Sarah Sundin, @sarahsundin
“Where did I read that? Where did I file that?”
At some point, all writers have said this about our research materials. We think we’ll always remember where we read that great tidbit, but we don’t. And when an editor questions our research (mine does!), we need to locate that info quickly.
As an author of novels set during World War II, I do a lot of research. But all fiction requires research. We have to research the setting and our characters’ professions. If a character gets sick or injured, we have to research health care. If a character gets in trouble, we have to know the police and legal systems.
When I started writing World War II fiction, I soon realized I needed to organize my research—or I’d pull out all my hair. Over the years, I’ve developed a system that works, based on documentation and organization.
Bibliography
The foundation for research organization is the bibliography. Every book, website, video, interview, or correspondence should be entered in the bibliography and numbered. For example, here’s an entry for an online book I used to write The Sea Before Us:
452: Kirkland, William B. Jr. Destroyers at Normandy: Naval Gunfire Support at Omaha Beach. Washington DC: Naval Historical Foundation, 1994. On Naval History and Heritage Command website. Posted 14 May 2015. Accessed 16 May 2016. http://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/d/destroyers-at-normandy.html .
The basics—bibliography number, author, title, publisher, year. For online sources, include the URL link so you can easily return. Also include the date of access.
Documentation
Capture the information you find, so you can locate it when you’re writing, editing, or fact-checking.
Handwritten notes are easy for me when reading on-the-go and help me retain the information. The disadvantage is they are harder to scan for single facts.
It’s even more vital to capture online material. Websites can disappear—and then you’ve lost your documentation. Copy the information into an online system such as Evernote, download it, or print it.
For all your notes, whether handwritten or in a computer system, always include the bibliography number and the page number, if applicable.
Organization
The core of your research is a “binder”—this may be an old-school physical binder or computer systems like Evernote or Scrivener—or both, which is what I do.
For my Sunrise at Normandy series, both my binder and Evernote “notebook stack” (folder) are labeled “Sunrise at Normandy Research.” Since I’m writing my fourth WWII series, I’ve started dividing my material by subject rather than project since I use material in multiple series.
Divide your research material into categories for topics you’ll research for your project, from setting to housing to fashion to transportation. In my binder, these are the divider tabs in my table of contents. In Evernote, these are called “notebooks.”
Divide your categories well so you can skim them quickly. For example, in my first series about B-17 pilots, I had one category for “US Navy” due to a subplot. But my Waves of Freedom series was entirely about the US Navy, so I had about thirty categories from naval uniforms to naval customs to weaponry.
The Binder
Even the most tech-savvy writer will have physical material to file. In my binders, I keep a table of contents with colored tabs for the different categories. Under each tab, I file the appropriate handwritten notes, pages I’ve copied from books or printed from online (with bibliography number), brochures from research trips or museums, maps, newspaper clippings, etc.
Computer Organization
Even the least tech-savvy writer can benefit from storing material on the computer or online. A benefit these programs is how easy it is to search for keywords or phrases.
In programs such as Evernote, Microsoft OneNote (comes with Office), or Scrivener, you can form notebooks or folders. You can clip material from the internet, type notes, draw figures and tables, and more. You can store photos or notes from your phone or tablet and access your files on all your devices. If those programs overwhelm you, you can simply copy and paste online material into a Word document.
My computer files bear the SAME category names as they do in my binder. My files are titled “Sunrise Research—Naval Uniforms,” “Sunrise Research—London,” etc. All my Sunrise at Normandy research files are grouped into a folder (Evernote calls these “notebook stacks). Don’t get fancy with file names—make them specific and clear.
In Evernote, you can also add “tags” to help you search—look for keywords, topics, or phrases in the content that you might want to search for later. And always include the bibliography information in each note.
Setting up a system to organize your research takes a little time. Maintaining your system takes a little time. But in the future, a good system will save you gobs of time. And best of all—you won’t pull out your hair!
In 1944, American naval officer Lt. Wyatt Paxton arrives in London to prepare for the Allied invasion of France. He works closely with Dorothy Fairfax, a “Wren” in the Women’s Royal Naval Service, who pieces together reconnaissance photographs with thousands of holiday snapshots of France—including those of her family’s summer home—in order to create accurate maps of Normandy. Maps that Wyatt turns into naval bombardment plans for D-day.
As the two spend concentrated time together in the pressure cooker of war, their deepening friendship threatens to turn into something more. But both of them have too much to lose to give in to love . . .
Sarah Sundin is the author of ten historical novels, including The Sea Before Us. Her novels When Tides Turn and Through Waters Deep were named to Booklist’s “101 Best Romance Novels of the Last 10 Years,” and Through Waters Deep was a finalist for the 2016 Carol Award and won the INSPY Award.A mother of three, Sarah lives in California, works on-call as a hospital pharmacist, and teaches Sunday school. She also enjoys speaking for church, community, and writers’ groups.Please visit her athttp://www.sarahsundin.com.