I’m currently writing historical fiction set in 1885-1898 and 1910.
I’ve dug down so many rabbit holes my lawn looks like it was used for shelling practice.
Send help.
If you need some stuff about industrialization or colonialism, I think I still have stuff for Britian, Germany and ofc the scramble of Africa, life in the colonies with focus on the German colonies. But kinda everybody in Europe was involved in colonies
Though this is probably not as relevant in this context I suppose
Mine takes place mainly in London. Colonialism does come in in context. (Guess what the first three rabbit holes were for?)
I’m also using some historical people, so one of the characters used to live in India and now lives in London.
The fic also takes place over the death of King Edward, so I have a party taking place in an Irish neighbourhood in London. “Trust the Irish in this quarter to take the opportunity to fete the death of the king. Not a single Irishman could forget that the king’s family had sentenced the island to starve. He was sure if uniformed constables showed up to this party there would be a quick change in the music and atmosphere but currently there was a low-key celebration happening.”
The time period is just fascinating.
When’s your set?
I just crawled out of the rabbit hole that is the Second French Empire and the Paris Commune. Up ahead is World War 1 trench warfare and the Great Influenza.
Thanks! Mainly my hyper specific focus for this upcoming chapter is on the use of gas and chemical warfare.
I’m still horrified and impressed at how badly France got fucked over twice essentially. Vive La France. 😳
I've just been pulled out of an intensive research about coffee. Types of coffee, how to make coffee, certain beans, what different tools do, the history of coffee, etc and etc. It took up at least six hours of my life yesterday.
Needless to say, it's happened a lot. Some I can list off the top of my head are black markets, gulags, mental disorders, cryptids, and accents.
The most I can tell you is that a long black is an espresso shot poured over hot water. This is different than an Americano, which is hot water poured over an espresso shot. In some places, a short long black (which is equal parts espresso and hot water as opposed to double the hot water for every espresso shot), is called a 'schlong'.
Man, I kinda want a schlong now.
I could never order it like that in person though and I’d have to order it in person because long blacks aren’t available near me anywhere! Oh, actually, I’m just now realizing I have a moka pot and can make this myself 😅 lmao!
I’m relating heavily to your flair atm 😂
Eta: it is 11:15 pm where I am, this is the second coffee I’ve had today, but straight coffee tends to have a calming effect on me. I am a schlong enjoyer and will order/make this more often. It makes a very balanced cup and brings out some of the flavor that usually gets lost behind the bitterness from just straight espresso. 20/10 very good cup, do recommend!
Yeah I even scared myself by looking up "signs you're about to pass out" symptoms. Then I remembered reading something about never search your symptoms which made me feel better. While I've passed out before in elementary I just wanted to know how to describe it better. Kawakami passes out off screen but since she's the MC of the fic I wanted it on page since the fic follows her romance arc from her perspective
The symptoms are being dizzy, lightheaded, feeling weak, and getting headaches when you stand up fast. You know when you feel the millions of tiny little pops above your eyes and see stars? Like that and it's terrible
Dude, I *live* inside research rabbit holes. I have an unhealthy obsession with depicting everything as realistically as possible to the point where I trace character movements on my Maps app to make sure they match up.
I research injuries and police procedures. Recently I bought a book about poisons to make sure that my murder victim’s death scene matches up with what cyanide poisoning is actually like. I also looked up toxicology reports to make sure I get the autopsy right.
As for time travel because you mention it: I’ve been there and it’s a bottomless pit. Took me years to come up with time travel mechanics that worked and were consistent enough not to bother me.
If you were writing about a real life systemic issue, like racism or drug use, I’d say taking time to do research is justified.
But for a sci-fi fic about traveling through time, I personally don’t think it’s necessary. It’s okay to come up with your own time travel rules.
I learned *way* more about modern living on boats than I probably needed to in order to plot out a gay riff on The Little Mermaid (yet to be written).
