Omnimystery News is delighted to welcome Kate Carlisle as our guest blogger. The third mystery in her bibliophile series, The Lies That Bind (Signet Mass Market Paperback, November 2010, 978-0-451-23169-7), publishes next Tuesday (but is available to pre-order).
Today, Kate advises us to write what you know or know what you write.
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Photo provided courtesy of Kate Carlisle
Perhaps the most basic advice to writers is to write what you know. The reasoning behind this advice is sound: When a reader catches a factual mistake, she is yanked quite cruelly from the story. The mistake is a violation of the reader’s trust, and it may prevent him from ever fully trusting that author again.
Neophytes may find this advice limiting.
“I’m a plumber from Dubuque,” a new writer might say. “Does that mean I’m only supposed to write about plumbers from Dubuque? How boring!”
That’s looking at the adage the wrong way. Try turning it on its head. If you don’t want to write what you already know, then you damn well better know what you write. Research, research, research.
Immerse yourself in your character’s world. If your protagonist is a plumber from Dubuque, then you’d better know the difference between a slip joint and an air lock. (Full disclosure: I had to Google plumbing terms to come up with that comparison. But then, I’ve never written a plumber.)
Primary research is best.
If you’re writing police procedurals, don’t rely on Law & Order reruns for your facts. Interview real-life cops, get a police scanner, scour public arrest records, go on a ride-along if you can. Ask a cop to read your first draft so he can point out any errors that slip through.
If your hero is a private eye, find a local detective who will let you shadow him for a week or two. Ask if you can lend a hand on some of the cases so you can learn how the internet searches work.
My heroine’s field is somewhat more esoteric. Brooklyn Wainwright, the star of my Bibliophile Mysteries series, is a professional bookbinder. When she stumbles across a dead body – as she is wont to do – it’s okay if she does something to mess up the crime scene. She’s not a cop; she’s not expected to know what to do when someone is murdered.
But when she’s teaching a class in her field, I’d better get my facts straight. There are far fewer bookbinders in the world than there are cops, but they’re a passionate, well educated lot who love to read. So I’m always honored to hear from a bookbinder who says I captured the details accurately, both of the bookbinding process and of the world of bookbinding and its internal politics.
I’ve held many careers in my life, from TV game show producer to legal secretary, and while I’ve taken bookbinding classes for years, I’ve never worked as a professional bookbinder. But I did not let the “write what you know” advice limit me. Instead, I chose to “know what I write.” I took more advanced classes on bookbinding and interviewed my professional bookbinder friends, heard the terms of art from their lips. I used the tools of the trade, felt their heft in my hand. I learned what bookbinders value and got more than an earful of the “local gossip,” as it were.
If you feel inspired to write a story set in a world that’s far removed from your own, go for it. When you don’t want to write what you already know, then learn everything you can so you will know what you write.
For writers: What is the simplest yet most profound piece of writing advice you’ve ever received? How do you put it into practice?
For readers (and aren’t we all?): What are some of the amateur sleuth series that you have enjoyed reading?
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A lifelong love of old books and an appreciation of the art of bookbinding led Kate to create the Bibliophile Mysteries, featuring rare book expert Brooklyn Wainwright, whose bookbinding and restoration skills invariably uncover old secrets, treachery and murder. Kate is a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers and Romance Writers of America. She loves to drink good wine and watch other people cook. For more information, visit her website at KateCarlisle.com.
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About The Lies That Bind: Book restoration expert Brooklyn Wainwright returns home to San Francisco to teach a bookbinding class. Unfortunately, the program director Layla Fontaine is a horrendous host who pitches fits and lords over her subordinates. But when Layla is found shot dead, Brooklyn is bound and determined to investigate -- even as the killer tries to close the book on her for good.
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