Researching, Research, Research

I may not be the general consensus in saying that it is better to know more than less, but I will still say it.  So many times have I read reviews about books that say something along the lines of, "it could have been great, had the author known more about medical practice than the general populace."  If you don't do your homework, don't expect to do well on the test.

If you have been reading me since the beginning of this blog (8 whole entries now!), you will definitely know that I love to give examples of what the professional authors do.  Here's my example for this entry: Dan Brown, author of Angels & Demons, The DaVinci Code, and more with more to come.  Unless you've been living under a rock, you've heard of him.  Do you think he didn't do any research before writing his novels?  His knowledge of conspiracy theories regarding the Catholic Church and the Illuminati is extremely evident.  Yes, he alters the existing theories in our world for his novels, but that's taking a poetic license in his fiction.  At the end of the day, he still did his research.

The great thing about being a writer is that, more often than not, you're going to write what you enjoy and what you know, so the research probably won't need to be the time equivalent of a Doctorate in Physics. 

Research for my book is key, as I am writing a science fiction novel.  The good news is that my research is half knowledge-based and the remaining half, imagination-based.  My original idea for this novel came from a dream I had around five or six months ago.  It was so real and so vivid that I still remember most every aspect of that dream.

My dream took place on a spaceship, as my story will.  So to establish the details and description of my ship, today I put pen to graph paper and did what I can't really do: I drew out my ship.  Thank goodness for graph paper and a protractor set.  It was probably the best $6.00 I could have spent for my research needs. 

Not only did I draw out my ship, but as I drew, I became fully immersed in every room on that ship and I now know every detail.  I may have known it before, but until it was on paper, I couldn't be sure.  I even drew it to scale, which makes it even better.  Now I have a reference guide for myself and possibly for my readers, should I choose to insert it into the novel.

A sobering fact that I have come to realize in science fiction and fantasy novels, is the amount of research that you will need to create for yourself.  As I mentioned in my One of Character entry, I like to know more than my readers will, so my research has been much more detailed than will be necessary to the actual story.  However, it's fun to do and should any insanely intelligent person come up and ask me about the floor on the bridge of the ship, I can explain it easily and fully until their ears fall off.  So I hope.

On another note, I still have more research to complete and take on, of which I won't bore you with at present.  This research is also more imagination created, so I've enlisted the aid of a help guide.  I discovered this workbook last December and ordered it right away.  It is called The Complete Novel Plotting Workbook.

Disclaimer's Note:  I do not sell this workbook.  I do not receive proceeds or any monetary value from enumerating this workbook.  I don't even necessarily condone it.  I just think it's a start on the organizing side of science fiction and fantasy creative research that may be required for your novel.

Her website will explain more.  It can only be bought in the United States, so I apologize for those of you who are interested and do not live in the U.S.  It comes out to $14.95 with shipping and handling.  Think along the lines of buying information and organization because all you're getting is paper with info on it. 

Hint: What you see is what you get, for the most part.  The world building section is what makes the book worth buying because you don't necessarily remember to think of everything when you are creating a civilization from scratch, or almost scratch.  Her time line graph is confusing and very flow chart-ish for me, but it will probably work for others, more than likely.

The locking rings that keep the book together, suck.  I can't be nicer than that.  They're too small for how thick the book is and I took them all out so I wouldn't tear my pages up and I still don't have a new binding for it yet.

The quotes are nice and there are character profiles which will help organize you and give you that "getting to know you" idea, even if it is at a bare minimum.  And if you are one of the lucky ones and can draw, you even get a space to draw characters and maps, with the world's smallest graph paper.

In my book, if you are going to attempt this genre of novel, you need to have this level of knowledge for reference.  While it isn't necessary to buy the book, try to pull together your own workbook with your own templates for referencing.  Put it in your Writer's Bible, especially if you plan on writing several fantasy and science fiction stories.

Just make sure to research.  Know your stuff before you run out into the unknown.  Do your homework.  There's no harm in learning (or creating) something new.