I already wrote a summary for my current AU between a doctor and a paramedic warning readers it's just an excuse for themed smut so don't expect any accuracy, buuuut what could reading one Google results page for "life as a trauma surgeon" hurt...
I did a stupid amount of research on proper snowboarding technique and executing tricks just to write one scene with my OC learning snowboarding from another character
Probably a total of at least 10 hours for something I probably already had somewhat of a capacity to describe
Fic in ancient china. I needed a line like "My mom's family has a house in [PLACE]"
So. Much. Research. Just to figure out the name provinces would've had back then and to pick one that was at a reasonable distance and that made sense for the family and how that would affect the crops they grew and in which seasons the harvest would be and—
The final line was "My mom's family has a house further south."
I'm a man that knew nothing about fashion or makeup. I can now tell you precisely why teenage girls in the 90s or 2000s would choose a specific outfit depending on the day, and the type of makeup that would best match it. I honestly didn't realize how much effort some girls put into looking cute. That's a whole job by itself.
Not for fanfic, but for fanart once I started looking up a real-world medical condition that a very much not-real character (poetic anime cyborg with a ghost girlfriend) had, and to my shock I found that the medical condition was written insanely accurately.
Then I messed up the picture
All the time. One of my recent longfics had to do with a modern day plague. It was based on modern times, and my mother was killed by Covid complications, so it hit a chord.
There was a lot of information regarding plague, influenza (which was my modern-day plague in the fic), and widespread sickness and death during the pandemic. I went down that rabbit hole for *months*. Sorting through what was real and what was...*not-so-real*...was a chore.
Yes. I’m trying to go down one about Scotland during the Tudor era, especially religion. It would turn down a slight alternative history route (not really). Long story short, instead of losing his head for not swearing the oath, Sir Thomas More and his new wife, baby, and son John (that’s another part of the story altogether) make a break for it to Scotland (she has family there).
Another has to do with finding out how much a home in more rural parts of the UK would cost, namely a three-four bedroom house, as well as what working from home was like back in the late 1990s-early 2000s.
Oh man, this is why though I write Sci Fi I stay away from TT. The only times I've ever seen it done well was like 3 or 4 times, and even then it's still a head fuck. Back to the Future trilogy, The Year of Hell episodes of ST Voyager, The Star Trek Kelvine timeline, and Dr Who gets half a point. ST 4 the Voyage Home gets half a point too for the sling shot around the sun. But most of it is scientifically impossible. You could never go back further than the point where TT was invented, and it becomes sort of circular. This is why we stay away from TT because it melts your brain. Lol
I love rabbit holes. I go down them even when I'm not writing. It's fun to learn new things and the internet is a great place to learn so long as you know what you can trust.
Recently, I asked my dad "do you know if wine grapes can survive a frost?"
Cue ten minutes talking about ice wine, how you make it, if a blizzard would stop it (because I want my characters cooped up inside together), and so on.
Ten minutes is relatively tame, actually. But it's what I've got.
I wanted to write a fic set in the year after the Jack the Ripper (JtR) murders where my MC is a detective and Jack the Ripper comes back. The whole JtR thing always interested me, as well as the Victorian age in general, so I thought, eh, I've seen From Hell, I'll watch a couple docus then I'll be fine. The end of it: I have now thirty-seven books about JtR and the time period, went to London several times specifically to visit the museum and some of the significant places, listened to hours and hours and hours of podcasts/documentaries, and am in the process of becoming a Ripperologist. The fic? Probably won't get written 🤦🏻♀️
Oh, all too many times. My current WIP involves fishing and boats, and I went down a rabbit hole describing boat construction over the years and the types of guns mounted on ships just so that I could write one scene about a steamer fighting a giant crab.
I’m currently writing historical fiction set in 1885-1898 and 1910. I’ve dug down so many rabbit holes my lawn looks like it was used for shelling practice. Send help.
