Questions about how to conduct research, and how to incorporate your research into your writing.
12
votes
7answers
286 views
Should you read your own genre?
In terms of novel writing, I tend to avoid my own genre, at least for the most part. Some of the reasons why:
Genre Blindness / Genre Trap:
Too much reading of your own genre blinds you to the ...
9
votes
2answers
1k views
Citing parts of a thesis or dissertation using IEEE referencing
I truly hope I'm not asking this question in the wrong place.
I've found myself extensively referencing parts of theses and dissertations for my own research paper. [The IEEE editorial style ...
8
votes
5answers
831 views
What is a good methodology for researching a historical novel?
I'm having difficulty with the research aspect of my historical novel. This question was originally going to be "how much research should one do to write a historical novel?" to which, answering my ...
7
votes
6answers
201 views
How deeply should I study the background of a community before writing about it?
By "background", I mean the dialects, habits and culture of the community. Also, I wonder if it is even possible to write about a community without being a part of it?
I am only asking this in terms ...
5
votes
2answers
241 views
How do you come up with a fictional character name in a historical era/region?
How do you research to find character names? Especially when it's long ago, not European, and the culture was totally different from what the region has now. For example, how would you generate names ...
5
votes
2answers
235 views
How do I find good interview subjects?
I have an idea for a series of science articles, but I don't have a strong background in the particular field.
What's a good way to identify experts who I could interview to shore up the details and ...
5
votes
1answer
102 views
Researching sensitive subjects
How do you research subjects for a novel that might be sensitive? Both cultural and jurisdictional.
Example: I usually try to "research" the setting and characters for my texts from real life. When I ...
5
votes
1answer
78 views
Are there online research resources that cater to writers?
I tend to run into a bunch of domain-specific questions when I'm writing, such as:
What happens to a jet flying at low altitude, at super-sonic speeds, when its cockpit gets breached?
What's the ...
3
votes
2answers
314 views
How to convert DOI to citation information
The DOI website will redirect to the article webpage on the journal official website. Is there is a public automated system to translate DOI to citation information?
This can be beneficial for ...
3
votes
3answers
139 views
Picture-based Identification Dictionary
A long time ago, I dropped by a session of a creative writing course where the teacher brought a lot of reference books. One of them was a lovely picture/sketch-based identification dictionary. There ...
2
votes
3answers
113 views
Troubles with unfamiliar locations and settings based in the real world
I have a question: is it hard to write about a foreign country/place?
I know that Dostoevsky was Russian, his themes and settings were inspired or entirely based by Russia/the Russian culture.
But I ...
2
votes
1answer
125 views
I cannot determine my Protagonist's work-life. Any help?
My protagonist works in a pharma company and I really don't have a clue about how they work, what kind of a life they live and all.
It is required for the plot to make him work in a company which ...
2
votes
1answer
73 views
Structure for computer science research paper
I'm writing my first undergraduate research paper for computer science and I think my lack of experience is starting to get on my supervisor's nerves. I've written a program that collects video ...
1
vote
3answers
84 views
How should I begin my research for my Military Fiction?
Where can I learn about the voice procedures, military jargons, submarine communications and politics involved in navy?
1
vote
1answer
66 views
Find Information For Describing A Nuclear Power Plant
I want to start my story connecting the government flaws to the main characters life before he was even born. I thought since the settings a somewhat Communist United Soviet United government, A ...
1
vote
2answers
202 views
Self-contained software environment for authoring research papers
Does a self-contained environment for authoring research papers exist? Clearly, the concept might be a little unclear, so here's an attempt to better define what I mean:
All sources used would be ...
1
vote
1answer
79 views
Can anyone direct me to writers' resources on AI or robotic ethics? [closed]
I am in the process of writing a science fiction novel that will involve a large quantity and variety of synthetic life forms. I have been highly influenced by the works of Asimov, and while I may ...
1
vote
0answers
54 views
Steven Johnson's DevonThink writing workflow: is creating & accumulating 50-500 word snippets worth the effort?
Steven Berlin Johnson talks in this much cited article about his research workflow using DevonThink. In short, he advocates for creating 50-500 word focused text snippets from your research readings ...
1
vote
0answers
79 views
Looking for story that deliberately overused “get” [closed]
It was in Writer's Digest, probably the early 1980s, when I saw this. One of the regular columnists (or was it an irregular columnist?) went on a brief rant about careless writers overusing the word ...
0
votes
4answers
51 views
Do I include the method of my research in the title?
For my Masters Thesis, I am trying to find an appropriate title. The field of the research is in Forestry and Geographic Information Science (GIS).
Currently my title is the following:
...
0
votes
1answer
41 views
What types of research do writers do in advance of writing? [closed]
I'm trying to determine how universal story research is, and to what extent writers actually do research vs making everything up from personal experience and imagination.
I know writing is a very ...
0
votes
0answers
127 views
Crystal Question [closed]
I am researching for a book and need a convincing description of how to combine the properties of citrine and lapis lazuli. Is it possible? What would the finished product look like? What kind of ...
-1
votes
2answers
121 views
What help is there for a technical reseacher/writer that can't edit?
I've got a personal professional goal - I want to write a thesis, build a system, change the world. That's my way of saying that my thesis needs to be something I can develop into a functional system, ...
-2
votes
1answer
135 views
How to write an academic paper?
I'm looking for resources on how to write an academic paper. The Web really lacks of those.
Edit: Standback's and A. Martin's answers perfectly illustrates what I expect.
-4
votes
0answers
25 views
Mumbo Jumbo, Ishmael Reed [closed]
I need a thesis on my paper. It's basically about the dualism between the old and new (religions) , anyone?
