One of the things I enjoy most about writing is research. I really do love it and I want to make that perfectly clear, because the rest of this post is going to sound like I hate it, but I don’t. It’s just that the more research I do, the more I need work-arounds, good luck, and persistence.
The work-around. Unfortunately, these days, what I learn sticks with me long enough to write the book. Then my brain files it away in some storage cell way in the back and if I’m asked about it, bringing it to the surface can take a great deal of thinking and sorting and squinting and head scratching. That happens a lot because writers are always juggling three books; the one that just came out, the one the writer just finished, and the one the writer is currently working on. Of course, the only ones people can ask questions about are the ones I wrote two or more years ago. In order to trigger my memory, I always keep at least the last three research books handy.
Historical research can involve a good deal of luck. In an older post I told you about researching the Sarah Bernhardt Theater. It was easy enough to visit the theater, but today it looks nothing like it did in 1900. I managed to find photographs of various parts of the theater at the library, but it was just a matter of luck when I found an old film from 1920-something that took the viewer on a tour of the theater. It was exactly what I needed.
I could definitely use that kind of luck again! I’m planning to set my next book at Kensington Palace in London. I’ve been to London a few times, but never visited Kensington Palace. The book has to be set there though, so I’m planning to visit next month and get a look for myself. I’m pretty confident the staterooms have been historically preserved, but Kensington also has several apartments where various royals have lived since Queen Victoria’s time. Every time someone new moved in, they’d change the apartment to their liking and sometimes the renovations were extensive. Two of those apartments will play a role in this story and now I’m digging through everything I can find to see what those apartments looked like in 1901. I’m beginning to doubt that little lightning bolt of luck will strike me a second time, but I haven’t given up yet. We’ll see if my persistence pays off.
