I Wish I'd Taken the Time to Ask

Pamela Tracy here, and I'm helping my 13-year-old work on his World War II assignment.  Yup, he has a deadline.

He's doing a lot of what I have to do when I have a deadline.

I have to come up with a story idea.
He has to come up with a thesis.

My ideas always go somethng like this:  Boy meets girl.  Boy says, "Hmm, not bad."  Soon something interferes and boy says, "This is horrible."  Soon, boy is trying to figure out how to get back in girl's good graces but something even more horrible happens.  Finally, they work it out.

Huh?  Okay, doubters.  Think about it.  All romances pretty much follow this formula.

As I'm writing my story I also research.  Some of my favorite finds are
   1. when we started putting fabric into coffins (I'm not making this up)
   2. how to make a trough for gold panning
   3. how hard it is to half a part/wolf part/canine pet (never will be a pet)
You get my drift.

My son's thesis reads like this:  The Japanese decided they should bomb Pearl Harbour because of Truman ending trade agreements, because the Japanese were powerful and well-trained, and because America was not in the mood for war thanks to World War I.

As he started his research, some of his favorite finds were
   1.Wow, the Japanese takeover of parts of China were especially brutal (this did not make it into his thesis but took up most of our time)
   2. The Japanese used metal that we sold them to make planes and warships in which to attack us.
   3. All the film clips from this era are in black and white (whhhaaaaat).

He's also suffering from a typical author's flaw.  He wants to put all his research into his final product but that would be too much backstory.

As for me, I'm thinking about writing a WWII romance.

Of course, I must first finish the fifteen other ideas that are waving their hands.

So, do you have a favorite research story?

I do.

Years ago when I was researching what a high-end resort room would look like, I went to a resort and talked the front desk manager into letting me peek into a room.  I did more than peek, though.  I walked in and started drawing the room as the cleaning staff cleaned.  They kept giving me "looks."   It took me a while to figure out they were worried that I was there looking for undocumented workers.

Allie Pleiter on fun research sources

Sometimes, research requires me to dig into obscure and strange places to get information.  Right now, for example, I’m looking into the Australian foster care system and pediatric prosthetics.  Other times, something just perfect pops into your life to solve a research dilemma.

One of those perfect pop-ups happened to me in doing the research for The Texan’s Second Chance.  Since this is the third book set on the Blue Thorn Bison Ranch, I didn’t need to augment much of what I already knew about raising bison.  I am delighted to note, however, that Bison became the Official U.S. Mammal during this series (hooray!).

No, I needed to learn about food trucks.  After all, Jenna comes onto the Blue Thorn Ranch to be the creative chef behind the family’s bison burger food truck.  I love doing food research.  Bison burgers—if you didn’t know—are delicious and very good for you.

One of the questions I always ask my sources is “which movies or TV shows get it right, and which get it wrong?”  Most bakers will tell you their life doesn’t look anything like “Cake Boss,” while a firefighter told me he felt “Ladder 49” nailed it. In the age of DVDs and Netflix, a writer has a host of great info at her fingertips—if she knows what to watch and what to skip.

My food truck source sent me straight to the movie “Chef” to give me a good grounding in the ins and outs of food truck life.  Not only was it a good night’s entertainment—it’s a very good movie even if you aren’t doing research—but I learns tons of stuff and came away with a pile of questions to ask my source.

My favorite reader comment so far was how hungry the book made her for several of the specific dishes mentioned.  It warms a writer’s heart to know my grilled cheese description sent you straight to the kitchen to make one!

How about you?  What’s the most interesting thing you learned from a movie lately?

The Inspiration Behind Identity Withheld

Hi all, Sandra Orchard here. 

I'm often asked what the inspiration behind a book was. For my newest Love Inspired Suspense, Identity Withheld, it was a youtube clip of a firefighter rescuing a cat from an apartment building fire that a writing friend told me about.

 
Since I'd already introduced my hero, Jake Steele, as a firefighter in Perilous Waters (April 2014), I was looking for a plot angle for his book.

The clip spurred the thought: what if the cat's owner was captured in the clip, along with the firefighter, and it was broadcast to millions worldwide? And what if she’s in witness security because criminals are trying to kill her? And what if they recognize her in the clip?

Now...as sometimes happens, my editor asked for edits on my proposed first scene so the cat rescue didn't actually make the final cut, but the idea of the heroine's fear of being caught on camera at the site of the fire is.

Here's a quick glimpse of the plot:

After exposing an illegal adoption ring, newly named “Kara Grant” is promised safety in Witness Protection. But someone has found her—and wants her dead. If only she could trust the handsome firefighter who catches her fleeing from a suspicious fire. Jake Steele suspects she’s guilty of burning her own home. But how can she tell him who she really is and what she’s been through without bringing danger to the widowed father’s door? Yet with the criminals fast closing in, taking such a risk might be her only chance at survival. Because the price she’ll pay for her silence could be her life.

The inspiration for the story didn't stop with the youtube clip. A Facebook fan was the inspiration behind the heroine's new name. One of my readers' memories about her childhood dog inspired the dog Jake's parents adopted for his son.

