Truths & Categories: How to Research and Represent Truth in Fiction
Given the privilege of describing my approach to research as I wrote The Deadly Deal, my third mystery/suspense novel that centers around a fictional conspiracy launched between the federal government, a pharmaceutical company, and an insurance conglomerate, I am dubbing this explanation “Truth & Categories.” First, let’s explore “Truth.”
Truths
Whether you’re writing a term paper for a college class or a thriller novel for the beach reader, there are three truths about research that stand the test of time. Let’s identify them:
You want to represent truth in what you write—for your audience, yourself, and what you’re writing. Doing so not only enhances the world by offering something genuine and original for people to enjoy, but also establishes and enhances your literary credibility.As the world changes, the methods used to gather research will change too. Gone are the days of Encyclopedia Britannica and the local library as primary sources. Similarly, we’d be naïve to think that in 80 years Google will be either.What you’re writing isn’t solely about facts or figures that have already been established in the world. While you want your research to be accurate and support the story you are telling, you don’t want it to become that either.
NOTE: If you don’t think the above are fundamental truths, you should stop reading. When I write, I do so believing they are central pillars to the research aspects of my book. Reading on in disagreement would be a waste of your time.
Research
Next, the research I did fell into one of two separate, yet equally important “categories” that I labeled as:
The big pictureThe nitty-gritty
For the big picture, it always starts with understanding the interplay of forces, actions and characters in the story. In this case: How does the FDA approve drugs? What process and controls go into verification? How does the government’s separation of powers ensure it acts in the best interests of the people? What about the development process? How do drugs go from an idea to a tangible product? And how does insurance fit into all of this? We all know it affects the pocketbooks of both companies and consumers, but when does that start and how does it work?
These are the types of fundamental questions you need to ask first when writing fiction, especially plot-driven novels. Ultimately, understanding the bigger picture is critical to meeting Truth #1 above, and misrepresenting it will discredit your story.
How?
It’s common to say people should “write what they know” and this is where it best applies. In my case, I’d worked at a company involved with the regulatory process. So while I needed to verify what had changed over 20 years, I did have a baseline. I knew some people who still worked in the space. I also have a family member on the cutting edge of medical research who graciously let me pick his brain.
The point is that for the big picture, it helps immensely to start with something you know and like. You can Google “FDA Approval Process” and get a lot of information, more than enough to provide the level of detail I did in the book, but it’s incredibly helpful to have a baseline and rely on experts in the field going in.
The other thing is, going back to Truth #3, don’t overdo it. If people wanted to read a detailed description about the FDA regulatory process, there are books written just for that. Don’t over-demonstrate your knowledge of a subject at the expense of your story. Practically speaking, what that meant for me was that for every paragraph of research that made it into the book, there were five pages of notes that never saw the light of day.
Check out J. Lee’s The Deadly Deal here:
(WD uses affiliate links.)
For the nitty-gritty, there’s good and bad news.
The good news is the information is readily available and can be verified with multiple sources on the web. Some readers think I’m a gun guy because my books have lots of them, used by good guys and bad guys. My first novel, The Hubley Case, even has the protagonist holding one on the cover.
But the truth is, I learned what I needed from reading online. And when I described an intersection, Street View gave me context that complemented my site visit. The data is available, and you don’t have to use old-fashioned encyclopedias that might be outdated or be an Internet savant to get it…you just need to make the commitment to do the work.
The bad news is it’s work.
When I wrote a scene with two guys chasing another through a boathouse, I didn’t necessarily want to look up types of boats, how boathouses are winterized, how big they are, what the floor material is, what the temperature might be, etc. But those details help set the scene. And answers are out there; it just takes time to get them.
Certainly, “writing what you know” makes nitty-gritty research easier and probably more enjoyable too, but it’s not as critical as it is for the big picture. And trust me, even if you write what you know, when your book is 80,000 words, there’s going to be nitty-gritty research you just need to commit to doing to get it right. Most research at this level isn’t about the “how.” It’s about your mindset as a writer. You need to know it’s worth it.
The bottom line is that respecting the three truths and doing both big picture and nitty-gritty research is hard work. But, once you’ve made the commitment and put in the effort to make your writing authentic, you’ll know that you’ve created something meaningful.
And your readers will agree.