Oh Look, It’s Shiny!


patent-cat-300x201 Author's Blog If you’ve seen those clips of cats chasing a laser light, you know what I mean. Oh look! It’s shiny. No matter what is in front of them, they will chase the shiny thing. That’s me.

I write historical romance, and research is a given. In my case the dollop of history is a bit heavier than in some romance writers’ playbooks, but that may be an excuse. I begin to pursue information for a particular situation, to understand, for example, the government of East India Company and the  territories they controlled in India. Once I begin, though, and when faced with piles of interesting facts, I will chase first one thing, then another, then another, wandering farther and farther from my original question, until I look up and hours have passed.  When it comes to productivity, this is a big weakness.

Sigh. Back to work. Oh look—did you know intermarriage declined sharply in Bengal in the 1830s? I wonder why? (Wanders off muttering to herself)

11 thoughts on “Oh Look, It’s Shiny!

  1. You might find William Dalrymple’s book “The white Mughals” extremely informative on this point as well as a fascinating read.

  2. Squirrel! I swear I spend half a day every day muttering that to myself by how often I get distracted by the little shiny things. Great post!

  3. Not a weakness at all. That’s the fun of research. That fact that you are curious and want to understand every detail, every road traveled, and every connection I think is a real strength. It helps build worlds, and think through all the connections we need to make when crafting a story. Cool post.

  4. I don’t know why intermarriage declined sharply in Bengal in the 1830s, but I know why marriage and childbirth declined in the 1840s. Everyone was too busy researching the mysteries of the previous decade.

  5. Remember the days when you had to *shudder* actually go to a library to research? I was the one surrounded with tall stacks of books on a variety of topics, so I feel your pain. Love of learning is never a weakness!

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Caroline Warfield, Author

Email : info@carolinewarfield.com