My research blog

Another update coming soon...

2008-10-06T11:41:00.000-07:00

This time, a review of a new book inventory programme, All My Books.

Stay tuned.

Teresa

At long last, an update...

2007-07-05T09:51:00.001-07:00

I really should try to update this blog more often. I love to research and have so many resources, it's just getting them all together to post here that's the problem.

Here in BC, the ILL system is fantastic. You search on Outlook , then you can request to have anything you want sent to you at your local library, as long as it's in the Outlook system. Very cool. I've found lots of great resources using this system and the ILL library at my local branch is very helpful.

Do you have any resources close to home you find especially useful?

Teresa

Tags: research, library, inter-library+loan

Researching Historic Buildings in the British Isles

2006-02-23T10:14:00.000-08:00

Researching Historic Buildings in the British Isles

This is an amazing resource!!! Thanks to the World History Blog for pointing the way :-)

Teresa

Search engines...

2006-01-27T06:58:00.000-08:00

Someone sent me an email the other day, asking for my help with finding more specific search engines - academic ones and the like. I went a searchin' and came up with these:

Here are a few more sites for you:

EEVL's Ejournal Search Engines

A Collection of Special Search Engines from the University of Leiden Library

Guide to Academic Search Engines at SearchAbility

Academic Search Engines at Search Engine Colussus

Montgomery County Public Schools School Library Guide to Search Engines

Academic Search Engine Links at William Woods University Library

Academic and Scholarly Search Engines at the University of Kansas Library

Librarian Robert Teeter's list of online Indexes

Academic Search Engines from the Louisiana State University Library

Those of you with a real love for research will want to poke around Robert Teeter's site a little more. He has loads of info there. He seems to update pretty frequently, always a good sign.

Enjoy!

Teresa

My Research List

2006-01-11T22:03:00.000-08:00

The Research List is part of the First Draft in 30 Days method of outlining a novel. I worked on it yesterday and came up with lots of things I'll need to look into during my Research week:

Title: Henri's book

Material to research for the book:

1. suburbs of Paris - names, size etc.

2. Louis XV's relationship with his nobles

3. Maria Leszczynska - when she came to Paris, who came with her etc.

4. the publishing business in late 18th century France

5. Normandy and Brittany - weather/roads/towns & villages etc

6. English women travellers in France during the Revolution

7. Salons during the Rev - esp that of Helen Williams

8. education in France in the 18th century - what schools for young men existed? what were women taught?

9. clothing/furniture/food etc - you already know a fair amount, but more would be helpful

10. see if you can find anything more about spies, both English and French, during the Revolution

11. Paris in general - its neighbourhoods, who lived where etc.

12. the secret police during the Revolution - again, some of this you already know, but try to dig even deeper

13. more on feminism in the 1790s

14. birth control methods in the 18th century

15. how rich, noble orphans were dealt with in 18th century France

16. inheritance law in 18th century France - Salic law?

17. more on pamphlets and how they were published during the Revolution

18. look into the middle class in Paris during the 18th C - were they mostly merchants?

Teresa

More research musings

2006-01-11T06:20:00.000-08:00

Today I have to make a Research List, part of my FDin30D process. Should be interesting. I've not made a list of research stuff at the start of an ms before - usually I find a lot of stuff I need to know while I'm actually writing the story, so this should be interesting. OTOH, I've already identified quite a number of things that will need researching.

I'm supposed to start the actual research next week! Not sure about that - it will depend on how Cleo is doing. I may have to put off the research process for a couple of weeks.

I'll report back tomorrow on how coming up with the Research List worked out. Maybe I'll even post some of it!

Teresa

Research wishlist

2006-01-09T23:13:00.000-08:00

My research wishlist:

a perfect piece of software to help me organize!!
a library that has every book I need
a photocopier that never jams, runs out of paper or ink
a filing cabinet like the Tardis

So - what would you put on your research wishlist?

Teresa
Research is my obsession

Musings on Research

2006-01-09T23:05:00.000-08:00

I LOVE to research.

Pretty much everyone who knows me, knowsthis. I've often wondered WHY, though? Why do I like to dig up obscuredetails about the past? As a writer, my obsession has proven to beinvaluable, but also a form of procrastination. I can spend hourslooking for one little piece of information. Sometimes it's absolutelynecessary, while other times it's just a way for me to avoid my story.Also, I can be incredibly stubborn about just having to know.

