Whether you are writing fiction or non-fiction, most of us rely upon research as a big part of our writing process. Our guild has no shortage of members that have taken up the task of significant amounts of research to gather information about their topic before the actual writing process even starts. This past week at our monthly meeting, Dan Swanson, author of Benjamin’s Journey: An Appalachian Memoir conducted a very helpful workshop on research and research methods.
Dan has spent countless hours, years in fact, researching his family history in order to write such a captivating memoir. He explains that writing about history, especially family history, is like putting a puzzle together. The more doors you open, the more questions you end up having. “There is a certain degree of madness involved in this process,” he says half jokingly. “Not only is researching your family tree for a work like this very humbling and thought provoking, but it can also be frustrating,” he goes on to say.
The research, as Dan explained, can be broken down into two types, primary and secondary. Primary research is very hands on such as conducting interviews and traveling to find locations that are relevant to his topic. In Dan’s case, it was tracing the family tree from Appalachia, across the country, and back again. Secondary research, although just as vital, can be very time consuming. This encompasses all of the historical research. These days, thanks to the internet, most of this can be done online but it will also mean spending time in the library and digging through books that can’t be accessed online.
If you’re writing a family history, he suggests websites such as findagrave.com and familysearch.org.
Our guild has been fortunate to have had so many great speakers this year and we are excited about the lineup for 2022. Stay tuned to the guild’s website for information on upcoming events.
Dan has spent countless hours, years in fact, researching his family history in order to write such a captivating memoir. He explains that writing about history, especially family history, is like putting a puzzle together. The more doors you open, the more questions you end up having. “There is a certain degree of madness involved in this process,” he says half jokingly. “Not only is researching your family tree for a work like this very humbling and thought provoking, but it can also be frustrating,” he goes on to say.
The research, as Dan explained, can be broken down into two types, primary and secondary. Primary research is very hands on such as conducting interviews and traveling to find locations that are relevant to his topic. In Dan’s case, it was tracing the family tree from Appalachia, across the country, and back again. Secondary research, although just as vital, can be very time consuming. This encompasses all of the historical research. These days, thanks to the internet, most of this can be done online but it will also mean spending time in the library and digging through books that can’t be accessed online.
If you’re writing a family history, he suggests websites such as findagrave.com and familysearch.org.
Our guild has been fortunate to have had so many great speakers this year and we are excited about the lineup for 2022. Stay tuned to the guild’s website for information on upcoming events.
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