Research When Writing Fiction...

Still working on my book, but decided to take a break from my Internet research to share some thoughts on why it's important to do your research, even when you're in the fictional realm of "make-believe."

For me, blending facts and real locations into a fictional story adds so much more depth.  The book I am currently working on is laden with unassuming clues, woven into the plot and are relative to the story.   Nothing is there without a reason. 

I think I do this, because it's fun for me as a writer--I ejoy learning "little known facts" about places and people...

I think I must have been a teacher in another life.  I love encouraging people to look deeper into a subject and stumble upon a fact that may not have received much historical attention, yet is still valuable or interesting. 

In a world of instant information via a quick "Google" search, a clue can either be dismissed or confirmed as factual in a matter of seconds.  Who cares?  Just ask all those people playing trivia games.  It's fun for people with curious minds.  I believe readers have curious minds. 

Let me back up a moment and stress the relative to the story apect of my research...  While it's great to have an arsenel of facts, or what my husband calls "useless information" for a Trivial Pursuit game, just throwing them into your story for no good reason can be distracting, so I don't recommend it. 

This may be coming more from my point of view as a reader rather than a writer, but it's important, either way.  There's a fine line between interesting and drole in the pusuit of sharing facts.  It's important that you've confirmed your facts with a number of reliable resources, and then they have be interesting and relevant.

OK, back to work.  Please remember, I'm not an expert.  I'm just a gal who knows what she likes to do, and wanted to share a thought or two on my thought process. 

Have a Groovey Tuesday!