iStockphoto.com
Jan. 24, 2007
From Research to Communication
In the last challenge, "A Writer's Homework," we looked at how to research an idea that might become a science fiction story. Many writers [puts up hand] are guilty of loving the research stage. Sometimes it's hard to stop. After all, learning cool new stuff is not only easier than writing about it—it's fun! So how do we know when we have the information we need to communicate an idea?
One answer is that you start finding the same information wherever you look. It becomes harder and more time-consuming to learn new details. At this point, if you're confident enough to write, it's better to do so.
Another answer? For me, research switches to writing when I feel confident enough to put characters to work in the story. I keep looking for information, but more and more, my time is spent using it.
The truth? Research never completely ends. Once you start writing, you simply focus on more specific things. For example, in my last novel, I was writing along happily until I hit a place where I needed to describe what you'd see in images sent by a robotic camera going underwater. In a freshwater lake, not an ocean. To make this believable, I took some time to search for relevant images. While I can—and did—use my imagination to dream up advanced cameras and robots, what there is to see wouldn't change. How far down does sunlight reach in a body of water such as Lake Superior? That tells me when the robot would switch on lights. How murky or clear would the water be? That tells me how far away something could be seen. These are questions I wanted to answer before I wrote the scene. Why? So readers believe what I write. They enjoy and understand the story because I do my homework first.
Here's a trick I've used before to find out if I know enough about a science idea to begin using it in a story.
Challenge: You Know Your Stuff When . . .
It's pretty simple. In fact, you've heard it from your teachers many times. They aren't wrong, by the way. You own an idea or a piece of information when you can tell others about it in your own words and they understand. Communication really is key. Try this.
- Take a science textbook and go to the glossary of terms in the back. Close your eyes and use your finger to pick a term at random. What is it?
- Using the technique from the last challenge (see "A Writer's Homework"), explore this term and the idea behind it. What questions do you have? What more would you like to know? Research until you feel confident you can explain the meaning of this term.
- Find a person who doesn't know the term. Explain the meaning of the term to this person in your own words. Try to use words that make sense to him or her. You can use your voice, but no images or drawings in your explanation. This is all about your ability to communicate with words. Let that person ask you questions, if necessary, to clarify the idea. If you can't answer any of these questions, go back and do more research.
- When you're finished, have the person explain the term to a third person while you listen. This will give you a good sense of how successful you were at explaining this idea. What could you do to improve your explanation?
This week's recommended scifi books
Art gallery
Talk Back:
Do you have any comments about this challenge? Send them
to us using the form below.
|
SNK RSS Feed 
