A Goodreads user
asked
Bruce Beckham:
How do you research locations?
Bruce Beckham
Primarily I write about places I know well.
I have walked, fished and bird-watched in the Lake District since teenage - I guess I have pretty much climbed all the hills there, and have done many outdoor activities, including rock climbing, and lots of fishing. I'm also pretty obsessed by maps, and by British geology and geography - so when you add all that together it makes it quite easy to write about the Lakes.
For specific scenes I use my collection of Ordnance Survey maps, plus Google maps - and Google Streetview when I want to describe something happening in a town or village. I pick a house I like the look of and put my character in it.
Also we go on short breaks, and take walks - which again I use where I can - for instance the walk around Grasmere in Murder on the Edge we actually did earlier this year - even the party of Japanese tourists really happened!
For events outside the Lakes, I tend to pick places I know well, so that I can write with authenticity. Then I use Streetview and also Wikipedia to find interesting facts. Although I have visited Kendal a couple of times, I did not know about the famous 'yards' - and now I want to go and see them. However, their discovery gave me a good idea of where to place 'Lee Harris's' apartment - although I then invented a 'yard' that was rather unbecoming from a tourist's perspective!
Curiously enough, the most 'fictitious' sub-location I write about are the places in Penrith - the supermarket and the area of Ullswater Place don't exist!
I have walked, fished and bird-watched in the Lake District since teenage - I guess I have pretty much climbed all the hills there, and have done many outdoor activities, including rock climbing, and lots of fishing. I'm also pretty obsessed by maps, and by British geology and geography - so when you add all that together it makes it quite easy to write about the Lakes.
For specific scenes I use my collection of Ordnance Survey maps, plus Google maps - and Google Streetview when I want to describe something happening in a town or village. I pick a house I like the look of and put my character in it.
Also we go on short breaks, and take walks - which again I use where I can - for instance the walk around Grasmere in Murder on the Edge we actually did earlier this year - even the party of Japanese tourists really happened!
For events outside the Lakes, I tend to pick places I know well, so that I can write with authenticity. Then I use Streetview and also Wikipedia to find interesting facts. Although I have visited Kendal a couple of times, I did not know about the famous 'yards' - and now I want to go and see them. However, their discovery gave me a good idea of where to place 'Lee Harris's' apartment - although I then invented a 'yard' that was rather unbecoming from a tourist's perspective!
Curiously enough, the most 'fictitious' sub-location I write about are the places in Penrith - the supermarket and the area of Ullswater Place don't exist!
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