amount of research for papers not only because I know the teachers are looking for specific information, but because I want my paper to be BELIEVABLE despite the BS I've added in to reach my page requirement. The quality of the fact-based information holds up the believability of the BS. Just like a non-fiction research paper, a fictional work—no matter how small—requires the facts from research to make the story more than simply plausible…it makes it completely believable!

Writing & Research Tool: AllExperts

Hello Everyone!

Today my post is again going to focus on Writing Tools.

Over the years, as I've scoured the internet while doing research for certain aspects of my manuscript, I've often run into the dilemma of finding not-so-accurate information.  Thankfully, being a great researcher and always retrieving my information from more than one source (more than three, most times), I am quick to realize the information is sometimes not all that trustworthy.

Although I am a great researcher, I must say that my work has been cut down drastically by one specific tool in general.  I don't use it for everything, though I could, but I use it for the important questions I want answered by an expert source.

The tool is called AllExperts, and it is a great source for any question you may have, writing related or not.  For instance... Yesterday, while writing on my new Urban Fantasy project, I ran into a few what I like to call "info blockades."  The main character of the project is a homicide detective, and while I am familiar with certain procedures dealing with homicide investigations (because of the plethora of crime dramas out there), my knowledge is still limited.  I wanted to guarantee that the facts I have in the book are absolutely correct, so I automatically knew to turn to this wonderful site.  I am still waiting for the question to be answered, but the wait time is typically only three days at most.

AllExperts is the oldest & largest free Q&A service on the Internet.  It is a compilation of various experts in a variety of fields.  Below is a screen-shot of the multitude of Categories, each of which can be broken into further Categories.

As you can see, the possibilities are endless.  Instead of trying to sort the accurate information from the rest of the fluff you come across, why not go directly to an expert for your questions?  Your readers will thank you!

Have a Great Night!