This is the rundown for a presentation that I did at the Flying Typewriter Society Actually Writing Writers Conference in Milwaukee this weekend. I had a lot of fun putting it together, so maybe you can have fun with it, too.

Research: Avoiding rabbit holes
 Make a list of what you need. Are you writing about fly fishing? You do not need to be checking baseball stats.
 Turn off your Wi-Fi, your TV, and possibly your router. If you have a television in your writing space, keep it turned off and put the remote well out of reach, or just move it into another room. (There is one thing you might need your TV for, but we’ll get to that when we talk about resources.)
 Set a timer. Your timer, your rules, but try to keep it down to an hour or less.
 Don’t stop to do research in the middle of a writing session. Make a quick note about you need and look it up later.
 Create a schedule showing when you research, and when you write. Once you’ve finished your initial research, you shouldn’t need more than half an hour, or at most an hour to do research before you settle down to write.

Research: Being a rabbit
 Before you start a new project, be a rabbit! Dive down that rabbit hole and learn as much as you can about your setting and other elements important to your story. Know the world your characters will live in as much as you can without living there yourself. It helps you inhabit your characters, not just observe them. It also helps keep you from feeling like you need to take research breaks in the middle of your writing time.

Research: Various source materials
 Books – the old standby. They’re dependable, and you can be fairly sure that they’re factual if they’re well-edited and come from a reputable publisher, which is more than can be said for most things on the internet.
 The internet – our common go-to. Use it wisely, and try find those sites that specialize in what you need. Make a folder on your bookmarks bar, so you can save your favorites in case you need to doublecheck something later without having to do a whole web crawl.
 Real live humans – if you know someone who is an expert on your book’s subject, talk to them. Grill them. If not, try to find someone who lives in the world your characters will inhabit and is willing to share.
 Travel – check out the geography. Go to where your story will be set.
 Maps – if your characters live in a particular city, get a map of that city. Don’t have your characters driving south on Lake Shore Drive in order to get to O’Hare.
 YouTube, Netflix, HBOMax, etc. – approach with extreme caution. They may have useful programming, but the rabbit hole danger once you open them is immense. If you really need to see something about your subject on a TV screen, I suggest the Great Courses Plus or Masterclass.
 Alexa or Siri – Need a single fact fast? Ask Alexa! (Or Siri, if that’s your go-to.) Be careful, though – if you let her, Alexa can draw you into a whole conversation about why that fact and what are you doing with it. My Echo has learned that I write and is always asking about what I’m working on. (My Echo and I have an excellent relationship. I trust her to shield me when the cyborgs rise up.)

Resources: Some optional, some essential
 Sleep – Get it. Otherwise, you could wake up to gibberish in the morning.
 Nutrition – A little healthy food won’t kill you.
 A place where you feel comfortable writing. Home office? Local library? Panera? Parking lot at McDonald’s? The possibilities are many.
 Your physical tools for writing. Pen and paper, pencil and paper, tape recorder, computer, flying typewriter – whatever works for you.
 A friend you can talk to who is also a creative – Best. Thing. Ever.
 Healthy snacks and plenty of water – You need hydration and you need to keep hunger from taking you away from your desk. You also need to not wander into the kitchen, pass by where your partner is watching TV, and get sucked into four hours of YouTube videos.
 Kill the noise – A good set of noise-canceling headphones can work wonders. This is especially helpful for us ADHD people.
 Focus music – This is also helpful, at least for me. Just ask Alexa to “Play focus music” and she will oblige. (She will probably oblige with classical focus music, so you might want to come up with some of your own.)
 A good working knowledge of the English language. You gotta know the rules if you’re gonna break ‘em.
 The Chicago Manual of Style – if you have grammar questions, it’s a great go-to. If the size (or price) of The Chicago Manual of Style intimidates you, get a copy of Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style. There’s a cute illustrated version of The Elements of Style if pictures help hold your focus.
 A pen or pencil, and something to write on – Take notes by hand. Trust me, it sticks better.
 A good proofreader, a good editor, and good alpha and beta readers – Also learn the difference between an alpha and a beta reader, which I did this year.
 Books about writing – By actual published writers
 Scrivener – If you’re going to be organizing a wealth of materials, Scrivener is a great app, and still a bargain.
 Autocrit – this is something that could spark debate. It is an online program for writers that uses generative AI, but NOT to write anything for you. The generative AI comes in with its Alpha and Beta readers – they have developed profiles for readers of various genres and you can also develop your own. I was skeptical, but it’s actually very good at pointing out story issues. This only works with the paid version, but it’s worth it if your experience with real life alpha and beta readers has been less than what you hoped it might be, or because you never worked up the nerve to get any. There’s also a free version, which does provide a lot of helpful content and real people to answer your questions.
 Sobriety – I keep reading where writers are celebrating how creative they are when they’re drinking. Really? Again, there’s that risk of waking up to gibberish in the morning. (I’m not saying that it might not work for some people. But I’m going to wake up to nothing but drool on my pillow and serious concerns about what I wrote.)
 Something to make you smile and feel good about yourself – This is entirely your choice, but keep it where you can see it or find it quickly. Examples: I have a copy of my book as part of my office décor, affirming messages from my best buddy, and my very own emotional support dumpster fire.

If you found this useful, please drop me a line at bigbadasswriter@gmail.com and let me know!