So.  Sometimes, reading other writers’ blogs, I’ll read about the sort of research another author might put into their story.  Maybe they’ll (1) talk about traveling to a relevant city (not exactly within reach for most of us), or pouring over Google maps of a relevant city (definitely sensible – sounds like a lot of work though – so, maybe a reason to avoid contemporary settings if at all possible?).

Or (2) they’ll call up or interview an expert or an academic in a relevant field (umm – talking to people in real life is scary…?).

Or, of course, (3) they’ll do the sort of research that we all learned to do to some extent in school (libraries and bookstores are awesome!).

For myself, I can’t pretend that I often do research for the stories I write.

I mostly write Fantasy and mostly I like to just make stuff up.  However, on occasion I will snag on some element where I find that I’d like to do it better justice than just making stuff up, and then I’ll go on a little tear of option #3, hastily parsing Wikipedia articles, or even digging around and buying some books.

As a result of this (and various other interests and fascinations) my library has become happily eclectic.  And there is something vaguely delightful about some of the more ruthless or bizarrely specific titles that crop up when one has Story Ideas! as an excuse.

For example, here are the books from a bout of this some years back.  I’m not sure, but perhaps you can guess that I was trying to figure out how to poison somebody?  (Answer: poisoning someone is a horrible thing to do (especially if it’s an ingested poison) – Do avoid being poisoned if at all possible!)

One problem when I do decide to go the buying-books route is that I’m a bit of a squirrel where my library is concerned.  I want to have it! (whatever it is).  But then later I don’t always remember that I have it – or where it is – or what it looks like…  Here’s another set of books that I’m pretty sure were all acquired with at least a vague idea that they’d be helpful for research (among other justifications).  Sometimes the ultimate answer is ‘Yes!’, sometimes it’s ‘Oh, I forgot about this book – What’s in it again?’.

But, that stack of weirdness does show some elements that I think are important, not necessarily for Serious Research, but just for giving the brain fodder that it can then turn around and do cool things with.  Your brain needs to eat, you know, and it needs a varied diet.  So.

Firstly: Feed Your Curiosity!  Why not!  Curiosity is an important part of both creativity and problem solving, both things very necessary for writing.  And reading about things you’re curious about is fun!  You can justify it (if you need to justify it) as expanding your options for that darned ‘write what you know’ axiom that crops up so often.  And non-fiction can sometimes be a nice break from voraciously tearing through fiction all the time (if, like me, you have a problem slowing down when the-reading-of-a-story is happening).  Below are books that I read mostly just out of curiosity.  There’s a good chance I’ll never use anything in them directly, but indirectly I know they’re tumbling around in there.  Distant maybe, but there.  And my brain thought they were yummy.

Slightly more pointed than pure curiosity – but still toward curiosity just the same – I also personally, for ‘research’, really tend to gravitate toward memoirs.  Some of these I’ve read and some are currently sitting on my to-read shelf.  But I do really like stories.  If I’m getting to ponder and absorb new ideas and information and perspectives along the way, that’s a great bonus!, and memoirs are tailor-made for that.

However, the above paragraphs do sound rather like ‘Eat your vegetables; you might find you like them’, with the accompanying finger wag.  So, secondly: Feed Your Creativity!  I have a weakness for pretty coffee-table books, and I set myself aside a small allowance for getting a couple new ones every year.  Sometimes I forget about them (like a squirrel?) shortly thereafter.  But with some of them there is just something about them that is Just Right, and it soaks in.  I’ve used some of the things in these books to spur visual-art projects, but I’m pretty sure these ones have all also gone deeper than just ‘visual reference’ or ‘visual inspiration’.  Something more than just my brain found them yummy.

And, since I’m already babbling along in this vein (and also, books make me happy, and I have lots more books that I love!), I will go ahead and add that crafting and special-interest books can be surprisingly (or perhaps not so surprisingly) rich sources of inspiration, information, and ideas.  I.e., if you’re a writer, you don’t actually have to actively pursue a hobby to get a lot out of a hobby book!

Lastly…Why did I get on this topic in the first place?  Oh, because you, my semi-imaginary reader, might want to know what my latest stack of weird, for-story research flailing looks like.  I’ll just say, the questions I’m trying to answer with this set aren’t quite as straight-forward as ‘how do I poison somebody?’ and leave it at that.  (::whispers:: although there might be aliens involved.)

Happy browsing.