Comment

Comment by Prof. Laszlo on May 19, 2010 at 4:32pm

I'm certain they each wanted one...

How does one know which "expert" to believe...

Murders are commonplace...

Journalists are plentiful...

Master Showman are rare, and difficult to understand...

Write about rocket science, or perhaps brain surgery, these also require no specialized knowledge...

History is often a pack of lies written by the victorious parties hired scribes...

Truth is elusive, an effort is required to capture it...

Comment by Betty Webb on May 19, 2010 at 3:49pm

And did Tolstoy have a sex-change operation before writing "Anna Karenina?" Or did Flaubert have one before writing "Madame Bovary"? Research is a given as a prerequiste for tacking any subject, but as a journalist for more than 20 years, I know that besides experiencing an event oneself, going to expert sources can work, too. Otherwise, no history books would be written, either, unless the writer was present at every event. As for a "good story," good stories are about the human heart, and we all have them.

Comment by Prof. Laszlo on May 19, 2010 at 3:35pm

Did John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr. do his research to write about the Joads by tasting grapes?

In order to know what to write, one must be familiar with the subject matter…

Having someone check your facts for correctness does not give you a good story…

Herman Melville did not interview sailors…

Comment by Betty Webb on May 19, 2010 at 2:02pm

Love it! :-)

Comment by Prof. Laszlo on May 19, 2010 at 1:19pm

... So let's hope you don't murder the truth about the carnival...

Comment by Betty Webb on May 19, 2010 at 8:18am

Hi, Prof. Laszlo... in other words, I still need to run away and join the carnival? Ah, how I'd love to. However, my contract calls for a new book every 10 months, and all that packing, and travelling, and setting up would get in the way. That's why I'm relying on "help from strangers." I've already been lucky and found two local ex-carnys (one I already knew, but didn't realize she'd led a different life) to give me info. They'll be reading the first draft of my first "carnival" book to spot & correct any errors. As for having to lead the life myself... I've written about murderers for many years now and yet haven't had to murder anyone in order to write believably about one. So let's hope...

Comment by Prof. Laszlo on May 19, 2010 at 7:40am

Good books about carnival life are scarce...
Those capable of clever and imaginative writing are the least likely to have been drawn to a life on the road as they are usually too well educated to join the nomadic misfits of the carnival world...
Carnival Folk, on the other hand, tend to be less literate as a general rule...
In Writing, one must be intimately familiar with the subject matter, or the story will simply not have the ring of truth to it...
Your choices, Madam Novelist, are quite clear...
Devote the time to learn the culture, or collaborate...