HANK: So thrilled to introduce you to a sister Hoosier! The wonderful Diana Catt joins us today…and she is revealing the hilarious pitfalls of internet-only research.
Read her wonderful post–a true cautionary tale for writers--and then let us know: Has this ever happened to you?
(She is also the President of the Speed City Indiana chapter of Sisters in Crime and –breaking news! –the co-chair of the Bouchercon 2028 – Indianapolis committee. (Members please vote for our bid at Bouchercon Nashville! More about that below.).)
Imagination Versus Reality
by Diana Catt
I published my debut novel, Death Map, just as we came out of the pandemic. In ‘the before times,’ I had published twenty-some short stories. The short story format was easier for me to find time for as I was raising three kids and operating my own business. I’m now semi-retired, kids are grown, and I almost have my second novel in the series finished.
For fun, I like birding and the slow walk that birders do, with ears and eyes on alert, ready to pause and search the treetops. I took ornithology classes as an undergrad, loved it, and considered making that my career. Same with creative writing. I had a knack for story-telling, loved it, but was afraid I wouldn’t make any money. Instead, I fell big time for the microbial world and decided bacteria, viruses and fungi would be my life focus and my other two loves would become hobbies. It’s been a happy balance.
I also love traveling, especially to places that I want to write about in my fiction - to see if my imagination lives up to reality. Even with Google searches I sometimes come up short.
For example, I wrote a scene for Death Map that took place in a small fictional town set in North Dakota. I modeled this town after the small town near my home in Indiana. Basically, I plopped my town found in Morgan County, as is, down in North Dakota and called it done.
Morgan County Indiana with fenced in pastures and wooded areas. Not shown, but very common in Indiana: corn and soybean fields.
Thankfully, hubs Barry and I took a timely vacation to Yellowstone NP and ended up driving through ND on the way home to Indiana (we like to drive 😊). North Dakota is beautiful, but NOTHING like where I live in Indiana.
North Dakota with rolling grasslands, not very many trees, no fence rows.
Glad I saw with my own eyes and made the descriptive changes before I finished the novel!
One of my future projects is set in California in the Serra Nevada’s near Truckee. Again, my Google searches and imagination were no match for reality. Locations I intended to have my protagonist hike back and forth between while carrying a heavy load were WAY too far apart. I’m now giving her a rental car, lol. So glad we drove home from Bouchercon San Diego via Truckee! Beautiful country in which to set a mystery!
But too far to hike while carrying a ladder!
Question: Where have you traveled that turned out to be different from your imagination? If you write, how do you research a location?
HANK: Great question! (And those photos are hilarious...you must have laughed and laughed.) I have to say I was thrilled to see Mt. Rushmore, but it was much smaller than I had imagined. But the Eiffel Tower was perfect!
Diana Catt (www.dianacatt.com) has 20+ short stories appearing in anthologies published by Blue River Press, Red Coyote Press, Pill Hill Press, Wolfmont Press, The Four Horseman Press, Speed City Press, and Level Best Books. Her collection, Below the Line, is available on Amazon. Her debut novel is Death Map (Per Bastet Publications, LLC, 2022) and she is working on two sequels in this series. Diana is a PhD microbiologist and is the owner/operator of an environmental microbiology lab. She is often hunting in scary places for mold and finding unexpected and mysterious things that wind up in her stories.
DEATH MAP
Lila Kincaid, an investigative reporter, becomes legal guardian of her 12 year-old godson who’s been accused of murdering his mother. Suddenly, this traumatized boy exposes Lila’s secret grief, previously understood only by her oncologist, and gives her a hope for motherhood.
She vows to uncover the cause of the boy’s abrupt and bizarre behavioral change. When Lila’s research locates similar cases related only by age of the offenders and zero predisposing risk factors for violent crime, she notices a remarkable geographic connection linking these few cases. Her death map makes headline news but inspires a twisted cover-up designed to silence the investigation.
The boy’s salvation and hers are linked to the truth behind the Death Map murders and Lila risks her very life to find the answer.
Death Map is the first in a series of three involving Lila, her investigations, and her journey toward self-fulfillment.
Death Map will appeal to fans of Tess Gerritsen’s “Bloodstream,” and Gillian Flynn’s “Dark Places.”
Lila Kincaid, an investigative reporter, becomes legal guardian of her 12 year-old godson who’s been accused of murdering his mother. Suddenly, this traumatized boy exposes Lila’s secret grief, previously understood only by her oncologist, and gives her a hope for motherhood.
She vows to uncover the cause of the boy’s abrupt and bizarre behavioral change. When Lila’s research locates similar cases related only by age of the offenders and zero predisposing risk factors for violent crime, she notices a remarkable geographic connection linking these few cases. Her death map makes headline news but inspires a twisted cover-up designed to silence the investigation.