Andthen, once I do know, I get caught up in organizing the information. Ofcourse, that isn't always such a bad thing, because otherwise I leavethe research material in piles on my desk and have trouble putting myhands on it when I need it. So that's why you'll find binders labelled 18th Century Fashionon my bookcase. I get so caught up researching one particular aspectthat sometimes I forget to look at other issues as well. And then Iwant all the books on the topic, which isn't really practical.Especially considering we're going to be moving my library across thecountry in a few months.

In FDin30D, Karen provides six days for the research process. Six completelydedicated days. That's after making a basic list of questions in thepreliminary outline. Hmmm, we'll see if it works.

So, how about you? Do you obsess about research? Do you let it interfere with your writing? And how long do you spend doing research?

Happy New Year!!!!

2006-01-06T07:51:00.000-08:00

Yep, it's been a while since I posted here. What with entering the Golden Heart, then a vacation followed quickly by Christmas/New Year, I've been super busy. However, I'm back now :-) And promise to post here far more frequently.

To start things off, here's a great website:

The Early Modern Women Database

I found the link to this fantastic treasure trove of info at Earmarks in Early Modern Culture - a cool blog that features cats quite frequently :-) Always a good sign in my book.

Back soon with more research links. And thoughts.

Teresa

On Historical Accuracy...

2005-09-27T05:31:00.000-07:00

On my main blog yesterday, I mentioned that I'd risen rather vociferously to the defense of the historical romance genre.

In response, Rene said "But not all historical detail is conducive to a good romance. My heroine has all her teeth and smells pretty good. Same with my hero. Would this be likely in reality?" I agree totally with this. It's one thing to mention the refuse in the streets and the stink of the Thames, but morning breath? I don't think so.

For me, historical accuracy is about creating the past as accurately as possible. Note the final two words of my previous sentence. No matter how much research we do, unless we time travel to the past, there's no way we'll ever get things exactly right. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't strive for it.

One of the biggest problems I encounter is writers relying on faulty information. They find something they think is accurate and use it. But if they're not professional historians, they likely have no idea that it's really a good idea to check several sources. And look to primary sources.

My own education has made me take this for granted, but let's face it, many writers aren't as familiar with "the rule of three" (using at least three independent sources) unless they also happen to be journalists. Which is why, when asked, I do give basic research advice which includes tips on how to verify information in history books.

There are those writers, however, who do wilfully ignore history and this does bother me. It's not just a matter of glossing over the less savoury details of life in the past, but moving major events, changing the personalities of historical characters or just plain ignoring the mores of the period. One book I tried to read, but ended up not being able to finish, featured floor to ceiling glass windows in a castle on the border with Scotland in the early 1100s. I'm not kidding. This same book also had me grinding my teeth over the author's portrayal of Mathilde of Boulogne, the courageous, capable and loving wife of King Stephen. I barely recognized her as she'd been transformed into a jealous, evil, scheming, cheating harridan - the stereotypical "other woman". Granted, there's not a lot known about Mathilde, but NONE of the primary sources I've seen have ever even hinted at her being anything but a strong, devoted and faithful consort.

In her comment Melissa said "BTW, I'd LOVE to read his email and your response!!!" - well, Melissa, you can. Go here for the email that set me off and here for my first response. Once you're into the thread, you'll see my other posts on the topic *g*.

Sarah - thanks for explaining Dr M's background. I was so angry I couldn't go and look at the article. Sounds like it's a good thing I didn't. And I'm glad I wasn't the only one who couldn't abide such horrible stereotyping.

Teresa

Research and software

2005-09-26T07:01:00.000-07:00

I love software. And use it for research. What are some of my favourite programmes for this?

WriteWayPro, to start. It has Research Folders, where you can store all kinds of information and access it easily.

Book Collector. This software is a book cataloguing programme. I use it to keep track of my books and generate bibliographies. You enter books in your library using the ISBN and/or title/author. Most of the time the book's detail can be pulled off one of the many sites the programme searches (you tell it which one). I even keep a separate file for books I want.

NetSnippets. I use this for organizing my internet research. Not only does it save your favourite websites, but you can copy and paste information from the net into it and it records the url and day you collected it, which makes for easy referencing. One of the best features is the ability to generate a webpage of ALL the links you've collected! Yep, every month or so, I generate one of these and save it elsewhere, just in case something happens.

Each of these programmes offers a free 30 day trial. NetSnippets has a free version, but it's not as powerful.

