How Deep Research Helps Me Write

And so I've begun work on a new novel. Upon publication of American Socialite, I decided to take the rest of the summer off after a blast of grassroots marketing. Of course, the marketing will continue, but now the creative part of my mind is focused on my next book. That means I'm doing research. Not just any kind of research, but what I like to call Deep Research. I prefer to go beyond the normal bounds of learning about the subjects I use in my fiction. I like to reach the point of absorption. It's similar to method acting, only there's no acting involved and I obsess on the task before me on a complete 24/7 cycle. 

I started doing this kind of detective work back when I worked on a screenplay about my hero, Joan of Arc. My Deep Research for that project took me everywhere from New York City to France, and led to my studying everything from Renaissance courtrooms to 15th century shoes, to what kind of flowers people back in Joan's own era cultivated. Since that time, I've felt I've cheated when I didn't dive head first into the far end of the research pool for a project. For American Socialite, I read Betsy Bonaparte's own letters, got information on the obscure names she mentioned in them, studied the layout of Baltimore at the time, and even taught myself about the fine dining practices of the era. And that was just for starters. 

I feel this kind of work puts the reader in the world better than a cursory examination of people and places will. Deep Research also allows my to really understand the world of my characters. What's more, it provides me with a sound foundation whereupon I can decide what real life material to keep and what to fictionalize for the overriding and all important good of the story. To me, research isn't homework. It's a month's and sometimes year's long vacation of the mind. If I'm not living in the background of my work in progress, then I'm not doing my job properly. I'm also not getting everything out of what should be the most entertaining aspect of the book writing process. Research, believe it or not, is captivating and can be intensely fun. 

Unlike my first two novels, my new novel won't be centered in the 1700's or 1800's. Instead, it will largely take place in the pop art culture of the 1960's. That's such a jump in time that my new novel will barely even qualify as being historical. Still, I'm engaging in Deep Research yet again, for I need to absorb everything I should about the people and world I'm going to write of. Everything. Otherwise, I won't be doing my job. 

To grab a copy of my latest novel, American Socialite, just click on the link below:

 https://www.amazon.com/American-Socialite-Sean-Crose/dp/B08C8RW7N4/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Betsy Bonaparte And The "It Factor"

I think it's safe to say we all wish we had it at some time or other - even though we probably can't even define it. I'm talking about the "It Factor," which to me is that ethereal, illusive something that draws people to an individual. I've read that the It Factor has to do with talent and ability, but to me it has more to do with personality. Ability and talent are important, of course, but all things being equal, a person with the It Factor has a leg up on the competition. Like most people, I know what the It Factor is when I see it, but am perfectly unable to define it. 

Perhaps the It Factor is best put as something unique about an individual that elevates that person to be more attractive than the rest of us. Strangely enough, the attractiveness doesn't have to be physical. There may be beautiful stars, co-workers, friends, and family members who have the It Factor, but many do not. The one person I know of who most certainly possesses the It Factor is neither young nor attractive. He gets preferential treatment, however, wherever he goes. And if he finds himself somewhere where people aren't particularly impressed, he simply moves on to somewhere else where most people will be. 

Betsy Bonaparte, the subject of my novel America Socialite, most certainly has the It Factor. Jerome Bonaparte, the brother of the feared and powerful French conqueror Napoleon, asks her to be his wife even though he could probably choose countless other woman on earth. And even when her marriage disastrously and suddenly falls apart ("explodes" might be a better way of putting it), Betsy, an American commoner, is still taken in, beloved and helped by those of the upper echelon of European society. Just how much of an It Factor does Betsy have? Enough to say no to a king's invitation.

Yet Betsy is not entirely happy. Nor is she entirely successful in achieving her dreams. Perhaps having the It Factor leads to a set of expectations that can never be fully realized. American Socialite is ultimately a novel about expectations, how they can negatively impact us, even when it appears we're operating miles above the rest of the world. Could it be that too-high expectations are a great equalizer, as even the It Factor can't seem to prevent their destructive impact? Maybe. Then again...

You can pick up American Socialite by clicking on the link below:

https://www.amazon.com/American-Socialite-Sean-Crose/dp/B08C8RW7N4/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=