Research...Too Much or Just Enough?

So the theme for this month is investigation. More specifically: research. Every writer worth their salt does a lot of research. Whether we're creating worlds from scratch or trying to get the correct terms for a particular occupation to get things just right, we do a lot of research.

I once had a teacher (believe this or not) say that there was such a thing as too much research. Initially I thought, "what rubbish," but now I can honestly say that when it comes to certain things, yes, there can be too much research. Research for it's own sake is good I think. Never stop learning and expanding your knowledge base are two things that I feel are important to a writer. What makes it into your story is where your inner editor kicks in. Just because you've learned all the lingo or terms for a particular occupation of a character, it doesn't mean that they should be used exclusively or at every opportunity. I've found that I personally can fall into the trap of using a word and simply assuming that others will know what I mean though context. I find things like that when I edit. It's especially true once I've been working with a particular work for a while and intensively. I get so into it, you know?

Since my opinion of research has been somewhat concise I'm going to talk about organization. Of course as we collect our copious amounts of research we have to put it somewhere. There are lots of methods from the simple to the downright extreme. I used to print pages and assemble them into a binder or folder. I know some people that are fond of post-its and plastering a wall of their favorite writing spot at home. Then, of course, there are dozens of writing and organizational-type pieces of software that allow a writer to combine their research and their writing all in one place. Microsoft One Note and Evernote are two programs that are geared to note taking alone though many writers swear by these when they prefer simple word processor applications like Microsoft Word, Notepad, or Open Office Writer. I've heard that the One Note program is really awesome when paired with a tablet since you can write in it like a notebook. Evernote has stepped up its game and paired with Molskine (my notebook of choice for everything) to bring a notebook that can be photographed with Evernote's Page Camera and become digital information in seconds. I haven't had the opportunity to try this myself but I think that once I fill my current notebook I will definitely give a try! I would love to have digital copies of my notes if only for backup!

Then, of course, there are the many kinds of writing software. Some people still love to write by hand. Yes, I mean with a pen or pencil on paper. While that's fine I'm indefinitely faster at typing to get my thoughts out on paper. There are times that I just have to write on paper though. It's like an itch. There's something extremely gratifying about putting a pen to paper and feeling the ink glide across the paper. That being said, I'll turn back to the software issue. There are very popular applications such as Scrivner, Storyist, and yWriter that will contain pretty much any kind of research you want as well as your story-in-progress. I have fiddled with all three and I prefer yWriter. For me it's a blend of a desirable interface and the perfect price. It's free! There is no "right" or "wrong" way to organize research. It's all what works best for the individual.

I think that covers just about everything (and then some, I'm sure) of my thoughts on research. It's a rambling account so I apologize and hope that my two cents are worth something to someone out there!