Tuesday, January 14, 2014

The Research Behind the Embrace Series

Even in fantasy there’s research to be done. Since my novels are set in the modern world, I first had to research the setting. The climate, landmarks, high schools, population, all the way down to which beaches are good for collecting seashells and how often the light on Annisquam Lighthouse flashes (every 7.5 seconds for those curious). It was important to me that these details were as accurate as I could make them so that the reader would feel like he or she was in Gloucester, Massachusetts, right next to Madison.

My research didn’t stop with getting to know Gloucester. I wanted the surnames of my characters to have meaning too, so the characters whose families have lived in Massachusetts for generations have last names of one of the families that had settled in that area back in the 1600s. This is something most readers will never know, but it’s the type of detail I like to include in my stories. 

I did an equal amount of research on the paranormal elements. Since I don’t want to give away any spoilers, and since my publisher and I purposely don’t say what it is in the synopsis for Embrace (book 1) I’ll simply say that I dug into the known lore to see how I could weave it into the world I was creating. I studied the different myths, their believed weaknesses, why people feared them, and how people protected themselves from the unknown. I then put my own spin on them. Ones I hope a reader will enjoy.


Read EMBRACE today: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Read HOLD TIGHT today: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

8 comments:

  1. That is so cool about the names! And even though I would've never picked up on that, I love knowing that there's so much depth to the research. Everything about Embrace felt authentic. And Hold Tight is soooo close to the top of my reading list. (Curse me and my slow reading ability.)

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    1. I'm a slow reader too. ;) And I'm glad you felt that way about Embrace.

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  2. I've just added EMBRACE to my to-read list on Goodreads! Your research on the paranormal elements of your book must have been lots of fun. It's great to know which parts of your novel you focused your research on (:

    Thanks for following my blog, by the way!

    Sherlyn @ Mermaid with a Book

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  3. Hi Cherie, just stopping by to say how delightful your blog is. Thanks so much for sharing. I have recently found your blog and am now following you, and will visit often. Please stop by my blog and perhaps you would like to follow me also. Have a wonderful day. Hugs, Chris
    http://chelencarter-retiredandlovingit.blogspot.ca/

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  4. You're into the fun part- at least from my perch it is.

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