Research for Creative Writing? Yup.

How Does a Deejay Pick a Song?

When I was in fifth grade, I called a local radio station and told them I was writing something about deejays and asked if I could come meet one and watch what they do. Did I ask my mom before I did this? No. But she was a good sport and when the management agreed, they set up a time, and she drove me to the station.

I sat with a popular deejay and watched him show me how he selected songs and queued them up (bear in mind this was 1980-something so it was not digital). He was excited to share the process and let me help pick songs. I probably sat with him for about an hour when he said, “So what is your school project about again?”

“Project?” I asked. “I’m writing a book, and one of the characters works in a radio station.”

I still remember that guy’s perplexed look, as if he’d been hoodwinked by a bubbly ten-year-old.

Now, most people who know me in real life know I write fiction which leads to questions from aspiring writers about the process. I’ve tried to stop shrugging and saying, “I dunno,” and actually share things I have found to be useful.

Recently, I took a class called Methods and Materials of Research for my English degree (which turned out to be a creative writing class in disguise - Thank You, Merciful Father!). Since I found a lot of aspects of the class to be helpful, I thought I would share them here.

How Do I Know What to Research?

Where are the gaps in your knowledge? I didn’t know how a radio station worked. There was a gap between what I could imagine and what I needed to know for sure.

But another simple answer is “What interests you?” One of my cousins and I used to go to the library for fun (don’t judge me), and I would pull book after book off the shelves about the Medieval Times. Why? I loved fantasy books, movies, and games, so it interested me. I also had a really weird Robin Hood obsession. Check out Robin McKinley’s Outlaws of Sherwood. I loved that book soooo much.

Where Do I Find Sources?

Call a radio station? All jokes aside, I’m always so surprised by how much knowledge people will share when they can tell you have a genuine interest. When I was involved in World War II re-enacting (I know, the cringe really doesn’t get any better), I loved being able to try to talk to the occasional vets who would make it to events and pick their brains. Plus, you know, it was just pretty awesome being able to talk to genuine heroes.

The part that might sound less enticing is the part I actually liked as a kid and into middle school: traditional research. Don’t stop reading. Hear me out. When you’re researching something you find interesting, it’s not boring like researching for a research paper for class on something like Naturalism in American Literature (can you tell what class I’m wrapping up now?). Behold: the internet. Seriously, though, most libraries now have online access to a lot of their information, there are databases on almost anything you can think of, and there are people researching almost every subject known to man. Not everything has to be scholarly. However…

How Do I Know if a Source is Credible?

This is trickier, and it depends on your topic. For truly scholarly sources, check the publication, avoid .com websites over .gov, .org, .edu, etc. Is the article peer-reviewed? That probably won’t be as urgent unless you’re writing a serious piece of creative nonfiction, (or an 8-10 page paper on Naturalism in American Literature).

Pro Tip: Just because a source is credible doesn’t mean it’s appropriate. I didn’t need an academic journal article to show me what equipment the deejay used at the local radio station.

How Do I Incorporate Sources into My Writing?

This is also tricky, but also fun. Incorporating research into fiction is difficult. You don’t want your writing to scream, “Look at my fabulous research! I am a scholar!” Instead, I think it should simply make your story plausible. Everyone has read a book or watched a movie and thought, “Wow. That writer knows nothing about that topic.” Your research should do the opposite with your writing.

Bear in mind, since creative writing doesn’t typically include footnotes and/or a Works Cited page, a lot of authors will give credit in their acknowledgement section, their dedication, or their forward in books. Creative writing has more flexibility. Add an author’s note before or after the work to credit your sources. Be creative. See what I did there?

Where Can I Find More Information?

Our textbook was genuinely helpful: The Art of Creative Research: A Field Guide for Writers (Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing). I was pleasantly surprised at the practical information in the text, but it also gave me some new ways of thinking about research for creative project.

Another research tool I’ve found helpful is (and you may laugh), Google Scholar. Now listen, I typically think of Google as da debil, but this has been so helpful for me. I did a research paper on women gamers and the media recently, and this was a lifesaver. Of course, as with anything on the internet, verify the information. I had the additional resource of Liberty U’s online library. If I found something on Google Scholar, I could also verify the same source there.