Onsite Research

In my school visits, I always talk about how I research for any new project. And sure, there is Google Maps and there are so many awesome resources on the Internet, an author could sit at home and do all the possible research needed for any project. Right?

Technically yes. But what extra benefits are there to be gained by actually getting out and seeing various places? I’ll give you two reasons:

1) The Five Senses

2) Those Extra Details

Okay, let’s start with the five senses, and for grin’s sake, let’s pick a sewage treatment plant as our perfect place to research. Most sewage treatment plants have websites complete with an overview of what happens after the flush. But if you ever get a chance to tour a sewage treatment plant, I totally recommend it.

Yes, there is the smell. And it smells; there is no getting around that. And what better way for your characters to know exactly how it smells than to actually smell it yourself? And to see the frothy water bubbling in the first stage. And here’s a little known fact about this initial, untreated sewage: they pump so much air into the stuff that not even the best swimmer could swim out. They’d sink right to the bottom. Hmmm…I’m thinking murder mystery here.

So that’s a nice segway into the second point I want to make: Those extra details. The fact that even a duck would sink in the water is an extra detail. So is visiting Washington DC on the 3rd of July and seeing hundreds of port-a-potties lined up. These are extra details simple web research won’t get you (unless of course you’re reading this blog post; then you have the info).

So grab your camera, make your plans, and get out and do some research.

PJ Hoover—who takes her camera everywhere