So, what software do YOU use to organize your research?

Teresa

Research Primer and Some Links

2005-09-22T07:20:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe how long it's been since I updated this blog! I'll try to do it a little more regularly from now on.

Research Primer

For me, doing research is one of the things I love most about writing. I can (and do) spend hours in the local university libraries, digging for details or just absorbing bits of information I might find useful in the future.

Don't think that because you're writing a contemporary that research doesn't matter, because people will catch your mistakes even more easily, especially if you're using real town or city. In fact, you actually have to research the same things whether you're writing a historical or a contemporary - professions and occupations, costume (ie. police officer and fire fighter etc. uniforms will differ from city to city, state to state), setting, both physical and political, speech patterns and language, local culture, furniture styles etc.

Using a combination of library sources and the internet, finding the right details for your story can be both time-consuming and fascinating.

What are the key elements?

First, organization. Yep, before you even start browsing the stacks and thumbing through books, you must have a plan. Remember, though reference libarians are there to help and usually do so quite willingly, you'll not be their friend if approach them and say "I need to know everything about 18th Century France by the end of the day." So, while still at home, make a list of the most important things you want to find out. DO NOT try to do it all in one day.

Second, use a variety of sources, primary and secondary - newspapers, journals, letters, magazines, tourism guides, catalogues and books.

Third, take good notes and reference EVERYTHING! I can't emphasize this enough. Editors will want to know from where you took your information if a question is raised. And it's always good to be able to go back to the original source if necessary - either for clarification or further
information.

Fourth, file your notes - binders, folders and plastic tubs all work well. If you keep a lot of research on your computer, then be sure to BACK IT UP, just in case.

I know that for some people, research is more of a chore. But with the right questions and tools, it can be fun. And the details you find will always
enrich your story, enabling you to draw your reader deeper into your characters' world.

Links

Articles

Researching the Historical Romance by Charla Chin

Researching the Historical Novel by Sarah Smith

A Research Primer for Historical Fiction Writers by Erika Dreifus

How to Research Historical Fiction by Rita Gerlach

Other Resources

Research Articles at Michelle Prima's Literary Liaisons site.

Writer's Resources at Literary Liaisons.

HF writers answer the question "How do you conduct your historical research?" at the Historical Fiction Author Roundtable.

Research Techniques by Alan Dix - a tutorial for his undergrad students. He's in the computing department, but much of what he says applies to writers as well :-)

Research Guides from the New York Public Library - they cover a variety of topics and many are very useful.

How to do Research from the Kentucky Virtual Library - a site for children. It's a great intro to the topic.

Finding Information on the Net from the UC Berkeley Library

How to Do Research in the Library from the UC Santa Cruz Library. In this case, some of the info will be specific to that library, but most of what's said can be applied in any library setting :-)

There are some all-purpose sites, such as Voice of the Shuttle, Wikipedia, which is similar to About.com in that it's maintained by volunteers and Writers Free Reference, which has links to free sites on all kinds of topics. The Humbul Humanities Hub is more specialized, but includes notes about each site they reference.

LibrarySpot maintains a list of online encyclopedias (though not all of them are free) as does Resource Central, and RefDesk.

Teresa
Link of the Day: Fascinating History

Tomorrow is a research day

2005-08-23T03:42:00.000-07:00

So I’ll get my research day tomorrow. Will help with the hurt of losing my kitty :-( I find losing myself in the bookstacks at a big library to be very therapeutic. I’m not sure if anyone else finds this, though.

I guess it’s because I get so engrossed in what I’m doing, I forget about everything else going on. Days in the library always just fly by – half the time I forget to eat lunch!

The day starts with me clutching a list of books to collect from various shelves, then I pile them in a cubicle, sit down and read through to find what I need. Discarded books go in one pile, while those from which I need to make copies go in another. Sometimes I make notes as well, depending on what it is I’m researching.

Generally my AlphaSmart goes with me, so I can make electronic notes – very convenient. And with WriteWayPro, I can store all those notes with my story – even MORE convenient.

Last, but not least, I lug my pile of books to the copy room and set to work there – keeping the copyright act in mind. It’s also way expensive to make too many copies!!

Of course tomorrow’s will be a shortened day as I’ll be going down with my dh for his picketing hours (he and is CBC coworkers are still locked out) – easier to carpool with him than deal with a long bus ride home when I’m still feeling upset and teary.

So, do YOU find doing research helps when you’re upset? And what tools do you take with you when you go to the library?