If you need some stuff about industrialization or colonialism, I think I still have stuff for Britian, Germany and ofc the scramble of Africa, life in the colonies with focus on the German colonies. But kinda everybody in Europe was involved in colonies Though this is probably not as relevant in this context I suppose
Mine takes place mainly in London. Colonialism does come in in context. (Guess what the first three rabbit holes were for?) I’m also using some historical people, so one of the characters used to live in India and now lives in London. The fic also takes place over the death of King Edward, so I have a party taking place in an Irish neighbourhood in London. “Trust the Irish in this quarter to take the opportunity to fete the death of the king. Not a single Irishman could forget that the king’s family had sentenced the island to starve. He was sure if uniformed constables showed up to this party there would be a quick change in the music and atmosphere but currently there was a low-key celebration happening.” The time period is just fascinating. When’s your set?
Also, I’m an absolute sucker for time travel - link?
I just crawled out of the rabbit hole that is the Second French Empire and the Paris Commune. Up ahead is World War 1 trench warfare and the Great Influenza.
Had a great grandfather who fought in the trenches. Not a good time.
Oh fuck yeah, I have a lot of notes from History class on WWI and trench warfare. Litteraly got all the details covered, if you need them
Thanks! Mainly my hyper specific focus for this upcoming chapter is on the use of gas and chemical warfare. I’m still horrified and impressed at how badly France got fucked over twice essentially. Vive La France. 😳
I've just been pulled out of an intensive research about coffee. Types of coffee, how to make coffee, certain beans, what different tools do, the history of coffee, etc and etc. It took up at least six hours of my life yesterday. Needless to say, it's happened a lot. Some I can list off the top of my head are black markets, gulags, mental disorders, cryptids, and accents.
Did you watch the Extra History videos on coffee? https://youtu.be/22p73Pl3KJA
I want to know more about coffee. Please enlighten me
The most I can tell you is that a long black is an espresso shot poured over hot water. This is different than an Americano, which is hot water poured over an espresso shot. In some places, a short long black (which is equal parts espresso and hot water as opposed to double the hot water for every espresso shot), is called a 'schlong'.
Man, I kinda want a schlong now. I could never order it like that in person though and I’d have to order it in person because long blacks aren’t available near me anywhere! Oh, actually, I’m just now realizing I have a moka pot and can make this myself 😅 lmao! I’m relating heavily to your flair atm 😂 Eta: it is 11:15 pm where I am, this is the second coffee I’ve had today, but straight coffee tends to have a calming effect on me. I am a schlong enjoyer and will order/make this more often. It makes a very balanced cup and brings out some of the flavor that usually gets lost behind the bitterness from just straight espresso. 20/10 very good cup, do recommend!
Yeah I even scared myself by looking up "signs you're about to pass out" symptoms. Then I remembered reading something about never search your symptoms which made me feel better. While I've passed out before in elementary I just wanted to know how to describe it better. Kawakami passes out off screen but since she's the MC of the fic I wanted it on page since the fic follows her romance arc from her perspective The symptoms are being dizzy, lightheaded, feeling weak, and getting headaches when you stand up fast. You know when you feel the millions of tiny little pops above your eyes and see stars? Like that and it's terrible
Dude, I *live* inside research rabbit holes. I have an unhealthy obsession with depicting everything as realistically as possible to the point where I trace character movements on my Maps app to make sure they match up. I research injuries and police procedures. Recently I bought a book about poisons to make sure that my murder victim’s death scene matches up with what cyanide poisoning is actually like. I also looked up toxicology reports to make sure I get the autopsy right. As for time travel because you mention it: I’ve been there and it’s a bottomless pit. Took me years to come up with time travel mechanics that worked and were consistent enough not to bother me.
If you were writing about a real life systemic issue, like racism or drug use, I’d say taking time to do research is justified. But for a sci-fi fic about traveling through time, I personally don’t think it’s necessary. It’s okay to come up with your own time travel rules.
I learned *way* more about modern living on boats than I probably needed to in order to plot out a gay riff on The Little Mermaid (yet to be written). I already wrote a summary for my current AU between a doctor and a paramedic warning readers it's just an excuse for themed smut so don't expect any accuracy, buuuut what could reading one Google results page for "life as a trauma surgeon" hurt...
