Fact Checker and Research Assistant
Everyone has their own process for writing a novel. This is mine, based on research, on advice from authors, agents, editors, and designers, and on experimentation and experience. Much of it applies (often on a smaller scale) to producing and publishing short stories, poetry, magazine articles, and non-fiction books.
This blog builds on the previous four, and covers using a fact checker and research assistant (FCARA). (Don't bail; this matters in fiction as much as anything else!) I originally planned to write about working with editors, but I'm pantsing these blogs like I do my novels. If this derails your brain, you may need a different blogger. Previous blogs in this series are listed at the end.
I do most of my own research, at least the things I think to research. And I check on facts- the facts I think to check on. But we all have blind sides, and the more we invest in our work, the closer we get to it, the easier it is to miss things. Unless you are a trained professional in whatever you are writing about, it's good to have a second pair of eyeballs attached to a detail-oriented brain.
This is different than an early reader, although the same person may serve both functions. The FCARA reads the book with an eye toward consistency and detail, verifying facts and consistency. Here's a list of what I expect from my FCARA; as you can see, this applies just as much to my novels as it would to a serious history.
a list of characters for each of: humans, dragons, anything else with a name (or that should have one) with basic information about them:
dragon info (minimum)
hide and eye colors if known
relationship to any others
if part of special group (e.g., old or new group of eldest)
relationship to known humans
other characteristics
other history
key places they appear in story
human/faerie info (minimum)
known visual characteristics
ancestry
interesting facts
dragons interacted with
key places they appear in story
relationships (dragon or human)
etc.
a list of places mentioned and most important events there
a list of dragon swords and basic information about them (wielders, dragons they did or did not vanquish, history, anything else special)
a timeline
a list of names or words for which pronunciation should be provided (even if listed in previous books)
a list of words for which definitions should be provided (even if listed in previous books)
verification that real places are indeed in the right places
verification that distances and travel times make sense
list of noticed inconsistencies (being in two places at once, time of year not matching time passed, modern language use, etc.)
You might engage the FCARA before you engage early readers, at the same time, or after. The first time, I brought someone in fairly late because I was afraid I would have to rewrite a lot based on reader feedback. By the last two novels, I planned to engage at the same time since I had more confidence in the state of things. Since my FCARA was also an early reader, they read the book as a reader, then went into FCARA mode.
With my series, I started each book's FCARA cycle with the existing FCARA files; this kept consistency across the series and eliminated redundancy even when I had to change FCARAs due to my first FCARA's overloaded schedule. Keep these in whatever works for you and your FCARA: text files, Office documents, Google docs, Pinterest, spreadsheets, a database, index cards, or parchment scrolls.
I pay my FCARA. If I couldn't afford to, I would find something to trade; perhaps doing this for another writer who did it for me. It's real work.
Pro tip: Use Google MyMaps to check routes, travel times, terrain, ground cover, etc. Find or add places, notes on places or trips, and more.
Next week: The editor is your manuscript's BFF, second only to you. No, really. [Take II]
Part 1: The first draft Part 2: Early edits and rewrites Part 3: Finding and engaging early readers Part 4: The early reader experience Image: Rube Goldberg device, public domain. Copyright 2019 Miles O'Neal, Round Rock, TX. All rights reserved.