The other day, I was reading
I, Robot and thinking to myself, 'you know, writing a story about robots in my own perspective would be interesting', but also thought about the complexity of such an expansive topic. So it started the cogs in my brain, and I was thinking of a way to, as a writer, gain access to a wealth of knowledge centering around a particular subject, time period, or other aspect without having to Google a multitude of times and fail.
My solution? A Wiki. Now, I know you're thinking, 'but Wikipedia itself is a gigantic database of information--couldn't you just use that?' A valid question, and one I considered myself. But the fact remains: pure information, while extraordinarily helpful, is not a writers only means. I was thinking that, rather than just a site full of facts about particular events, people, items, and whatnot, this Wiki would feature complete chronologies about time periods, customs, cultures--hell, it could even act as a tome of writing techniques and the like. Aside from just the facts (which would
try to be all-inclusive; i.e.: a labeled diagram of a castle, below a description of each item, and then perhaps a user-created list of terms and vocabulary associated with castles, and not to mention a resource link which allows for easy access to resources on, say, knights and kings), the site would also feature user testimonies and experiences. If you had a certain experience with the subject at hand, you could easily share a personal experience to perhaps further the depth and give the writer inspiration.
That is sort of the barebones outline I've created in my mind. Whether or not this would work really depends on my (and of course others who already hold the knowledge) dedication to such a project. Personally, I find myself at odds while writing, because, while I'm not a fact-based person and would much prefer to create my own government and military than base it on a pre-existing one, the fact remains that you cannot rewrite science, and it's difficult to convincingly write about jobs you have never experienced. Think of it as a sort of an all-inclusive writer's tome, at first established to provide reliable background information and terminology on as many subjects as possible.
P.S.: I'm sure there will be many a skeptics concerning this topic, but I'm going to stand my ground. It will take time and effort, and aside from that, it will take a while before it builds a material base, but if anyone is willing to help me, I will gladly accept. If anyone professes interest, I'll get to work on uploading and creating the Wiki, and then post information regarding the requirements for becoming an administrator.
I'd have liked to place this in a more highly populated forum, but I suppose 'Research' is the only suitable one. If perhaps you'd like to encourage a growth of interest in this project, feel free to move it to an area with more traffic.
