Tips for Writers by Redone
FeatureSummary:

We have all seen those stories that get no comments and those stories that regularly get a handful of comments per chapter. This series will focus on providing tips on how to be one of the latter, not the former!

reading

Newest Segment: Developing Minor and Supporting Characters


Categories: Admin Only Characters: None
General Warnings: None
Trigger Warnings: None
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 34 Completed: No Word count: 26875 Read: 105292 Published: Jan 19, 2015 Updated: Sep 11, 2017
The Significance of Research by Redone
Author's Notes:

Here is a brief overview of how doing research can enhance your story.

 

Regardless of whether you are writing an AU story or trying to adhere closely to Michael's reality, research is something that is necessary if you expect your story to have substance.  While easily overlooked, research is what can take a story from "pretty good" to "this story is so real that I feel like I'm actually hearing Michael's thoughts!"

 

Some thoughts on how research can enhance your story:

mjjtimeline@blogspot.com is great for this.

Not doing at least cursory research into that faith could mean missing a huge aspect of "Michael's" essence.

NOTE: In saying that, I am not suggesting to take from the plot. 

These are all lapses in research. Did they break the stories? No, but they were jarring enough that I still remember them.

 

Stick to what you know (or can reasonably learn). Part of doing research is understanding what you don't know.  Say, for instance, Michael is being charged with something and has to go to court. Look up the phrasing of such charges, the ordering of procedures, and/or the type of lawyer that would be appropriate. I've been asked to assist on everything from legal and criminal issues to expected behavioral patterns. I love it when an author asks for help from readers. Before a show goes on TV, it's shown to a selected group of viewers and their feedback is solicited to help shape the direction of the show. That doesn't mean the screen writers and actors give up their views, it just means they have more ideas to draw from in order to make the show a success.

 

Like watching Michael read musical notes, acting like a man from a middle class WASP family, getting details wrong kills the flow and leaves the reader thinking,nope

 

Often it's tempting to simply not do the research, because this is for fun, and saying to oneself, "I'm here to write my story, not read a bunch of stuff and make notes for junk, after all this is for fun!"  But many stories have been ruined by not doing the research ahead of time. This may not be obvious to the writer, but it's often obvious to the reader who decides to stop reading without ever commenting.

End Notes:

Thank you to KerenOlivero and TutThreeSevens for suggesting this topic!

Please let me know if there is a point I've missed or a point you'd like addressed. Questions are also welcome!

This story archived at http://www.mjfiction.com/viewstory.php?sid=6661