There are definitely plenty of things a writer needs to know before
she starts to write her book. Characters don’t exist in a vacuum; they
have occupations and homes and families and histories and nationalities
and all number of things we need to know to make them three-dimensional
and bring realism to the story.
I
often set books in the same state and even same geographical area. I own
shelves of picture books, reference books and maps as well as books on
plants and
animals and it's just wise to get the most out of study and resources.
Besides the
convenience, a location can to chosen to support an important part of
the story, like railroads, natural resources, weather and any number of
things you might want to feature.
I
once wrote a book about a German family who owned a brewery. I had no
idea how much work I was in for. I had to select a setting conducive to
cold water streams. I had to know enough about brewing
beer to decide which method they used and why, and which year would be
workable. I chose a year when bottling was first being introduced and
also a year that there was a huge Exposition in Denver. So my actual
location and the brewery were fabricated, but everything about the
people
and production and operation and the time period were factual. Keeping
facts as close to real as possible makes the reader believe.
I
also had to know something about my hero who came to this Colorado town from
Alaska, where he’d been delivering mail between tent towns and postal
stations. That research was probably the most difficult, because all the
facts easily found about Juneau and the Yukon pertain to the gold rush,
which didn’t happen until after my time period. So that part of my
education took more searching. So besides looking up
breweries, their operation and types of brewing methods before I
started, I searched for information on sled dogs, Alaskan temperatures,
modes of travel and traditional Bavarian foods. I ended up with a binder
full of facts and pictures.
Sometimes I have to make an additional
folder on one subject, like say liveries or beer making. In my opinion,
you can’t ever know too much about your location or your topic or the
cultures of your people.
Confession:
I’m a paper person. I’ve learned to use PBWiki, personal online
storage, but even though I have that ability and I’ve bookmarker the
online information, I still want to be able to flip through my binder
and put my finger on that list of names I was going to use. I need to
see the paragraph about the competitive advantages of lager brewing over
ale. That’s just me. If you are a writer, maybe you’ve got a smarter
way to store your research, and if so, I applaud you. The important
thing is that your method works for you, and you’re not losing writing
time searching for something you’ve lost.
Now just
because I have all that info doesn’t mean I will ever need to or that I
ever should use it all. A writer knows far more about her subjects than
she should ever use in a story. But she needs to know it, because if she
didn’t, she’d make mistakes. I have many writer friends who love the
research part so much that it takes on a life of its own. Once they
start, they can’t stop.
Here’s how to know when to
quit researching: If your study is cutting into your production, you’re
researching too much. If you get caught up in the fact-finding and
aren’t tallying a page count, you’re doing too much research. If you’re
not putting words on pages, you’re avoiding writing. Give your study a
rest and write the story. You can learn the rest of the details as you
need them. I learn enough to get started and then I begin. When I get to
something I don’t know, I simply google the subject. If I’m on a roll
and need to know something, I leave an asterisk and come back to it
after the muse is burned out for the day.
So, yes there is a lot a writer needs to know, but the wise writer knows when to call a halt get down to business.
I have three books out this year:
Marrying the Preacher's Daughter, LIH 6/11
Her Wyoming Man, HH 7/11
Snowflakes and Stetsons, HH 10/11
Her Wyoming Man, HH 7/11
Snowflakes and Stetsons, HH 10/11
Visit me on the web: http://www.cherylstjohn.net/
From the Heart: http://cherylstjohn.blogspot.com/
From the Heart: http://cherylstjohn.blogspot.com/
1 comment:
Your covers are so awesome - and the insides are even better!! If any of youse haven't read Cheryl, trust me! you're in for a fabulous read.
I'm in the "pool" of research till the sun goes down, but I have tried to stop at some point. Especially after I have cut some stuff later on, thinking "who cares?" LOL
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