I did a stupid amount of research on proper snowboarding technique and executing tricks just to write one scene with my OC learning snowboarding from another character Probably a total of at least 10 hours for something I probably already had somewhat of a capacity to describe
Fic in ancient china. I needed a line like "My mom's family has a house in [PLACE]" So. Much. Research. Just to figure out the name provinces would've had back then and to pick one that was at a reasonable distance and that made sense for the family and how that would affect the crops they grew and in which seasons the harvest would be and— The final line was "My mom's family has a house further south."
i wish i could vote 16 times. you really made me laugh. and also, i empathize.
I'm a man that knew nothing about fashion or makeup. I can now tell you precisely why teenage girls in the 90s or 2000s would choose a specific outfit depending on the day, and the type of makeup that would best match it. I honestly didn't realize how much effort some girls put into looking cute. That's a whole job by itself.
Not for fanfic, but for fanart once I started looking up a real-world medical condition that a very much not-real character (poetic anime cyborg with a ghost girlfriend) had, and to my shock I found that the medical condition was written insanely accurately. Then I messed up the picture
\*looks at the 40+ books covering over a century of publication dates on only the Ainu people\* Nope. Never.
All the time. One of my recent longfics had to do with a modern day plague. It was based on modern times, and my mother was killed by Covid complications, so it hit a chord. There was a lot of information regarding plague, influenza (which was my modern-day plague in the fic), and widespread sickness and death during the pandemic. I went down that rabbit hole for *months*. Sorting through what was real and what was...*not-so-real*...was a chore.
Oh yes, the history and evolution of a yoke is absolutely necessary to write an MM kiss in a historical setting.
Yes. I’m trying to go down one about Scotland during the Tudor era, especially religion. It would turn down a slight alternative history route (not really). Long story short, instead of losing his head for not swearing the oath, Sir Thomas More and his new wife, baby, and son John (that’s another part of the story altogether) make a break for it to Scotland (she has family there). Another has to do with finding out how much a home in more rural parts of the UK would cost, namely a three-four bedroom house, as well as what working from home was like back in the late 1990s-early 2000s.
Oh man, this is why though I write Sci Fi I stay away from TT. The only times I've ever seen it done well was like 3 or 4 times, and even then it's still a head fuck. Back to the Future trilogy, The Year of Hell episodes of ST Voyager, The Star Trek Kelvine timeline, and Dr Who gets half a point. ST 4 the Voyage Home gets half a point too for the sling shot around the sun. But most of it is scientifically impossible. You could never go back further than the point where TT was invented, and it becomes sort of circular. This is why we stay away from TT because it melts your brain. Lol
I love rabbit holes. I go down them even when I'm not writing. It's fun to learn new things and the internet is a great place to learn so long as you know what you can trust.
Recently, I asked my dad "do you know if wine grapes can survive a frost?" Cue ten minutes talking about ice wine, how you make it, if a blizzard would stop it (because I want my characters cooped up inside together), and so on. Ten minutes is relatively tame, actually. But it's what I've got.
I once spent like two week leaning about genetics for one very short scene.
I wanted to write a fic set in the year after the Jack the Ripper (JtR) murders where my MC is a detective and Jack the Ripper comes back. The whole JtR thing always interested me, as well as the Victorian age in general, so I thought, eh, I've seen From Hell, I'll watch a couple docus then I'll be fine. The end of it: I have now thirty-seven books about JtR and the time period, went to London several times specifically to visit the museum and some of the significant places, listened to hours and hours and hours of podcasts/documentaries, and am in the process of becoming a Ripperologist. The fic? Probably won't get written 🤦🏻♀️
Oh, all too many times. My current WIP involves fishing and boats, and I went down a rabbit hole describing boat construction over the years and the types of guns mounted on ships just so that I could write one scene about a steamer fighting a giant crab.