Writer's Secret Joy: Research

by Joanne Rock

One of the real joys of writing is the research. Sometimes it can slow us down when we need to check and recheck mundane points to be sure we haven’t made an error. But for the most part, writers choose settings, historical periods, and concepts that intrigue them so that researching a book winds up being really fun.

When I wrote historical romance, I always chose the time periods that appealed to me. I am fascinated by all things medieval and could have gladly spent decades researching castles, gowns, and court intrigue. These days, as I write more contemporary stories, I still choose to set the books in places and within professional realms that interest me. Never has this been more true than for my current release, The Magnate’s Mail-Order Bride, set in the world of professional dance.

What beauty and grace! There is so much talent, work and fierce competitiveness here. And on occasion, a sort of “court intrigue” all its own. Take for example the scandal in the Bolshoi Ballet four years ago when a bitter soloist dancer conspired in an attack on the ballet’s artistic director. The director lost most sight in one eye when acid was thrown in his face by an assailant in dark parking lot. Those stories are, of course, well outside the norm for dance. But they hint at the passionate commitment and emotion behind the most successful companies.

I watched one beautiful dance clip after another on You Tube for the sake of breathing life into my

The Rose Adagio

heroine, Sofia Koslov. I studied the differences between ballet schools and dancing styles, as well as the way individual dances impose their artistic interpretation on famous dances. I spent half a day watching the most famous ballerinas in the world perform the Rose Adagio- Aurora’s entrance dance in Sleeping Beauty. There are commentaries on the performances too, so you can learn why each is unique or particularly talented. I was captivated!

Another important facet for the book was discovering what a dancer’s day to day life is like. For this, I was very grateful for the video content on the New York City Ballet’s website. In addition to dance clips and rehearsal clips, there are snippets of dancers talking about their tours, pre-show rituals, falls, aspirations and much more. If you visit, just click on some of the individual dancer names and look for their “Screen Test” video. Very fun.

But sooner or later, the research must come to an end and all the new knowledge needs to funnel into a book. It’s difficult to turn off the information-gathering quest, but when we begin to use it to bring to life the world we’ve learned about, it becomes really rewarding. With any luck, the writer brings to life the research for the reader in a newly enjoyable way.

***What’s your favorite dance scene in a movie? I’m partial to Danny Kaye and Vera Ellen’s “The Best Things Happen While You’re Dancing” in White Christmas! Share yours on the blog and I’ll give one random poster an advance copy of my upcoming Harlequin Desire, His Accidental Heir. 

The unexpected consequences of research...

I'm writing a book - nothing new about that, it will be my 66th for Harlequin Romance. There was a time when if I wanted to know anything I went to the library and either spent a few hours in the reference section or brought a pile of books home.

Barbara Cartland once said that she read twenty books for background research for every one she wrote. I've certainly come close, not only writing about somewhere I haven't actually been, but even when I'm writing about somewhere I've been more than once.

These days it's all so much easier.

My hero owns a fleet of commercial aircraft (not that big but it was the only picture of an aircraft I have a licence for).

I needed to get a feel for them, what they carry and so I Google aircraft of all shapes and sizes. I have to create a fictional range of aircraft so I need to check out my ideas against what models are already in production. Cats of all sizes are very popular, I discovered. I need to know how fast they fly and some information on how many hours you have to fly to maintain your licence. Actually I didn't need that last one in the end but a lovely man from a flying school took the time to explain it all to me.

I needed a Mediterranean island to inspire the creation of a brand new kingdom and spent several delightful hours surfing through Pinterest and the 'net.

I needed a villa by the sea, a very special beach, a hot spring and it's all but a click away.

I'm writing a paragraph and I need to work out when my heroine's baby is due. I Google a "due date calculator", check the size of the embryo and Bob, as they say, is your uncle. Not mine, actually. I had a James, a Charlie, a Harold, a Victor and an Albert. No Robert.

So these days, when I pop over to Facebook, because that's what you do when the word flow stops and the brain needs time to download the ideas as that have lurking in the back of the brain, the 'bots have been knocking themselves out. Along with the usual ads offering me courses on how to sell my books and grow my email lists, I have advertisements offering me pregnancy "counselling", nursery furniture, Italian holidays, villa rentals and light aircraft.

Life, as they say, is never dull!

Food and Travel and 'The Sinner's Marriage Redemption' - Annie West

If you know me you'll also know that some of my favourite things are food, travel and romances. What's not to like? So it's with great pleasure that I share the news my latest romance, THE SINNER'S MARRIAGE REDEMPTION, is on sale now. It's one of a collection called the Seven Sexy Sins! Yes a book for each sin. I'm thrilled by this story. Writing it was fun and challenging too as it's different from any romance I've written. it definitely had a different vibe when I wrote it and redeeming a hero with Flynn's particular hangups was a fun challenge. But I fell for him along the way, which made it far easier. One of the great things about this story was the fact that I got to do some wonderful research for the book which included travel to a place I've always wanted to visit, and of course the chance to taste some local treats. What could be better? So strap on your seatbelts ready for a little armchair travelling and tasting.

