The Joy of Research!

I love research! It’s one of my favourite parts of the writing process. It gives me a chance to fully immerse myself in the world I’m creating, so that I have a much deeper sense of the time and place where my characters exist. It’s also invaluable for strengthening my characters by knowing as much about them as I can.

Research helps me define what their day consists of. I know the skills they’ve learned and developed to do their jobs, and how they go about tackling opportunities and challenges.

As you can imagine, research involves a LOT of reading! And I love reading, always have. Looking back at the preliminary research I did for The Bookfinder, I counted about 50 books on many different aspects of history – artists, philosophers, writers, archaeology, books and printing, the Renaissance, Venice, Rome, Prague, the Vatican secret archives, the evolution of paint and colour, cyphers, and a host of stories about different manuscripts. There were plenty of historical blogs and documentaries as well, which was all valuable, but there comes a point where the real juicy insights can’t be found in a book or online. For that, I need to talk to experts in their field.

I can’t recommend doing this highly enough because you gain knowledge about the lived experience that can feed into your world building, setting and characters that just doesn’t happen any other way.

Don’t be afraid either to approach people. I’ve found that everyone I’ve contacted has been incredibly generous with their time and willingness to engage. Once I’ve found the correct details, I start by letting them know that I’m aware of their work. Then, I outline who I am with a brief synopsis of what I’m working on, before asking if they’d be ok to chat with me to help inform an aspect of my novel. I’m always appreciative of any time they can spare and offer to let them read the final manuscript, as well as give them a credit in the acknowledgments for their help.

While researching The Bookfinder, I’d discovered a fascinating Channel 4 documentary about The DaVinci Detective – Professor Maurizio Seracini, director and founder of EDITECH in Florence, which developed diagnostic and non-destructive analytical tools and processes for art and architecture. A pioneering art scientist, Maurizio used cutting-edge technology in his quest to find DaVinci’s lost masterpiece, The Battle of Anghiari. His multi-spectral diagnostic work on DaVinci’s Adoration of the Magi, also informed major restoration treatments, among many others. I was totally in awe of him and thought he'd probably be too busy to respond, but he wrote back with a charming reply saying he would be delighted to talk!

Despite a hectic schedule, we had an enthralling chat over Skype for an hour. He talked to me about his life and work, including techniques, processes, approaches and philosophy. He also offered personal insights that led to suggestions for the story, and it was heart-warming to know that he’d identified with the brief synopsis I’d given him, which helped reaffirm that it was a story worth telling.

His wonderful contribution helped me shape the practicalities of my protagonist, Julia, conducting art restoration work. He also advised that I observe the difference between authentication and attribution, which he said is hardly ever applied. As a result of our conversation, I was totally clear on how to create a realistic picture of Julia’s work environment and philosophy, as well as the tools and techniques she would use. I also realised that I needed to create a new character to help Julia with the authentication process for verisimilitude. As an added bonus with this new character, they would also introduce a new intriguing conflict to support the trajectory of Julia’s character arc.

Emboldened, I approached others, like Jevon Thistlewood, a paintings conservator at the Ashmolean Museum of Art & Archaeology, who was enormously helpful with processes and infrastructure. Humanitarian Consultants, Ben Mascall and Dina Prior, spoke about their experiences as aid workers to help inform the character Leopold, who works in Libya before an accident changes his life. Antiquarian and rare book sellers, Charlie Unsworth and Benjamin Maggs, were invaluable for perspectives on rare finds, the value of provenance, and book finder networks across the UK, Europe and America.

There were quite a few more, but to keep this brief, the key message here is: don’t be afraid to approach an expert.

Aim high too and contact leading experts in their field. The worst that can happen is you don’t receive a response. It’s something that hasn’t happened to me so far, although realistically it could. But in my experience, if you’re respectful, knowledgeable and your story captures an expert’s imagination, they’re usually happy to help. It’s also a joy to speak with such interesting people who’ve spent a lifetime passionately exploring their vocation. Their experiences can enrich your story and, above all, make it more believable.