Teresa

Notes from Reno

2005-08-22T06:08:00.000-07:00

As promised, below are my notes from Elena Greene's most excellent workshop on the history of pregnancy and childbirth. As you will see, I take notes in point form - hopefully they'll prove at least somewhat useful. If I had time (ha, ha) I'd go through and write them up in a more coherent manner, but with my kitty still so sick, and other stuff to do...

Ms. Greene is aware I've posted these notes :-) Her next book will be out in September 05!

Elena Greene - Pregnancy and Childbirth Through the Ages

- wandering womb theory - cure, weigh it down with sperm or a baby

- early bias against mid-wives, Ancient Greece - women colluding to bring in bastards

- baby controlled labour, not the woman - she had it happen to her, didn't participate
- wore stones to keep baby and help with childbirth

- change in all these rituals depended on location - ruraly women were usually the last to change

- births assisted by midwives - Egyptians, Greeks, Romans

Medieval - no wandering womb
- menstruation very important, balance of bodily humours paramount
- gynecological issues dominated anything wrong with a woman
- birth was a natural event, worked if woman was healthy, trust in nature and God that all would be well
- men weren't permitted into the birthing chamber
- conflicts between ancient practises and the church - midwives might be witches because of use of herbs etc. they had to be of good character so that if they baptized a dying baby they weren't cursing it
- older superstitions being replaced by religions ones - intercession of saints, + belief that labour pain was a woman's lot, punishment for Eve's mistake

Midwives - the most experienced women among those in the community who helped with childbirth
- low caseload
- often an inherited position from mother to daughter
- often paid in kind instead of with money
- eventually became more of a job with regular fees
- recorded when baby was born and what gender - helped with inheritance
- bibliography on Elena's website with primary sources listed
- birthing stool came back into use during the middle ages
- difficult for the birth attendant
- male doctors wrote treatises to help the midwives and were fairly respectful
- treatises very frank about sexuality
- euphemism for penis - the yard!!!
- how to simulate virginity using leeches

Birthing Ritual
- husband midgeted - gathered the midwife and the gossips
- keyholes, winndows, doors, cracks everything closed off and kept warm - ward of evil spirits and contributed to bonding, would be soothing
- drank coddle, spiced wine
- birthing positions varied - against a fireplace, in an attendant's lap
- very few women gave birth in bed
- once baby was born, it was swaddled and protected from evil spirits until it was baptised
- some babies were fostered out completely, otherwise the wetnurse was brought in, though many also nursed themselves
- month long lying-in recovery period - men might sometimes move out
= then the woman was churched - some elements of purification, but it was mostly a giving of thanks
- in difficult cases, they had methods to speed things up - ergot of rye, a mold that can be deadly, but in proper doses would help
- would induce vomiting
- could deal with breech using manual version
- woman who were poor and had poor nutrition there would be horrible problems, call in a surgeon and have him help - decision made between woman and child, woman was saved
- if man was called it was last resort because it usually meant one or both might die
- husband might help, if it was an obstructed birth he might help pull, hold her in his lap or even help her if there was no-one else around
- midwives were usually married women who had had at least one baby - NO virgins

Eighteenth Century
- BIG change - men became involved
- rise of scientific method, observation, rational practise rather than just theory (though superstition didn't disappear altogether)
- forceps became publicized - 1733 - Chamberlin family - a major advance as it meant that the baby didn't HAVE to die - decreased the fear of a man's involvement
- as more men became involved, things changed so birth came to be seen as a dangerous process
- midwives looked down on by some
- men weren't well trained and didn't disinfect
- childbirth attendant usually blamed when things went wrong
- status symbol to have a doctor attend you
- theory of humours still prevalent
- fertility issues - change of diet, cold baths
- physically active peasant women had an easier time than the aristocratic women who ate too much and didn't do exercise
- put them on a "lowering regime" - cut out meat, cheese, eggs etc and had fruits and veggies - not the best thing as women needed protein, though veggies themselves weren't bad.
- childbirth fever - problem with birthing chamber - open it up, no coddle, ruined the bonding ritual
- birth chairs designed by men - semi-reclining, higher off the ground - helped the doctor rather than the patient
- position - on her side, knees curled up and facing away from the doctor - away from gravity
- husband might attend - if the doctor was there it seemed wrong to exclude the husband
- customs changing so husband and wife were in love rather than convenience partner
- less fostering out, women nursing themselves far more often - might also get character traits from the wetnurse
- concept of motherhood changing, caring for the baby was just as important as giving birth
- girl children more welcome than they had been
- month-long lying in (not so common in lower classes, though they'd have support)
- women of wealth had a month nurse
- still churched
- lower classes still might be using old ways or a combination of both
- still a form of social childbirth
- doctors complained that women were causing trouble - might have been true at least half the time

