I did a ton of research for my last project, which blended contemporary and historical fiction. My fave tools:
1. Google: Of course! Is there anything you can't find a tidbit of information on by Googling it? (Um, probably classified government stuff. But still.) The easiest and most basic tool, and a great starting point.
2. The New York Times online archives: I call this the Lazy Person's Microfiche.* By searching directly on their website or using Google, you can find articles dating back to the paper's inception. The historical part of my book involved some real New York society people, so I read the original NY Times society articles about them. Primary sources! My 9th-grade History teacher would be so proud.
3. The Library, specifically the NYPL: One of the best collections in the world. Whenever you need to extend beyond the Interwebs for information, the library is there for you. (Speaking of which: Save libraries!)
4. Travel: Sometimes you need to see/smell/feel/hear/taste a place yourself to write it.
5. Friends: I have friends who work in cancer research, have lived in Tanzania, are Hollywood big-deal-people, have owned weird pets, and work at the White House.** When you just need a human with first-hand experience to explain something to you, friends are invaluable resources.
What about you? What are your favorite research tools?
*I have now dated myself.
**And thank goodness for that, so I'm not on watch lists for being a White-House Googler creeper.
10 comments:
Great list. The whole travel part makes me want to plot a book in another place just as an excuse to go there. Hmm... ;)
I'll have to check out the NY times one.
Good list. Travel is a good one. The NY Times one sounds cool as well.
How fun-- reading old society pages. Sounds super interesting! Amen for travel, if only I could afford to visit my sites. I would so do it.
NYTimes sounds super-smart! And yay for Google -- only I use DuckDuckGo. :D
I haven't seen anyone mention travel yet, but yes... I'm totally down with travel as research. I went to the Oregon coast last year to research setting and it was SO helpful. Now I need to write a book set in Maui so I can justify a trip there. :)
I'm with you on the internet (google and youtube) and books (non-fiction and fiction), and I wouldn't mind research of the class-taking and travelling variety either.
Now I have even more research ideas! Time to plan a book set in Kona that requires me to know how oil paint. (Good ideas, Katy and Sophia)
Friends are such a GREAT resource! I use and abuse mine all the time!
I think friends are my #1 resource. It also helps make writing less solitary :)
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