Wednesday, January 25, 2012

The Amazing Power of Research

In the process of editing and re-working my NANO novel, I kept getting stuck on certain plot situations. My imagination was working to fill in the gaps, but I feared I was pulling too much from embedded movie images (a downside of writing so much, so quickly).

I needed more accurate images, information and knowledge about the medieval world (for example, warfare descriptions and methodologies, and what life in a rich medieval city was like). I “stumbled” on the Byzantines and their capital, Constantinople. What I have learned and discovered is amazing and delighting and fearsome and…

I am so excited! My work is in a shambles. But, I have back story, history, and information to stir my imagination as I put some pieces back in a different order, as well as creating new pieces in this very complex puzzle known as a novel.

3 comments:

  1. I love how research just makes the ms. pop. We can write all we want, but without at least some facts to back it up, the prose just stagnates. Good for you.

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  2. I do love research. Sometimes I'll put it off for the sake of writing a fast first draft, but when I can't put it off any longer, I delve into the research and have a great time. It's great watching the stories come alive.

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  3. You go, girl! (Can I have some of your excitement?)

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