RESEARCHING MY WRITING
AGAINST THE TIDE: THE VALOR OF MARGARET WILSON
Because I am a librarian by profession, I know where to search for generic information. Since I write in several genres, my research follows different patterns. Margaret Wilson’s story is historical fiction, based on the life of a teen martyr in 17th century Scotland. Obviously, that required a different type of research than My Little Book of Bald Eagles or Eye on the Iditarod: Aisling’s Quest, a biographical account of an eleven-year old Maine musher with a lofty goal.
Through nearly forty years of writing, I have learned that research is time-consuming, that one often neglects to take the road she should have taken the first time and time runs out for getting that particular story published. My observations, considerations and conclusions can help you write your historical novel no matter its location or time frame.
First of all, don’t attempt to write about a period of time or an historical person that does not cause you to react emotionally. You may have to spend years gathering sufficient information to write a story that will catch an editor’s eye. If your excitement wanes before you complete the piece, your writing will lose the spark that ignited it.
I first heard of Margaret Wilson when I was proofreading for a now defunct publishing company. I was awed by her unshakeable faith that enabled her to die a martyr’s death at the age of seventeen. I couldn’t get her out of my mind. It was at least thirty years after I first read the inscription from her grave marker in a Scots kirkyard that my novel was published. Since I was writing about a foreigner living in her native land, it was a challenge to make the story authentic.
1 Comments on Researching My Writing with Award-winning Author Hope Irvin Marston, last added: 2/5/2012
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That's an interesting story about the 1897 source that turned out to be so fl of false information. Thanks for such a good example of why we need to be on our guard. @Aline Alexander Newman