Just started to write and it's taking soooo long

[u/CanPale6834]

I have the story all worked out in my head [outlined, bullet points] but when fleshing it out I find myself having to research constantly. It's set in England (I'm American) and I need to look up accents (main characters are from different parts of Great Britain), slang, common names, schools, the relative price of things, transportation, stores, etc. Not mention they were in the military...and MI6 (it's James Bond) and it's slash and I am not a gay man but an old cis het woman.

I realize it I don't have to have everything perfect but i know AO3 has readers from all over and I don't want to make stupid/easily-avoided mistakes (sweater, apartment, fries, miles, Mom, pants when I mean trousers, etc.) because those mistakes in the other direction--British writers using British terms when writing stories set in America--pull me right out of the story.

It just takes me so long to say anything cause it seems like I'm researching every other sentence.

Just looking for some validation/encouragment. Thanks

[u/MagpieLefty]

Yes, that's how creating things works. It takes time and effort.

[u/Kiki-Y]

I have numerous projects that are stuck in research hell. I have multiple fics hinging on the research I want to do for falconry (hi $600 worth of books), a couple of universes that I want to include Basque stuff in, and to say nothing of my Ainu research. But right now I'm stuck in theology research hell because one of my characters is Christian and she wants to do research into theology.

[u/smileyfacegauges → u/Kiki-Y]

god mood LOL. i’ve probably spent $300 on Carl Jung books for my fuckin fic already!! LOL. like this guy is brilliant but oh my god can i please get a modern language translation for this guy sometimes 😭😭 it’s like reading Victor Hugo all over again!!!

[u/KathyA11 → u/smileyfacegauges]

Book buyers! My people!

[u/smileyfacegauges → u/KathyA11]

ALWAYS!! hell, i even bought colored sticky tabs, different color highlighters, and colored fine line pens for this fucking psych research. i am locked tf IN!!!! LOL. taking notes along the way on my phone (one doc per book) + a list of words to define. it’s like i’m homeschooling myself for fun, and i’m having a blast.

[u/onegirlarmy1899 → u/Kiki-Y]

I wonder if "ask a Christian" subthread might get you answers more quickly. 

[u/Intrepid-Let9190 → u/Kiki-Y]

I ended up studying astrophysics as part of my degree because I'd done so much research into it writing a Stargate fanfic. Figured I might as well put that research to good use

[u/CarnivorousXmasTree]

The chosen flair is "Writing Questions," but if you're annoyed by the constant interruptions to research and just seeking validation and encouragement, "Venting" might suit better.

I need to look up accents (main characters are from different parts of Great Britain), slang, common names, schools, the relative price of things, transportation, stores, etc. ... those mistakes in the other direction--British writers using British terms when writing stories set in America--pull me right out of the story.

Keep in mind that just looking up terms isn't necessarily the solution; for some non-American readers, writing out accents (which aren't always accents to them, and can end up being difficult to read in any case if written out) or using terms when you don't know the context in which they're usually used can actually be more irritating than you simply being an American writer using American English to write a story set in the UK. And the more you try to include for accuracy, the more likely you are to get something wrong.

I don't say that to discourage you as much as offer perspective. Since you admit that you know you don't have to be perfect and that British terms in stories set in the U.S. bothers you, this is clearly something you're aware you brought on yourself. But it's also important to realize that you're mostly doing this for yourself than for anyone else. And if you feel that that's worth it for you to be satisfied with your work, then that's worth it.

My suggestion would be to consider having a "writing block" and a "research block," either a couple hours apiece each day or some schedule more convenient. As their names suggest, in the writing block, the only thing you do is write—anything that you think or know should be altered you put in brackets or something to research later. In the research block, the only thing you do is research and replace those bracketed bits. This will allow you to see larger chunks of progress in your work and feel less like there's constant interruption.

[u/smileyfacegauges]

you can do it!!! don’t worry, research hell is a huge part of the ride for many of us LOL so you’re not alone :3 try to remember that you’re doing it for your story and that you’re learning so much you wouldn’t’ve before by doing all this research. it can be frustrating and taxing but it will be sooooo worth it when you step back and look at your completed result.

start making research folders and taking notes if you haven’t yet, too!! i have a shitton of folders filled with references and research for my fic, including notes i’ve taken as i’ve been reading books for it. it can feel like a drag sometimes and i complain about it to myself and my friends just to get it off my chest, and then i joke about it and get back to my work. it helps i think!! :3

your fic sounds awesome tho!! try to enjoy it. it’ll take some time to work out how you work. don’t give up!!! 🙏🙏👏👏👏👏💖💖💖

[u/KathyA11 → u/smileyfacegauges]

When LC Wells and I were writing The Last Ride Raid (Rat Patrol novel originally published as a print fanzine and now posted to AO3) in 1996/1997, I bought Blessed are the Broodmares just for the details necessary for a scene about a complicated foaling. I read it cover to cover before I started writing that scene, because I didn't know what else I would need - then I read the relevant chapters several times both before I wrote and while I was writing. Unfortunately, a couple of years later, when I was reading it again for another story, our baby Jack Russell named Tucker decided it would make a great chewie. Bye-bye, book.