The boy’s salvation and hers are linked to the truth behind the Death Map murders and Lila risks her very life to find the answer.
Death Map is the first in a series of three involving Lila, her investigations, and her journey toward self-fulfillment.
Death Map will appeal to fans of Tess Gerritsen’s “Bloodstream,” and Gillian Flynn’s “Dark Places.”
Links:
https://www.speedcitysistersincrime.org/
visitIndy.com
I guess this proves the internet is not always as infallible as we've come to believe it to be . . . .
ReplyDeleteI'm fascinated by the differences in places I've traveled . . . a new place is almost always a pleasant surprise . . . .
I'm not sure its an internet limitation as much as a me problem, lol.
DeleteYes--I've never been to NIagara Falls for instance, and I always wonder how my mind's eye view compares to reality.
DeleteNiagara Falls is like the Grand Canyon. The pictures of the GC don't give you the massive scale of the width and depth. Niagara Falls is similar because the sound of the water, the spray, and moisture in the air really makes you feel the power and energy of the water cascading over the falls.
DeleteI'm laughing because I can easily see this happening to me. Everywhere is just like the area I'm familiar with, right?
ReplyDeleteIt is a trap, right?
DeleteExactly!
DeleteWow, Diana, that is some cover! I would pick that book up in a bookstore!
ReplyDeleteThe synopses of the book fits perfectly. Death Map sounds like a very intriguing story and Lila is in the right profession to figure it out.
In answer to your question, yes, I am sure it has happened to me. Even if I have been somewhere, my visual memory changes what I really have seen, so photos would be necessary. I have a pet peeve about physical descriptions. I have been in places where traffic jams are so frequent and severe that an author saying that the protagonist just got in the car and arrived without experiencing one is laughable. Maybe sometimes, but really!
Yes, those specific details can be hard to find without first hand experience. Part of my reading pleasure is to experience a place I've never been. Part of my writing pleasure is getting the setting right. (Or, maybe I'm building an excuse to travel?)
DeleteTrue! A traffic jam can be a tough things to write, though, because unless it is carefully foreshadowed, it can come across as contrived. And if it IS foreshadowed, then it's the gun on the table.
DeleteGreetings from a fellow birder and a five-year Hoosier! Yes, there's no substitute for visiting a place you're writing about. It's also a reason I like to make up the towns in my books, so I don't get streets wrong and can make up businesses to find bodies in. Congratulations on your new one - and for giving me a reason to go back to Indiana in a few years.
ReplyDeleteThat is the glory of fiction, isn't it? Looking forward to an Indy reunion!
DeleteCannot wait for Indy Bouchercon! DIana, keep us posted!
DeleteI'll keep you posted for sure!
DeleteEdith: one of the weirdest experiences I've had was driving in Boston. This was back in the days pre GPS when we used AAA maps. We'd follow the map - turn right on x street then turn L on y street and so on. But they didn't mention that many of the streets in Boston are one way or blocked by trucks...it was a nightmare. It reminded me of the song about driving in Boston ... 'Will we ever return, no will never return, and our fate is still unknown, we will drive forever 'ver the streets of Boston ...
DeleteWelcome Diana! You've got a fascinating POV for an investigative reporter! My series is (mostly) confined to Key West so not hard to research. I still find mistakes in the first book when I didn't know it so well and got the geography and one-way streets wrong...
ReplyDeleteDeath Map took me out of my familiar area. But it was fun!
Deleteoh it's all fiction... :-)
DeleteDiana, I love anything geography related, especially maps! To answer your question, the only thing I can think of is when my family were travelling west and when we were in Wisconsin I was struck by how much it looked like home. So, sort of the opposite of your problem. Wyoming was not what I pictured, at least the southern part we were driving through. That could be the trouble - as long as one is driving on the interstate highways - we do not get a true picture of the area.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to reading your book. Truckee caught my eye; someday I'd like to go there but for now reading about it will have to do. The hiking wasn't in the winter, was it?
Yes, the interstates can be misleading! But once you take an exit, reality begins.
DeleteNo, winters in the Sierra Nevada mountains can be harsh. I learned all about the Donner Party tragedy at the park there. They won't be featured in my story 'cause I have enough dangerous stuff for my protagonist without cannibalism....unless...hmm.
ReplyDeleteOh nooooooo
DeleteI am teaching a class this morning, but I will be back this afternoon… see you then!
ReplyDeleteOh, rats. That was me, Hank, above.
ReplyDelete😀
DeleteDIANA: Welcome to Jungle Reds and Congratulations on the publication of DEATH MAP. This is going to be a long comment this morning.
ReplyDeleteYour surname Catt reminded me of the former American Ambassador’s name Catto with an O at the end. He visited American students in England.
