Some claim images appear in their heads or they notice an interesting subject on TV or in a newspaper. The writer feels compelled to share their idea with the world. A plot concept needs to fill enough pages to have a sellable piece of work, so what next?
This is where research comes in. Dreadful as that might sound, you can turn it around by listening to your characters. Say, what? Just listen! Your characters can help. What is their background? Their values? Their imperfections? How can you layer a story with emotion, action, conflict and more if you haven’t answered these questions?

For instance: in my historical romance A Gift from the Sea, set on the coast of Scotland’s North Sea, my poor young Scottish heroine was wasting away in servitude to her family. It was the simple fact that I liked my Scottish ancestry, the land where it meets the sea, and a heroine that saves the hero which led me to this story that will be released in an anthology with three other authors on November 1st.

How did my heroine feel when she saw a wrecked ship upon the rocks near her home? What could she do when a supposedly dead naked sailor grabs her? My hero has other Scottish warriors chasing him, so he leads her and her family toward his home near Inverness. I remember frequent class trips to various New York museums, but the closest I have gotten to Scotland is while attending Highland games in North Carolina and New Hampshire.

Besides the photos I take at those games, I do research on the internet where I find other photos, descriptions, history, and even an idea of the food my medieval heroine might eat. Plucked chicken and burnt fish anyone? I use all these clues to pepper my story with fact.

Is writing a novel a walk in the park? Not always. Writing a story about what is in your heart is tough. Of course it is, but not impossible. I’ve wanted to visit Scotland ever since meeting the man I eventually married. We now volunteer at a large annual Scottish Highland Games held in New England and have used my experience to plot many stories set partly in England and Scotland.

I learned gathering research can be a long, yet enjoyable process. I had no idea I’d be an author one day. Luckily, my brain filed away the beauty of the New Hampshire mountains, the quaint historic village at a North Carolina games, the sound of bagpipes, and the smell of haggis and shortbread. I used these memories to enhance my story. When Medieval Redemption, an anthology released earlier this year, was a success, I agreed to write a new story: this time set around the Christmas holiday.

What I am trying to say is that research can be fun. Take a walk. Visit a museum. Remember a moment in your life where you experienced something new, wonderful, sad, or life changing. The best stories start in your heart, not in your head. Be it your heart, your mind, or the park…take a walk!

More About the Author

Nancy Lee Badger grew up in Huntington on New York’s Long Island. After attending Plymouth State, in New Hampshire, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree and met and married her college sweetheart. They raised two handsome sons in Rumney, New Hampshire while she dreamed of being a writer. When the children had left the nest, and shoveling snow became a chore, she retired from her satisfying job as a 911 Emergency Medical Dispatcher and moved to North Carolina, where she writes full-time.

Nancy is a member of Romance Writers of America, Heart of Carolina Romance Writers, Fantasy-Futuristic & Paranormal Romance Writers, and the Triangle Association of Freelancers. She finds story ideas in the most unusual places, especially at Scottish Highland Games. Connect with her here:  Blog   Website   Twitter   Facebook   Goodreads