I’ve been writing my second novel for a while now, and I’m happy to say that I’m now at the editing stage – although this can be quite a lengthy process in itself!
It’s at this point that I like to double-check all my research and try to ensure that I’ve got everything right. After all the research I had to do for The Legacy, especially as when I started writing it I knew almost nothing about the 18th century, I thought the research for The Dream was going to be simple. The book is set in New Zealand and I’ve used a lot of my own memories from my visit four years ago (noooo, it can’t really be that long!!) and scenes often take place in spots I’ve been to in person. However, I really am horribly anal about details. Anyone who cared to check would find I’d researched the exact calendar for 1779 for The Legacy (so the days of the week match the dates). Not only that, but the liturgical calendar as well, so that I knew when Lent and Easter took place, and for the 2008 parts, Walter preaches his sermon on The Good Samaritan on the exact Sunday that it would have been one of the readings, according to the Book of Common Prayer. Maybe no one will ever notice this, but at least I know it’s correct!
Lake Matheson, near Fox Glacier
None of this ought to have been necessary for The Dream, though, I imagined. Yet, for instance, mobile phone coverage is not total in New Zealand. When I visited Fox Glacier there was no coverage, so I was going to have my character out of contact until I checked the current coverage map and discovered that apparently there is now coverage. Then, having learned that, I had someone make a call from Fox Glacier on her mobile…but this is in a flashback, several years earlier, so no, that couldn’t happen! These are examples of the potential traps waiting to snare the nit-picky author! (If anyone from Fox Glacier reads this and knows different, let me know!)
I have also had to research motor neurone disease, as it plays a part in the story. A lot of my research has consisted of reading blogs by people who are or were coping with the disease. This has been a sad process, as the two blogs I found the most helpful – and moving – were written by people who have died. In one case, I started reading the blog probably a year ago, and eventually reached the point when I dreaded checking it because it was clear that the writer was deteriorating fast. He died in August and it was a sad day when I found out, even though I had never met him.
I hope that what I’ve written will do justice to anyone who suffers from this appalling disease.
Jill Rowan 