This fellow I met while out for a walk became the model.

 And... the full page of acknowledgements at the front of the book is testimony to how many professionals I interviewed to ensure I got the details right, and whose answers, in turn, inspired other vignettes.

But besides keeping readers guessing as to who the bad guy is, I hope readers will take away a couple of deeper messages:

That our greatest trials can be blessings in disguise, and we need to trust God even when everything appears grim and out of control.

Also I hope the heroine inspires readers to stay true to the person God made them to be. One astute reviewer, Jesse Patch, pointed out this take away to me. She appreciated how even though Nicole (aka Kara) was told to be a new person, with a new name and a new job and new friends, inside she stayed true to herself. Jesse wrote: “The world tells us from every angle who to be, but [Kara] didn't cave... she couldn't turn her back on who she really was.”

Your Turn:  Have you had a trial that turned out to be a blessing in the end? Please, share it with us.

Sandra Orchard is a multi award-winning author with Love Inspired Suspense and Revell (Port Aster Secrets mystery series). A mother of three grown children, she lives in Niagara, Canada with her real-life-hero husband and writes full time…when not doting on her young grandchildren. 

You can learn more about Sandra’s books and bonus features at www.SandraOrchard.com or connect at www.Facebook.com/SandraOrchard

Old News is Good News

By Keli Gwyn

I'm a newly contracted Love Inspired Historical author smitten with the Victorian Era. I live in the heart of California's Gold Country, where I set my stories.

My historic town of Placerville is home to the state's oldest newspaper. The Mountain Democrat harkens back to 1854.

 
When I began writing my historical romances and delved into research of the area, I learned that our local library has the Mountain Democrat on microfilm dating back to the paper's earliest issues. The day I made that discovery, I felt like I'd hit the Mother Lode. 

 

After a quick refresher in how to use a microfilm reader--a skill I learned in the Dark Ages when I was in high school--I spent several blissful hours scrolling through issues from the 1870s. Time stood still as I jotted page after page of notes.

I set my stories in actual Gold Rush-era towns. By reading the advertisements, announcements and articles in the old issues of the paper, I'm able to add real people, places and events to my stories. 

 

My perusals of the paper have yielded some great finds. I've learned where businesses were located and what they sold; when special events such as balls, concerts and benefits took place and who provided the entertainment; and what first and last names people in this area had in that era.

I'm starting a new story, so guess where I'll be spending some time? Yes. Parked in front of the microfilm reader at the library reading the Mountain Democrat and learning even more about this wonderful area I'm blessed to call home.

❤❤❤

Have you ever used a microfilm (microfiche) reader?

What fun facts have you learned from reading old newspapers?

Research

Pat Davids here.
I almost missed posting today. Goodness, how time gets away from me. I'm deep in new research and I'm having a ball. I'm going to an alpaca farm tomorrow. That's a new one on me. I've only read about these cute camel-like animals. I'm hoping to gather some good pictures and stories I can use in my new book.

I've done a lot of research over the years. It gives me an excuse to travel. I've toured the Commanding General's Mounted Color Guard at Fort Riley, KS. (A cavarly reinactment unit)I've spent the day with a small town sheriff. I've helped burn a pasture in the Flint Hills, and stayed at a seaside B&B in Maine all in the name of sharing my experiences with readers through my books instead of making you watch home movies. I've even visited the Underground Salt Museum in Hutchinson Kansas but I haven't found a way to work that into a story yet.

What are some of the things you enjoy about doing research? One thing I love is dragging my family or a friend along with me. What are some of you pet peeves? I always think of one more question when I'm on my way home.
Pat

Thanksgiving and the Internet

Merrillee here. During this time of year, at least in the United States, we are thinking about being thankful. Thanksgiving is a time to count our blessings. I have many--too many to lists them all. The most important are my faith and my family.

But as a writer, I'm so very thankful for the Internet. Research has become much easier because of the information found there. I can find out hundreds of things just sitting in my chair. For the book I'm working on now, HOMETOWN PROPOSAL (the second book in my Kellerville series), which will be out in August 2010, I've used the Internet to find out about people who work on cruise lines. That is part of my hero and heroine's back story. I've researched things about Cincinnati, Ohio, and the surrounding area because my book is set in an imaginary town in southeastern Ohio close to Cincinnati. I lived in this area over thirty years ago, but I needed more up-to-date information.

There is a two-and-half-year old girl in the story. I needed information about how a child of that age would be talking. There is a site on the Internet for that. I researched toys for children that age. I learned about parade floats because my hero and heroine ride on a float in the town's Fourth of July parade. The heroine's father loves Karaoke, so I studied Karaoke machines and found dozens of songs that my characters could sing.

My hero is in a car accident and breaks his leg. I needed to learn about broken legs. Did you know there are Internet sites where people share their broken leg stories? My characters play wiffle ball on several occasions, so I looked up information about wiffle ball. This was the most entertaining site I found. A guy tells the story of how he came to have a wiffle ball stadium in his yard. I love this story. You can find the story by going to www.youtube and searching for wiffle ball.

What are some of the things you are thankful for? Do you have any interesting Internet sites that you have found?