The Importance of Research

My venture into the world of Murder Mystery/Crime Writing has guided my path to digging into life and death of a different kind—Family History. Crimes, even cold case crimes are being solved by DNA analysis and technology from which family trees are built.

As I have delved into the realms of ancestry, through the My Heritage site and the wonderful tool of crowdsourcing that is available there, I have stumbled on some historical “crimes” that would make even the resident artificial intelligence (AI) called “My Heritage Consistency Checker” laugh or more likely jump up and down (virtually) in conniptions of frustration.

Before I launch into a few of these amusing tales, I might remind you fellow writers that such errors can easily be made when one thinks the research is all too hard or that editing is boring and makes one fall asleep.

Here goes:

Oldest Man Alive

My all-time favourite historical faux pas—I get a “Smart Match” from a fellow family historian who has ticked the box that my great-grandfather, born in 1839, is still alive. Quite a feat, he’d be almost 200-years old if he is. And, if he is still in the land of the living, where is he? I have few questions I want to ask him. His answers, I’m sure would make for great reading. I can see the title now: “How my great-grandfather met my great-grandmother.” Oh, and of course, what’s his secret for staying alive?

The Cranky Consistency Checker

For two weeks, ye old “My Heritage Consistency Checker” complained that my dad’s cousin’s grandmother was too young at 14 years of age to be married. Good on it for picking this detail up. More like the morality police than an AI (artificial intelligence) with knowledge of historical context (we’re talking mid 1800’s here in Australia). Anyway, the mystery spurred me down that proverbial rabbit-hole where it seemed, according to official birth and marriage records, a certain ancestor had to get married, if you know what I mean. So, I’m guessing that her parents gave consent for the “shot gun” wedding. The young couple (well, the groom with the shotgun to his head wasn’t so young, but) went on to have at least ten children.

How does this angry AI relate to writing?

You may have developed an uneasy relationship with your editor, or fellow writer/test reader who questions certain details of your story. For example, from my experience, my writing mentor was adamant that a planet can’t have two suns. Another time, a fellow writer insisted that cattle did not exist in Central Australia. I did my research, and armed with the evidence to the contrary, I proved them incorrect.

Rubbery Timelines

A friend asked me to type up and edit their relative’s biography. I began reading the story and soon discovered key details relating to birth and marriage were missing or vague. Now, I’m not adverse to a few “circas” now and then. I plop them in all the time when acknowledging my grandfather’s photos in my posts, or when “playing” with my family tree for centuries-long gone ancestors, in the hope a “smart match” or record might show up courtesy of a more obliging My Heritage AI.

But with a biography, a historical record of this person’s forebears, the lack of detail bothered me. I asked the friend if they had any documents. No, they replied, all too hard, and expensive.

So, putting on my Indie Scriptorium hat, and having the resources and research skills, I offered to do the relevant investigation for them.

When writing a history, it is vital to get the right dates, places, times and people. This is true also for drafting a novel or story. If you want your story to be believable, you need to do the research and at least get your timeline sorted. Make note of significant events in that period which may impact your characters. Take time to plot the dates and places to ensure it’s do-able and believable.

There are other examples, but I will reserve those for another time, another blog post.

Happy researching and writing.

© Lee-Anne Marie Kling 2024