Research Smesearch

Good grief, where has the time gone? I have a thousand posts half-written in my head, but I can never seem to find the time (and gumption) to write them out. Mainly because I've taken off on one of my, what I call, "writing binges". Unfortunately for my summer reading resolution, this means that I have little to no interest in reading, but can sit for hours typing away at one or two of my many novels at a time.
And, of course, this means it's time for that necessary evil. Research.

Blech.

I have a rather unaccountable fear of research. I'm always afraid I'm going to find something that will completely destroy my fragile, idealistic plots or force me to do a ton of reworking to make something fit. Usually, this is overly-cynical, since I've found that most things can be squashed in without too much trouble, but there's a first time for everything and I'm always convinced THIS will be that time.

Not only am I afraid of that, but I also detest the hours of wrangling for information, ogling maps, typing in destinations and starting points, hoping beyond hope that someone will have some information on the most obscure topics you can think of...For instance, I spent almost the entire day in the depths of southwestern Montana (I just found out that the abbreviation for that state is MT -- after months of wondering. Amazing!) trying to find a decent place to set up a cow-calf ranch. You would not believe the difficulties I came across. And I couldn't find a decent map anywhere that said "here is a piece of ground that fits your exact specifications". Outrage! In fact, it took me forever just to find out where the East Fork of the Bitterroot River began. Multiply that by about seven or eight towns to choose from, 100 miles of valley land, two mountain ranges (wonderful things that they are), innumerable creeks, annoying little roads that cut right through where you want to land your ranch, distances that are either too great or too small for your purposes, government preserves, little bed and breakfasts, and ect.Then divide it by a 7000 acre ranch that needs to be situated just right with water and mountain ranges and a town that is just a bit too far away for convenience and viola! you have a pile of crumpled paper and a bad case of frustrated brain-cramps (not to mention that you're dead tired too).

Sometimes I ask myself why I keep on doing it. I mean, for pete's sake, is anyone really going to care if I accidentally set my ranch right smack on top of a campground, or a tourists hotel or a fly-fishing lodge? The only people who are going to know would be the people that live in the area and considering the small population of the Bitterroot Valley, I don't think it's very possible that I will get in trouble for it.
The only problem with that line of reason is that I care. If even one person read that novel (should it ever get published) and told me that my location was a virtual impossibility, I would be humiliated to the grave. (Ok, that's a bit dramatic, but I would be very embarrassed.) Besides that, I want my novels to sound like I really know what I'm talking about. That's why I am currently working my way through a book I never thought I would be reading.

The Modern Cowboy by John R. Erickson (which, I should make haste to inform you, is a virtual fount of information. It's a researcher's dream. It's straightforward, concise, tells you EVERYTHING and, as a side bonus, is really fun to read.)

The only problem I have with reading the book for research is that I stink at summarizing and thus practically write down the entire book while I do my research. To be sure, as it's from the library and can only be renewed two (or is it three?) times, such a fund of hand-written information is extremely convenient, but I have a rather difficult time selling that theory to my impatient self when I'm in the midst of writing it up. (This is getting way too long, as all my post seem to tend to do, but I'm going to finish my thought and if you don't want to read on, well, you'll probably find that quitting it now is a display of good sense.)

As for the material I find, I think I tend to be overzealous with it. My mindset is that if I've done all this research, well then, the reader might as well get the benefit of it! Of course, only my wonderful friend who reads all my stuff hot off the press (a terrific job, I tell you. It's astonishing that she and I are still friends after what I've treated her to) and my wonderful editor (who also happens to be a dear friend - especially when she edits things) could tell you whether I pile on the information or not. I am, admittedly, rather partial to my work. But really, there are so many interesting details that can be found while researching. I confess that I usually don't bother to find them until I'm on the second draft of the novel (and then I cram them in like a madman). I actually wrote almost an entire novel without researching much of anything. Not a good idea... Everyone mended fences because that was basically the only chore I could conjure up and going in the first time, I wouldn't have known the difference between a filly, colt, foal, gelding, stallion, heifer or steer if they had hit me in the face. (I do know now, by the way.)

In conclusion, I read a depressing chapter in Thomas Monteleone's The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing a Novel where he instructed a budding writer to "immerse" themselves in the era, customs, settings, ect. of their time period. Immerse? I was barely standing on the edge and dipping my toe in. But, as with most advice from people who know their stuff, "immersion" was a good idea. The writing flows so much better, reads so much more realistically, and sounds 100 times more authentic (go figure).

Despite all that, I still can't stand it. Even though I sometimes happen upon a freak coincidence (I tend to think they're more than coincidence) where I find something that fits so perfectly that it completely opens a new door for my plot, I would still ditch it all to a research assistant if I could afford one. (Actually being published would probably also be an aid in that area as well. Someday, perhaps.) Anyway, methinks this is a book I should be reading soon.

'Till next time,
-- Jamie