Being a writer of historicals, I do my fair share of research. There are writers who research a book to death and others that clearly would have benefitted from perhaps a tad more. (How many times have you said "In 1870? I think not!" And another book hits the wall!)

You remember last month when I made up that story about Sven and Abigail and the shirtwaist factory? Well, this is how I would go about researching that book--Now I repeat, others might do more--a good writer would not do less than the following:

Note: A bibliography follows this article including all the books mentioned and several others I couldn't write without. You will develop your own essential references depending on your settings, eras, and interests. I like to own my books, others do fine at the library. And of course, many reference books are available on CD rom. I do admit to a need to run my fingers down the page in order to absorb the information!

FIRST: Check and see when the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire occurred. (What Happened When--Gorton Carruth) March 25, 1911 NYC [Now I know that my book takes place in the winter in NYC. I will check further into the fire at the library, but my guess is that many of the women working there were Irish, so I may have to change my heroine's name. And I wouldn't mind giving her red hair! My hero, too, might then be Irish to avoid a mixed marriage controversy which would have been a big issue at that time.]

NEXT: I check out what I can about Charles Scribner. (The World Book Encyclopedia 1960) [Father and son--father 1854-1930, son 1890-1952. Father would be just right for Granny!Company founded in 1846. In 1878, Sr. reorganized his father's company into Charles Scribner's Sons. Whoa! Just around the time when he might have been courting Granny! (Serendipity, no?--I'll make an author's note explaining that I just "borrowed Charles and that the individuals I used in the Triangle Factory were fictionalized.]

I've got one of those Dover books here somewhere with pictures of NY at that time.(New York Life at the Turn of the Century; Old New York in Early Photographs.) [Both turn out to be too early. Somewhere I've got Jacob Riis's How the Other Half Lives. Before I search for it, I check What Happened When again--1890. Still too early. This isn't my usual era so I'll have to dig harder. America's Yesterdays is loaded with pictures--I leaf through and there is one from 1911 of a dozen or so women just getting off a ship from England as mail order Baltic brides. So I see how they dress and I think perhaps I've a secondary plot here. One of Sven's--oops, got to find him an Irish name--friends, perhaps?]

Speaking of names— Gotta get some Irish ones— (Beyond Jennifer and Jason, which lists names in many ways, including ethnic origins.)[ Oh, Brenna! Liam! I am in love. But before I name them those, I check 20,001 Names for Baby to make sure they don't mean "run over by a train" or something else awful. Brenna means raven or black-haired. Do I like the name better than I like her red hair? Or was she born with black hair that fell out and red grew back and she's had to go through life with the "wrong name?" I kinda like that. OK, Liam? Will-helmet, whatever that means. Do I mind readers imagining Liam Nelson? Am I kidding?]

Any disasters (besides the fire) that I don't know about? (Acts of God--The Old Farmer's Almanac)[Unfortunately, this book isn't arranged by date, which would be wonderful, but by disaster-type. I rule out hurricanes and tornados in winter in NY, as well as drought, floods earthquakes, volcanoes, and lightning and just check blizzards, wintry weather, and ice storms. January of 1911 saw the greatest snowfall in a single month--390 inches in California. It might get a mention. Other than that, nothing out of the ordinary weatherwise.]

What else was going on at the time? (What Happened When) [Well, well, well. "The American Appetite for fiction about the West, with rugged heroes and pure heroines, seemed insatiable. An author who catered to this appetite successfully was Harold Bell Wright, whose most popular novel, The Winning of Barbara Worth, was published this year and eventually sold some 1,500,000 copies. They were a careful mix of love story, adventure story and moral instruction."

Bet he made a passel of money--maybe Abby--oops Brenna!--isn't so foolish. And there was the first cross country flight later that year. Don't know if that will fit in, but I'll keep it in the back of my mind.

Baseball was a big sport, with Ty Cobb the best all-around player of the era. Do you suppose that Liam's any good at that? And that Brenna is encouraging him but he's afraid to hope?

Getting the point? Research can provide you with lots of plot points if you do it early enough. Of course, you'll have to go back to the books often along the way (What did they eat? Were there trolleys to where they might be going? Where did they play baseball in NY? Where were Scribners offices?). But I advise against doing too much too soon. In fact, I usually have a great many parentheses in my first draft and then go back when I'm done and fill in what I need. I could spend hours finding out where Scribners' offices were only to find that I didn't really need to know after all.

So my advice is to find out the basics and then write your story and go back and fill in the details. It saves you time that might be wasted and it prevents you from putting off the actual writing until you find out "just one more fact!"

And here, as promised, is a hardly exhaustive list of books that I couldn't do without:

WHAT HAPPENED WHEN--a Chronology of Life and Events in America, Gorton Carruth — If your books take place in America, you must have this book or one like it. If they are set elsewhere find the corresponding book for your part of the world. I couldn't write a word without this book and use it often just to clear up a point around the dinner table.

WEBSTER'S NINTH NEW COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY--This one has the dates that words came into general use. It is essential for Historical writers.

THE SYNONYM FINDER, Rodale--yeah, yeah, my WordPerfect 7 has a great thesaurus too, but when the word I want isn't there, Rodale's got it.

BEYOND JENNIFER AND JASON, Rosenkrantz and Satran--This book lists old fashioned names(Tess), power names(Nelson, Marshall), Names that are too much or not enough to live up to (Lucretia? Bambi?) and Ethnic Names (Abdul, Rashida, Bronwyn, Alain)

20,001 NAMES FOR BABY, Wallace--Gives the origin and the meaning for almost any name you can think of.

A GOOD ENCYCLOPEDIA (No, that's not the name!) I've got two, the World Book my husband had back in grade school and a Grolier's we got for our kids. I've also got the cd-rom the computer came with, but I tend to rely most on the World Book because it's simplistic and that's what I'm looking for most of the time. So the next time you see that set of outdated encyclopedias at a garage sale for $1.50, grab 'em up. I also have two sets of encyclopedias from the late 1800s which give me a slant that history has a tendency to change.

BARTLETT'S FAMILIAR QUOTATIONS--essential for erudite characters who quote correctly, for hopeless ones who do not, and to satisfy your curiosity when you have the author or the right phrase on the tip of your tongue and it won't roll off!

FOR AMERICANA WRITERS:

SEARS, ROEBUCK AND COMPANY, Consumers Guide 1897. (Hey, how else are you gonna know what was available? Great for little details like what kind of shave cream he uses or what kind of stove she covets.

PICTURESQUE EXPRESSIONS, Urdane--Very expensive, I'd recommend using it at the library. It has all those expressions that you know (letting the cat out of the bag) and a million you don't (bung up and bilge free). Use 'em straight or make 'em your own by letting them inspire you to new ways of saying old things.

DOVER puts out a whole bunch of great books that cover houses, horse and buggy fittings, clothing and anything else you might be interested in. Get their catalog (Dover Publications, Inc., 31 East 2nd Street, Mineola, NY 11501). You'll be amazed.

Oh, there are just too many to list. And then there's the Internet! All those listserves and things!

And of course you can write to the historical societies of whatever town you are setting your novel in. Or the library there. Or the Univeristy. Just tell them you're writing a novel that's set in their town (or near it, or in a fictional town in the area) and a bit of what it's about. You'd be amazed at how helpful these people can be. Too, most bookstores have a local section in them and will be happy to send you a list from which you can order. At least that's been my experience.