Great question! Even before the Internet existed, I recall traveling with my family as a child. Sometimes I would be disappointed because when we arrived at the destination, it looked nothing like the photos that I saw of the place! I agree that it is better to see a place in person. While you can see the photos on the Internet, it is nothing compared to seeing the place in person. You also get to hear the sounds, smell the air, feel the terrain when walking or using a wheelchair, and taste the food from a takeaway or grocery shop.
Now with the Internet, I am thinking of GPS. Sometimes the maps do not take you to where you want to go. Once we were enroute to a meeting in Danville, CALIFORNIA and the GPS was set up for Danville, KENTUCKY.
Interesting topic today because I just started reading the Intrigue of Witches novel by Esme Addison this week about the topic of Virtual Reality.
Diana
Oh, virtual reality! It's the same as when we imagine things, right, but come to life!
DeleteI haven't read the Intrigue of Witches. Love that title!
DeleteI rely on GPS a lot for my job, but for cross-country trips nothing beats a physical atlas, especially if you can be flexible and make spur of the moment side trips!
ReplyDeleteWell, you don't get the whole picture with GPS--but it's harder to get lost! Unless...you WANT to get lost...
DeleteBefore I visit a place for the first time. I read as much as possible about it before I go, both fiction and non-fiction. Sometimes I instantly recognize places or landmarks as soon as I see them. Other times it’s not the way I expected it to be. Either way, it’s an adventure!
ReplyDeleteDebRo
And I agree, it's fun either way1
DeleteDeb, totally agree! I love big adventures but there are so many really cool spots within a few hours drive that I also want to explore.
ReplyDeleteI am not a writer, but have been an extensive traveler.
ReplyDeleteI have always done a lot of photography on my trips and often based where I was going on pictures I had seen and decided I wanted to see those places.
I have never been disappointed in the locations, but also have never found those places to be as I had envisioned them. Even with maps streets and buildings were always different in reality from what I thought they were going to look like.
When I went to the Grand Canyon, I did a lot of reading and saw views from different perspectives in photos before I went. It did not prepare me for the enormity of what I actually saw. There was a gift shop there which had an exit facing the canyon and when I walked through and saw it I was stunned by the view.
Many cities I went to such as Santa Fe NM and others were very different from what I expected.
I always enjoyed them, I just didn’t think they would look the way they did.
London was about the only place I found similarities because it reminded me very much of the Boston area including a lot of identically named streets.
SO agree about London and Boston!
DeleteI'm not familiar with Boston, but London has so many iconic landmarks that show up on movies that I what I saw as a tourist was wonderfully familiar!
DeleteGood points Anonymous. The first time I went to England (particularly London) I felt many places were familiar and what I imagined from reading and seeing places in pictures and on TV.
DeleteAthens was a bit disappointing as I expected it to be much different than what I thought. The Greek islands were more lovely than expected though.
I found the Tuscany area of Italy to be beautiful as I had imagined but there wasn't as much to do and see as there was in some places in France with the cathedrals, and especially the cafes and restaurants. Norway was another place that the photos didn't even come close to the natural breathtaking beauty of the fjords and mountains.
Oh, Ive always wanted to go to Norway. Love places that are better than the pictures!
DeleteI had been reading some books set in Deadwood, SD so when I got the chance to travel there, I jumped on it. I had been expecting brown hills and a dusty town. Nope. Beautiful verdant hills and a lively, colorful town. I still think about moving there!
ReplyDeleteLOVE Deadwood!
DeleteI loved Deadwood and the Black Hills in general. Not because of the wild wild west history but because of the comforting feeling of the pine-covered hills and the lovely mountain streams running along side the roads. Its one if my favorites. I could live there, too!
DeleteI had to use Google Earth among other resources for my first London based novel - Oy. Defintiely not as great as being there. Congratulations on your release! I can't wait to read it!
ReplyDeleteI still think you did a great job, Jenn!
DeleteHigh praise, Jenn!
DeleteThanks, Jenn!
DeleteLoved this post, Diana! I've had to depend on Google Earth a lot more than I'd like, especially during the pandemic when I couldn't get to London. Nothing beats feet-on-the-ground research!
ReplyDeleteTrue!
DeleteSo true! I'm glad our world has opened up again!
DeleteSo far I've only written about places I'm familiar with. Saves wear and tear. My biggest problem is that my locations set in Florida are only valid until the next hurricane screams through.
ReplyDeleteKAIT! You won Katherine Reay's THE BERLIN LETTERS! Email me at hank@hankphillippiryan.com and I will get you your book!
DeleteWow, Kait, I have to keep that in mind if I ever set a story on the coast. We get random streaks of damage from tornados here in the mid-west. Forest fires can also drastically change a location. Gotta give Mother Nature some respect for keeping us on our toes!
Delete