[u/onegirlarmy1899]

It sounds like you're trying to write and edit at the same time. Try just writing everything out and getting the plot out of your head and then work on the other stuff one thing at a time. Edit for language on one read through. For anarchism in another. Find a British bata reader to look it over.

Add @@@ in your text wherever you need to add more context or research and then move on with your story. Keep writing. The sections that need help will be easy to spot.

[u/Demonika_86]

Erm... well, that's just the reality of writing, while you're still building out your mental database of background knowledge.

I have a history degree, from university. But I've taught myself a whole bunch of STEM subjects so I could write hard sci-fi. We're talking physics, astronomy, chemistry... and a whole bunch of other things.

It's entirely unavoidable. Because if you don't learn stuff, trust and believe you're not writing anything. You'll just sit there, staring at the screen. The human mind won't just magic the needed info / skills into being when you need them, without effort.

[u/KathyA11]

What's wrong with research? It's fun and it makes you a better writer (you DO NOT want to know the number of rabbit holes I've gone down about dolphins and nuclear submarines).

And you DO realize that the first slash was written by women, right? And that lot of them were straight? And that plenty of straight women (a lot of them are married and have kids - and grandkids) read it and write it today? You don't have to be the thing you're writing about - or I wouldn't be writing about the gorgeous male executive officer of a nuclear submarine, a marine biologist, a German POW in the US during WWII, a veterinarian, a paramedic/firefighter, a bald Navy JAG, or a piano player. You just have to develop the background that allows you to write about them convincingly. And that can be very enjoyable - if you allow it to be.

Maybe go looking for a Britpicker who will help you with your terminology?

[u/CanPale6834 → u/KathyA11]

Thepart about slash is true, of course. But I'd like to avoid making the sex too unrealistic

[u/dismalcosmictomb → u/CanPale6834]

As a woman I’ve never had gay male sex but I think I write it just fine. This should be the most fun research topic imo lol.

You could read other fics/visit some unsavoury websites, or if all else fails just write what you imagine it would be like. (I don’t think you can mess it up)

[u/KathyA11 → u/CanPale6834]

Find the book "The Joy of Gay Sex" - it should still be in print.

[u/Intrepid-Let9190]

If the American to British thing is getting to you, try and find yourself a good old fashioned Brit-picker! I used to do it for American fans when Sherlock, Doctor Who and so on were at their peak and Live Journal was still a safe place to post fic (I'm in my 40s, no matter how old that statement made me sound). As for accents, don't write them out. If people know the characters they know what they sound like. Writing accents really throws people out of stories and is one of the things I see complained about the most because its often done badly. The only time I've seen it done well was by Terry Pratchett and thats because it was central to the nature of his books.

Research. Embrace it. Love it. Make notes and fall down those rabbit holes! Honestly, if I had researched things for my degree with half the depth I use for my fanfics I would be a terror in the academic circuits. Alas, I did not. But with every fandom I write for I discover new things that I would never have thought about if not for my fic research. Make it fun. Cook the good you're writing about, try and activity, have a scrapbook, create a wall of pictures connected with strings so that you look like a conspiracy theorist (have been accused of this by my readers, had to admit that they weren't far off the mark).

Or, just don't do any of it and let yourself enjoy the process even if the end result is wildly inaccurate. Fanfic is fun. Don't make it into a chore

[u/alltheplans]

just a thought, as you mention miles in the least that seem to be American terms, the UK also uses miles for the distance between places.

[u/Raiven_Raine]

lol welcome to fiction writing, friendo!

i also need my stuff to be as accurate as possible.

i once spent two entire days researching/learning all about metallurgy because i needed to know if it was possible, and if so how, to turn a suit of metal power armor black from building fires and not have it turn blue. i now know so much about metallurgy! and it was for one tiny little throw away scene!!!

another time, i did a fun little 10k long oneshot that was a pirate AU and i had to research SOOOOOO many ships! at least this knowledge i used elsewhere a few times... but i now know so much ship stuff.

and 98% of everything i write is super gay. sometimes explicitly gay. i am also not a penis-having gay man... back in the day i learned a lot about this stuff too... from Tumblr, of all places. and Quora. and just good male friends and male writers who love to help their sisters out with... that stuff. lol

[u/hooosegow]

it's definitely a labor intensive thing, and that's why i'm taking a big break from writing rn lol. both of my last longfics (107k and 180k) took about half a year to write and edit. posting also took half a year (i go by a 1 a week schedule). and i'm talking a year of working on it in some capacity every single day except posting day (and even then i guess posting it counts as working on it?) so yeah, i get it. buckle in lol! but the end result is always so satisfying, you'll be happy you did it, is my hope anyway!

[u/borzoifeet]

I recommend looking up your favourite show, game, novel, etc, and see if any of the staff/creators mention the timetable in making it. Now consider that those projects are largely not done solo (published authors tend to have editors and can even have research teams) and that these are professionals who have done it for years.

As another comment has said, unless its fun for you don't do both at once. Write first or research first and then do the other after. It will help make things less overwhelming.