tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post6730801920385050581..comments2024-01-12T11:26:35.176-05:00Comments on Working Stiffs: Fiction vs Facts vs Do Whatever You WantWorking Stiffshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03270595837074553752noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-7677340258812116192011-10-23T09:58:43.201-04:002011-10-23T09:58:43.201-04:00Good point, Steve. I never thought of it like that...Good point, Steve. I never thought of it like that before. <br /><br />Going off to make up more stuff...Joyce Tremelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00498392016497131719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-76591652720013348552011-10-22T13:27:09.372-04:002011-10-22T13:27:09.372-04:00Steve, if I'd seen that Kroner Value plunked o...Steve, if I'd seen that Kroner Value plunked on to a Honda, my first thought would be 'what's a Scandanavian currency doing on a Japanese car?'<br />I'd investigate, and when I found there was no such model, I'd keep reading if the story was interesting, but I'd expect an explanation by book end.<br />PatgPatghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01046665022709722606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-3632897397419179892011-10-22T12:15:08.778-04:002011-10-22T12:15:08.778-04:00I'll be a contrarian here. The funny thing abo...I'll be a contrarian here. The funny thing about writers making stuff up is that readers don't know (pretty much by definition) when they *have* been successfully fooled. If I seem to write knowledgeably about cars, and I use a tampered-with Honda Kroner Valve as a clue in a mystery, and you know zilch about cars, then you'll stick with me - even though there is no such thing as a Kroner Valve. <br /><br />Flip it around: I know nothing about cop shops. If Joyce seems authoritative, she can make up whatever damn police procedure she wants. If she does so skillfully (and I know she will!), she's got me tricked. Nobody sells this kind of stuff better than Lee Child. He writes convincingly about all sorts of geographical areas, paramilitary scenarios, etc. ... but buttonhole him and he'll happily concede he just makes this stuff up! (Child has a great anecdote about watching "My Cousin Vinny" to do "research" on the Deep South.)<br /><br />Now, I'm not speaking *against* accuracy. Naturally, it's vital to have basic facts straight. But ask yourself this: For every error you've caught due to your special field of expertise, how many have you *not* caught? <br /><br />Also, be sure to have your Kroner Valve looked at.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-53184636944613121002011-10-22T11:36:52.600-04:002011-10-22T11:36:52.600-04:00PLOT CONVENIENCE!!! That has to be one of my main ...PLOT CONVENIENCE!!! That has to be one of my main complaints. Lately, TV seems to be running rampant with that one.<br />PatgPatghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01046665022709722606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-23863937095930063462011-10-21T15:07:01.281-04:002011-10-21T15:07:01.281-04:00I try to get my facts as straight as I can. I'...I try to get my facts as straight as I can. I'm writing about horse racing, so my readers are going to be horse racing fans and will know if I screw something up.Annettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02755947919433555176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-56950045103663442242011-10-21T12:18:46.661-04:002011-10-21T12:18:46.661-04:00Jenna, your comment made me LOL.
The way I look ...Jenna, your comment made me LOL. <br /><br />The way I look at it is this: The amateurs can do whatever they can get away with, because they are amateurs. The professionals, however, have to be as professional as possible to be believable. The fun part for the writer is to have the amateur commit an end run around the professional without making both of them look stupid. <br /><br />However, in my mind, there are things that cross the line, and that's when you have otherwise competent police acting like morons or committing felonies to advance the plot. Make it believable or give me a good reason to suspend my disbelief, and I'll buy anything--except plot convenience.Ramonahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00627775403015684868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-59616316076276565192011-10-21T11:21:48.380-04:002011-10-21T11:21:48.380-04:00I agree with Ramona - if the writer gets a fact wr...I agree with Ramona - if the writer gets a fact wrong, it throws me right out of the story and makes me grumble. This is particularly true with legal facts - not the complex, "only the experts know" kind, but the basic everyday facts, like the difference between civil and criminal cases, or that we don't have a formal division between barristers and solicitors in the US, or not knowing that a judge can't legally meet with a litigant privately to discuss the case . . .Ginanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-67098012932882461092011-10-21T11:17:23.767-04:002011-10-21T11:17:23.767-04:00I do want the facts straight in history or technol...I do want the facts straight in history or technology, whether I'm reading or writing, but I also can set aside reality when an author is clearly creating a fictional world. I guess you can tell I write mystery and suspense, since I can jump back and forth on the question. :)Patricia Stolteyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192369425956406122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-86654261632310335492011-10-21T10:48:03.042-04:002011-10-21T10:48:03.042-04:00Don't get me started!
Yes, I do my best to ge...Don't get me started!<br /><br />Yes, I do my best to get my facts straight. Historical facts, forensic facts, scientific facts. Human facts, not so much. The truth is that the chief of police in a small town isn't likely to let the local home renovator interview witnesses, no matter how much he likes her personally. However, if she doesn't get to talk to people, I have nothing to write. So I make my factual facts as factual as I can get them, and if I can't, I write around them - there's a reason why I write amateur sleuths: they know no more than I do - but I'll manipulate character behavior to accomplish what I want. It's fiction. And there's no actual, physical, factual reason why my chief of police *can't* choose to let my home renovator talk to people. So there.Jennahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01442754671445893599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-82294637828079858522011-10-21T10:46:30.584-04:002011-10-21T10:46:30.584-04:00I agree, when you know and work with something all...I agree, when you know and work with something all the time and see someone really flubbing it, it makes you distrust the author.<br />Needless to say, I never read those books where someone is traveling with groups.<br />And, Ramona, you are right about the trust issue. You really start worrying and pretty soon, you put the book down.<br />PatgPatghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01046665022709722606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-49756830896706110982011-10-21T07:53:19.668-04:002011-10-21T07:53:19.668-04:00As a reader, if I catch an error, I'm pulled o...As a reader, if I catch an error, I'm pulled out of the story. I also find I no longer trust the author. <br />To answer your why question, Pat, I try my darndest to get the facts straight, because I don't want readers thinking I'm not trustworthy.Ramonahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00627775403015684868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-18841707044036437382011-10-21T07:50:05.072-04:002011-10-21T07:50:05.072-04:00I'm with Joyce on this - maybe because I worke...I'm with Joyce on this - maybe because I worked for police departments and courts for so many years, too - but it's so annoying when the simplest details are ignored. No, a suspect can't open the back door of a police car and escape. There are no handles inside. And no, your home was not "robbed" while you were on vacation. If no one was home, it was burgled.<br /><br />But then I'm picky like that ;-)<br /><br />Cyndiclpauwelshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17593765516891634999noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-74521663921157586542011-10-21T06:54:57.234-04:002011-10-21T06:54:57.234-04:00After working for a police department for ten year...After working for a police department for ten years, it drives me nuts when writers get their police procedures/facts wrong. It's not that hard to check out! Cops love to talk. Ask them a question and they'll probably tell you more than you want to know. <br /><br />I ran into a detective I used to work with in the grocery store yesterday. He greeted me with, "Guess where I just came from?" And I got the whole story without even asking.Joyce Tremelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00498392016497131719noreply@blogger.com