Comments on: How To Write About A Real Location If You Haven’t Been There

By: Snigdha

Snigdha — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 09:23:23 +0000

What if… I can imagine the kind of place I want in my head but I want a real, geographical location to place my story in?

By: Ryan S. Fortney

Ryan S. Fortney — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 01:12:42 +0000

Good tips! In my novel, PaxCorpus, the setting is both Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and Manhattan, NYC. Having lived in Harrisburg most of my life, this was easy. As far as Manhattan went, I loaded up Google maps and researched a lot of different things like locations.

And, being the kind of book that it is, I think I was able to “draw” up a believable vision of a post-apocalyptic Manhattan-Harrisburg setting.

By: Gibson Goff

Gibson Goff — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 21:56:09 +0000

Great article, Joanna. You had me at number 1 – use it as an excuse for a trip! yes! calling that one into existence!

Anywhooooo, another great way for authors writing crime fiction, spy craft or smuggling stuff, go to the state dept or even AAA websites and get a feel for the ‘seedy’ side of things in the area. It may give you a specific neighborhood, or tribe to watch for. Then just interject a little ‘selected info’ into your works and voila, you’re a native!

Great stuff, Joanna. Thanks.

By: la creme

la creme — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 14:04:29 +0000

This is true, there is no point writing about somewhere you haven’t been to.

By: Dixie-Ann

Dixie-Ann — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 02:47:50 +0000

Very good ideas. Favouriting this article. Have you already written an article on how to research historical fiction? I am amazed sometimes on how some great authors seem to have such a firm grasp on the everyday lives of times gone by. I never feel as if the history books I have read, have helped me withthis.

By: Helpful Writing Sites and Blog Posts – August 2010 Edition « The Graceful Doe's Blog

Sun, 29 Aug 2010 05:10:56 +0000

[...] How to Write About a Real Location if You Haven’t Been There [...]

By: From the Haphazard Twitter Files of Ms. Bookish (No. 3) - Ms. Bookish

From the Haphazard Twitter Files of Ms. Bookish (No. 3) - Ms. Bookish — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 16:26:53 +0000

[...] do you write about a real location if you haven’t been there? The Creative Penn has a bunch of great tips – and I discovered Google Street View (when you zoom in to street level, drag the little person [...]

By: M. Jones

M. Jones — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 23:36:36 +0000

Get to know people from different countries and cultures. I have a lot of friends from all over the world, and you need not go further than their kitchen and a cup of coffee (Turkish or Greek or African bush tea ) to get a wonderful understanding and feel for their mother countries.

By: dirtywhitecandy

dirtywhitecandy — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:50:14 +0000

Excellent post. While actual travel will give you details that research can’t match, that’s beyond most of us. Before the days of broadband I ghosted several novels set in countries I’d never been to, so learned the value of guidebooks and novels set in those places! I think one of the biggest myths has to be ‘write what you know’. With diligent research and a genuine thirst to get details right you can fake all sorts of experiences – including first-hand knowledge of a country and culture.

By: Joanna Penn

Joanna Penn — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 21:40:37 +0000

That’s great Joan – sometimes that feeling you had somewhere makes the difference in your writing, but only coupled with thorough research. Thanks.