Strange research topics

[ShadeZ]

From 20 ways to kill a man to middle ages methods for hair dying to solar sailing.

What are some strange things you've found yourself knowing or researching because you write fantasy books?

My current favorite. Trying to explain why I want to know how to make sulfuric acid in the middle of the forests/a camp.

 

[pmmg]

For some reason, this does not show up on the latest activity for me.

Anyway...

Somethings I research fairly often....

1. Medical quality of various plants (And for the life of me, I can find no google evidence of one I know was used in the colonial war).
2. How long it takes to heal from various injuries, especially burns.
3. Things that glow underground.
4. Ships, Ships and Ships.
5. What types of creatures live in what climes.
6. What types of trees appear in what climes.
7. How long can someone survive in various predicaments.
8. How far can various things travel in a day.
9. Phases of the moon.
10. Specific things about various cultures.
11. Different types of crystals.

Most recently, I was looking up historical battles where a small force overcame a larger force, that was not Thermopylae

Opps....that is wrong. Most recently, I was researching Neanderthals.

And then there is the industry itself. Publishers, artists, forum groups, meetups, classes....


Its a very long list. Weirdest thing.... Um...Well, burns was not very comfortable. Would not have wanted people looking over my screen for that one. Types of cancer that would be something specific to women was one as well.

One I finally just made my own call on was one I started a thread on about a sword type, and another on whether there is/was such a thing as a Mor Macil.

Ah....maybe my most recent weird one was: How long does it take for oxygen to return to an underground tunnel after fire has depleted it all? Never got a clear answer on that.

 

[The Dark One]

In my historical novel (set in the 1060s) I remember researching when chess came to Europe - when sugar and various fruits were known in Europe - Viking attitudes to homosexuality - weapons (obviously) - and I read and read and read about Harold Godwinson, William the Bastard and various other players in the Ango-Saxon world.

But I mainly do sci-fi so countless research rabbit burrows into things such as the distance to stars - theoretical physics and chemistry - the Alcubierre hyperspace drive. Google earth is also very handy.

 

[Finchbearer]

Terminology is what I’ve spent a lot of time researching for recently along with a tonne of etymology, although whether it’s strange or not I’m not sure…

Some terms I’ve researched for clarification recently have been;

Bodging
Reeve
Housecarl
Bailiff
Thegn
Chancellor
Vassal
Seneschal
Galdor

Broader research;

Different types of buildings during the 7th century in the northern parts of Europe and down to Spain.

If during the 7th century bedstraw was grown and used by peasants or farmers

The role of the commoner

Mead halls

The origins of magic

Was madder used in the 7th century

Why the Welsh national costume changed from a blue cloak to a red one

What would have been commonly foraged

Pots pots and more pots

Medieval peasant farming practices

Horses horses horses

Lunar cycles

Animal motifs and their significance in Anglo Saxon mythology

And the list goes on…

 

[A. E. Lowan]

For some reason, this does not show up on the latest activity for me.

Same for me. Didn't show up as a thread until just now.

Writers do homework for a living, and thank heavens for the internet. When I hit a need to research something, I'll usually recalibrate and hit research mode right then. Probably part autism and part artifact of academia. But, I also once brought an entire 40-man raid to a halt because I wanted to know what tea-bagging is, so it may just be me.

Things I've stopped mid-sentence to research:
The history of the BLT
The St. Louis Arch... for a character who it turned out wouldn't take that route, anyway.
Took one screeching U-Turn when we realized we have two serial killers in the current book and I knew precious little about them beside what dear Thomas Harris has to say about Hannibal Lecter. Not a problem, anymore.
Our own writings, because it's always a good thing to mind your canon.
Calls to my parents at various times to get the green light on the authenticity of our medical scenes.
Muchly need moar information on pregnancy and babies, stat. I think we're good, but there's no kill like overkill.
Took a deep dive into Aztec culture and coatl dragons (our term) and overkill paid off in spades, and this is where we placed it. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BJCH2R2K/

 

[Incanus]

I end up doing much more inventing than researching.

