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Blog 1-23-12

On one of the Linkedin writer chat groups I participate in there was recently a question on how much research was done for the writing.  As a historical novelist there is an expectation that, at minimum, that historical facts will anchor the fiction work.  For MURPHY’S TROUBLES I read at least 20 books, researched specific facts on Google and visited Ireland before I was comfortable.  I believe historical fiction has the responsibility to both be authoritative and credible.

Those standards mean more than just having the broad sweep of events correct in the novel but details can be important.  For example, to ensure that my characters had accurate Irish names, I used several websites on both Irish first names and surnames.  I also researched what type of food was common to eat and researched maps so that when a character travels I could refer to the correct name of the road.  I also consulted maps of cities so that street names were accurate although the particular building in the novel could be fictional.

The surprising thing is that hours of research often results in from one sentence to one paragraph in the manuscript.  Fortunately, I deeply enjoy research and learning about how ordinary folks go about living their lives.

I believe, in historical fiction, there’s no such thing as too much research.  A writer does need the discipline to stop researching and write, it’s a constant struggle.  I’ve learned about myself that research can become an avoidance mechanism for the writing, so I prompt myself with – tell the story.