Weird Writing Research

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Weird Writing Research

Writers: what’s the weirdest thing you’ve done while researching a novel or other project?

I’m not talking about strange Google searches, although those can be quite random and hilarious. I mean actual things you did so you could accurately describe an event or experience.

My weirdest writing research assignment so far involved me giving myself an ice cream headache. A character in SCREWING MR. MELTY experiences one of these brain-splitting pains, and, while I’d eaten enough frozen concoction in the past to burst my noggin, I wanted to remember exactly how it felt so I could describe it in detail. Just how much ice cream did I need to eat? Where did it hurt? How did the pain feel? How long did it last? I ate enough ice cream to cause myself considerable pain, paid attention, then wrote it all down.

For this same story I’ve also called a genetics company (and felt kind of silly, but the nice woman who picked up said they get lots of strange calls) and also sat in a graveyard while the sun set for a chapter I later cut.

For my second writing project, which is currently in-between revisions, I’ve taken a couple shots of whiskey so I can know the exact taste and feeling of alcohol burning down my throat. I’ve also watched a lot of British television–it’s a hard life, I know–so I can learn the nuances of British English.

Would my life have continued much the same without these experiences? Probably. Did I absolutely need them for my writing? Maybe. But I definitely feel that they are examples of something so wonderful about writing: not only can writing prompt you to imagine people, places, and events, but it can motivate you to have new experiences–or old experiences you can consider anew as you’re aware in the moment of how they look, sound, feel, and sometimes smell.