Late Georgian and Regency
- continued a lot of earlier developments
- end of 18th/early 19th - the men started to see that childbirth really did work well most of the time - back to nature, back off with use of forceps, more conservative in how they interfered - just support the woman and let nature take its course
- then Princess Charlotte died in childbirth after 50 hours of labour
- the accoucheur had used a natural approach, was demonized by society - he committed suiced a few months later
- opponents to men in birth got stronger - call for more midwives
- it seems Charlotte might have had underlying medical problems that complicated her birth - likely Sir Richard Croft couldn't have saved her
- medical community went back to being intrusive - use of forceps

Victorian Era
- pain relief became acceptable, though some still opposed it
- James Simpson used ether in 1847, Victoria used it in 1853 for birth of Prince Leopold
- used especially for upper classes - they wanted to be delicate and needed the relief
- those women became completely passive
- overused and abused, some would self-dose or have friends give it to them - no regulations
- upper class/middle class American women believed it was indelicate to appear in public while pregnant
- this didn't happen in Britain
- some women were corsetting at this period so they could still appear in public
- birth was in bed by this point - for all of labour - before that they used to walk around
- most people banished from room, almost complete breakdown of social ritual
- some breastfed, some used wetnurses
- wean or not breast feed if there was a girl baby so she could regain her fertility to produce the heir
- first C section successfully used in 1882

www.elenagreene.com

Teresa

Some cool sites to explore

2005-08-18T06:08:00.000-07:00

Some of my favourite sources of research come from links I find through a number of research newsletters. The ones I find most useful are:

LII (Librarians' Index to the Internet)
Neat New Stuff I Found this Week
Research Buzz

From LII's Aug 11 issue, I give you these links:

Before and After the Great Fire of London

Fire

and

Worst Jobs in History, a hilarious and educational show with Time Team's Tony Robinson (Blackadder Fans will recognize him as Baldrick!)

For those of you with gardens, or very curious children *g*, Marylaine had a great site in her Aug 12 issue of NNSIFTW:

What's That Bug?

Meanwhile, in her Aug 4th newsletter, Tara at Research Buzz, which lists a combination of online research tools and cool research sites, linked to the 1911 Canadian Census Online - read her full review.

That should keep you busy. More later :-)

Teresa

So, WHY do I love research?

2005-08-17T08:21:00.000-07:00

Some of you who don't know me may be wondering about the title of my blog.

It's simple, really. I'm a research nut. Yep, can't help it. Have no idea where this comes from, but I love researching almost as much as I love writing. Sometimes more!

How did this happen? Couldn't tell you. Only remember being in love with finding things out since I was a wee one. Spent a lot of my time poking around the books in the school library, then moved onto the university ones in our town (there are two good research libraries here).

It's both a challenge and a thrill. Nothing feels better than going searching for a fact, digging through tons of material then finding it. I can lose myself for hours in a library or archives. Really, I'm not kidding. The time just flies by and only when my stomach growls and the sun begins its final daily descent do I clue to the fact it's time to go home.

I love pawing through books and documents, poring over details and images, following leads from one source to the next. One of my best research experiences was finding out that the local uni archives had acquired the research notes of medievalist Margaret Wade Labarge. Yep, I got to see ALL her notes. Spent several days there, days I barely remember now, though I took copious notes. My eyes were really sore by the end of that experience *g*. But it was worth it.

Hmm, still not sure I've explained WHY I love research. Other than it's something I've always done, something that comes naturally to me (unlike, say, MATH!) - the drive for knowledge.

So, do YOU enjoy research? Or see it as a necessary evil for writing?

Teresa

More 18th C Resources

2005-08-13T11:16:00.000-07:00

Jack Lynch's 18th Century Resources

List of books on the period available from Pickering and Chatto.

List of 18th C Events at What Happened What Year

History 1700s

Eighteenth Century Resources

Teresa

Marriage in the 18th Century

2005-08-13T10:16:00.000-07:00

Following a link from Rene, I found this great site:

Marriage in the 18th Century