monkey_nuts65

Hi,

I am currently writing my dissertation for university and would be grateful if you could help me out. I am looking into how writers research forensic information for their crime stories etc, how they make sure the information is totally accurate, and how they go about finding information which is hard to locate.

Even if forensic research doesn't apply to you then could you still complete my poll because it would help me a lot.

Many thanks,
Jamie

Shaun1138

hi Jamie,


it's hard to complete the poll because writers have to use possibly most or all of them.
anyway......
as you will know, you can't research without cross referencing and making sure the information collated is correct. any information off internet sites must be checked, unless the site is a government (.gov etc..) site for instance, even then the information has to be checked to see if there have been any updates. even so, the internet is a fantastic resource for research material.

you will also find that people can be more helpful than you initially think. calling people on the phone or emailing them gets me most results, then i cross reference them with someone else etc.. at the end of the day, whatever you're researching it always comes down to one thing..'who would know that', then follow the lead, so to speak.

Stephen King admits to knowing nothing at all about guns, he asks his friend, who is an expert, for advice.

recently i done an article on what effect a certain inhibiter drug would have on patients with long term amyloidosis. first thing i done was to think who would know more about that than anyone else in England. i went to them and after interviewing them and getting what i needed, i then cross referenced it with information received from a leading American doctor. both results made the feature.


if i were to do something on forensics, i would do my best to speak to someone who has first hand knowledge.

obviously different writers have different ways of doing things and not all research needs to be interview based. dependent on topic, you may only need to open the correct book or web page, but whatever information you get you should always make sure that it is true...if you want to avoid some lawsuit that is.

S.

monkey_nuts65

Many thanks for your reply Shaun, it will help me no end when I come to writing my final piece.

I realised about the problem with the poll as soon as I posted it, too late then tho I suppose, so in order to overcome that problem could you just state the methods that you use in order to access the information you require and say which you find the most successful. This would be a huge help.

Thanks again,
Jamie

Nimbus1944

Hi Jamie,

I'm not quite sure if you're looking for data on forensics (legal matters) or forensic science (autopsy, CSI, chemical analysis, etc.).

On the latter, I reviewed my stories (all lowly fanfic, all published on the web, and not requiring the "totally accurate"), listed typical science items that played a part, and noted where I had researched each. Mostly all were from the Internet or books, sometimes both, but primarily Internet.

Examples of my lookups:
- use of eye drops on tranquilized animals
- effects and recovery time for a "mild concussion"
- late-August temperatures in London
- safety of drinking stream water near farms
- the contents of leather polish
- botanical descriptions
- bruises on a strangulation survivor
- effects of short-term starvation
- local sunset times in Scotland

Living away from a major city, I don't have a super-library at hand, but the Internet has usually come through -- on anything from chess notation to Icelandic, to a description of a Cornwall shoreline, to the construction of an 1880s bowling ball.

If I were writing "totally accurate" pieces, I would assuredly go to libraries to block it out, as a first step, but then to archives and experts for first-hand research.

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Forgetting to live, it seems;
Nor would it be right to dwell on life
And yet forget our dreams.
-If There Were No Magicians

monkey_nuts65

Thanks for your help Nimbus1944. It's interesting to hear how different people go about carrying out their research.

How would you feel if you read a book which stated something which you knew to be inaccurate? Would you find yourself wanting to stop reading the book or wouldn't you mind?

Also if there was only one way of researching information which would you prefer, the Internet, books, interviews etc?

Many thanks again,
Jamie

Nimbus1944

If it was isolated errors, I'd be cautious, but I wouldn't toss the book. If it seemed to me that the overall content was undependable, or it didn't provide good citations on dubious conclusions, I'd drop it, of course.

Examples: on the Internet, Wikipedia is interesting reading, but since anyone can "correct" the online text, it's not a sure source at all. On TV, I've seen errors here and there in History Channel programming, but nothing fatal. A particular book on the origins of sayings leaves me unconvinced too often (even though it was written by a well-known dictionary editor), so I personally wouldn't cite it, but I read it.

You can't flip-flop your statements as easily when they're preserved in print, but interviews and official records are the best "primary source". The Internet is probably the fastest.

__________________
It wouldn't be right to dream, while
Forgetting to live, it seems;
Nor would it be right to dwell on life
And yet forget our dreams.
-If There Were No Magicians

mammamaia

internet and books... and sometimes films

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