First up though, here's a taste of what the story is about. 

A merciless mission  

There are three goals self-made magnate Flynn Marshall set out to achieve:

1. A multimillion-dollar business empire

2. Acceptance in the highest echelons of society

3. A wife to make him the envy of all men!

Flynn’s ruthlessly accomplished his first goal and he’s on his way to the second. As for the third, he will rush stunning, well-connected Ava Cavendish to the altar at the first opportunity. A trophy bride should complete his plans, but passionate Ava and the desire she inflames in this untouchable CEO threaten to turn his carefully ordered strategy on its head…

 

And now to the travel. I've posted the Australian cover here as it includes a location shot. It's a bit hard to make out but do you recognise this gorgeous European city?

 

Okay, that was a tough one. The city is Prague in the Czech Republic - filled to the brim with quaint buildings and bridges, spectacular views and a river that turns the red roofed city into something quite special. The first part of THE SINNER'S MARRIAGE REDEMPTION is set in Prague. In fact every scene is based on somewhere I visited! Here's a quick peek of the town hall square from the top of the clock tower.

 

And here's proof that I was there. This is on the long, hot walk up to the citadel. No, that's not red wine I'm drinking, but cherry juice.

 



 

One of the local treats on offer was this spiral of deep fried potato. If only the weather had been cold I'd have been tempted. But I visited in a heatwave. I'll have to go back in winter when I hear the city is just gorgeous too.

 

That didn't stop me from trying the hot dishes on offer at night. Here's my first evening meal in Prague - pork with sauerkraut, two sorts of dumpling and a local beer. The Czechs really love their dumplings!

 



 And of course I needed to try the local version of a kebab in a cellar restaurant! I must admit though that the size of the serve surprised me.

But one of the best things about Prague in warm weather is the ice cream, often with fruit. Sigh. This was at a pavement café in Wenceslas Square and it tasted as good as it looks.

 

Do you have a favourite food or drink treat for summer? I'd love to hear.

It's winter in Australia now but I'll store up suggestions for the warmer months.

 

If you want to see more photos of Prague, drop by my website and you'll find some of the places that inspired the book on the page for THE SINNER'S MARRIAGE REDEMPTION. There's also a contest running till 10th August with chances to win signed books.

 

And if you want to snaffle a copy of my Sinner, here are a couple of links to buy:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Book Depository

Kobo

Harlequin





ALL IN THE NAME OF RESEARCH

As writers we get to do lots of things in the name of book research.

Some of those things fall into the category of "work." Hunting down people with certain expertise who are willing to talk to you after you tell them you're writing a book (these folks usually fall into two categories, those who are totally enamored with the idea of helping contribute to a work of fiction; and those who eye you suspiciously, looking for how you might be conning them.) Combing through thousands of websites on Google searches (at least this work pays off when the ten-thousandth one yields the tiny nugget of information you've been looking for).

Some of those things fall into the category of a good excuse to read a dozen books about a topic you've recently discovered fascinates you.

Some fall into the catetory of a really good excuse to travel to a location in order to breathe the air and walk the ground of the place your setting your book. I've used this one several times; but I'm thinking my next locale needs to be something tropical and exotic and unaffordable.

There are those that we do just because we need to see the colors as a gasoline fire burns, or understand jus thow dark the woods are at night and feel the sting of branches and stab of rough ground on our bare feet as we try to run through the woods in the middle of the night (yes, this was me working on PITCH BLACK -- don't tell my husband, or he'll start locking me in at night).

And then there are those that lead us to places totally unexpected, have us doing things we never imagined we would. I had the fabulous experience of working with Indiana Task Force 1, FEMA search and rescue dog team. Oh my gosh, those dogs are amazing. Their handlers are so dedicated, most of them train more than one weekend a month (this is a for-the-love-of-it occupation). After my initial observation of their training (in the fifty degree rain, in a dangerously overgrown and landfilled gravel pit they aptly call Devil's Den), my daughter and I volunteered to be "victims" for their traning exercises. What an experience! We slipped into crevaces in this huge pile of concrete rubble and the SAR teams were shuttled to the site in a Blackhawk helicopter (so the dogs could get used to flying right before they had to work). These dogs work on scent alone -- just looking at you isn't reason for them to alert, they have to smell you. Talk about dicipline. I was in a place where the rescuers actually had to send in a tiny camera to see me once the dogs said I was there. They found me all but one time. They found my daughter every time -- and this is a n area that covers acres and acres!

I wonder where my writing research will lead me next?

How about you other writers out there? Any unique experiences you want to share? Fabulous castles in Scotland? Riding in a fighter jet? Touring the AFT or FBI facility?