Since I’ve had a few people in my life ask me whether I have to do any research before writing “one of those” books, I thought I’d answer the question here.
Yes, even authors of the smuttiest smutfest have to do some research sometimes.
And no, not just that kind.
Though I am now aware of the fact that there are animal-themed dildos out there…
Anyway, that research was accidental, but a lot of the rest of what I’ve needed to look up was something I needed to understand.
- How long can a person be submerged in water without negative effects?
- Where in the world are there islands with lagoons? Is that place LGBT-friendly? What’s the political climate like there?
- Can a yacht have a saltwater pool?
- Can one person sail a yacht of significant size by himself?
- Find a yacht floor plan
- How deep can a person dive safely?
- Where in the Pacific Ocean is the shipping traffic routinely lighter?
Though the first two questions were ones I needed to answer while plotting, the rest have come up while I’ve been writing. I guess that’s because I’m something of a pantster/plotter hybrid. I know where I want to go, but I don’t know all the details until I’m on the road.
I’ve found all my answers online and honestly have to give a shout-out to Quora and all the fine folks over there who are willing to ask and answer all kinds of questions. I mean, a guy who builds yachts and had actually built a saltwater pool into one answered that question! I’d be hard-pressed to find an answer with that much authority anywhere else.
And yes, I know I’m writing a smutty little romance about a mersquid whose ancestors built Atlantis, but I’m only going to make up those parts. Fiction still needs to be based on fact, so the details matter.
Even if it means finding out how long a squid’s schlong is.