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Laurie R. King
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LAURIE R. KING ANSWERS READERS' QUESTIONS
MELRANMI@aol.com, MysAndyCat@aol.com and Stichigh@aol.com all had questions for King about the research for her Mary Russell novels including:
- How does she find time for all the research?
- Does she travel to the places you send Russell and Holmes? If so, how long do
you spend in these locations to know so much about the countryside, people, politics and language?
Here is her reply:
If you regard research as a necessary but unpleasant part of the job, I suppose it makes sense to wonder how a person manages to get it done.
However, research is more sport than work ---- the patient and sharp-eyed sifting of spoor, the thrill of the chase down the long library stacks, the bone-deep satisfaction when faint sign of the game (ahem) grows into something real and alive before your eyes.
Research is addictive. To my mind, the greater question is, with all that great sport going on, how does she find time to write the book?
One short-cut is, large parts of the background material for the Russell books apply to all the books, with slight adjustments for the progression of time. I've also been to India, lived in Oxford, walked on Dartmoor and the desert of Israel, so a certain amount of familiarity is there to begin with, before buckling down at the library.
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COMMENTS FROM READERS
jalocke@comcast.net
Dear Ms. King,
I am an avid reader, biblioholic and "writer" --- memoirs and tales, book reviewer.
I am not familiar with your work; but have read excerpts from Bookreporter.com and your writings sound of interest to me. And, will be sure to pick up a copy of one of your books at our local library.
Continued success to you.
SHAINOW@aol.comt
The only comment I would have for Ms. King is that I really like her idea of the duo of Holmes and Russell. Don't use so many big words, that a person has to keep looking them up! Tie all your loose ends together. And maybe don't make it so "easy" at the end of a story where all works out just perfectly.
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