But the most unusual item I looked into was learning about ectropion. This is the word used to describe when someone's lower eyelid gets a bit loose and saggy, and opens outward a bit. This normally happens with aging to some folks, but it can happen for other reasons too.

I gave this feature to a warrior character (in my shelved novel) who was not old, but it was only on one of his eyes and not the other, due to a wound he had gotten some years before. It was a fun detail to use when the character made a particularly dramatic remark, and the firelight would make the red line under his eye gleam (almost like his remark was underlined, so to speak).

I might steal this detail from myself, and use it in a non-throw-away novel or story.

 

[Orc Knight]

My searches delves and deep dives have had me learning about professional racing to how to speculative evolution. I also find random history stuff on the Youtubes to watch because it's neat to learn things. I keep learning stuff about theme parks and roller coasters, even though they never appear in anything I write and I get vertigo riding coasters in video games. Still neat stuff.

But my searches also often deal with firearms and weaponry from many ages to future weapons. I keep bookmarked tabs for a large variety of fantasy food and recipes, food exotic to me and also for military ranks from classical to modern. Plenty of other stuff too I'm sure.

 

[ForbiddenParadise64]

Since i've been doing geography themed worldbuilding and alternate history type projects as of recently, I've been looking at the geographical ranges and limitations of existing animals to speculate as to what their alternate ranges might be in order to plausibly work out where they might live in my alternate worlds. This does include things such as global warming or cooling scenarios, or more exotic examples like terraformed worlds or the project I'm currently working on.

 

[Gurkhal]

Terminology is what I’ve spent a lot of time researching for recently along with a tonne of etymology, although whether it’s strange or not I’m not sure…

Some terms I’ve researched for clarification recently have been;

Bodging
Reeve
Housecarl
Bailiff
Thegn
Chancellor
Vassal
Seneschal
Galdor

Broader research;

Different types of buildings during the 7th century in the northern parts of Europe and down to Spain.

If during the 7th century bedstraw was grown and used by peasants or farmers

The role of the commoner

Mead halls

The origins of magic

Was madder used in the 7th century

Why the Welsh national costume changed from a blue cloak to a red one

What would have been commonly foraged

Pots pots and more pots

Medieval peasant farming practices

Horses horses horses

Lunar cycles

Animal motifs and their significance in Anglo Saxon mythology

And the list goes on…

In regards to the terms mentioned. This book might be useful for you. "A Dictionary of Medieval Terms and Phrases"

https://www.amazon.com/Dictionary-Medieval-Terms-Phrases/dp/184384138X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1FS7WROQRCJAE&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.teJteQa_ZVa9bjXDLxZhbCqEU9D4tttgWERLj9vHjVgJwqei8-PUnpwT7ONHvOzYJVrszzgzflZ4ShgDTMfqYALKsayqh-ea_-fLs_eO2AZPyEr9sTaqQXeIcdDZ6stZ6lbCpuF-r6gO2AYTruRidK_g1RL469mSQS01TI3MU1G0iFKdnvo79CrPHSVW3iaLE2Sg4lGEU_GcB1bLSROPjQEL-pyCv_2YaVNouvUVhK4.GgnCZAQVSN7QmEfFoj7eQHnRbm5QuIxeY4pktoLoi7M&dib_tag=se&keywords=medieval+dictionary&qid=1715925623&sprefix=medieval+dicionary%2Caps%2C172&sr=8-1

 

[Jackarandajam]

So I did a huge dive on female psychopaths for an antagonist I developed. Ended up being on psychos in general because I developed a theory I was looking for proof of.

Then i researched torture devices for a short story, mostly to sort of unfocus my eyes and scan them, in order to come up with something unique but believable.

Then a dive into trail sign - how to track something through the woods. A different WIP based on somebody who lives in the woods. My son and I love primitive tech and camping and since I know something about it I thought I'd give it to a character, but he needed to be a tracker too.

It was recently, while researching a local hiking trail for a camping trip with some friends, it occurred to me that to the uninformed, my search history looked HORRIFICALLY sketch.

 

[Finchbearer]

To my knowledge, and because I have a vague interest in psychopathy, because, cults and cult leaders are endlessly fascinating…psychopathy occurs when oxytocin levels in the body are either non-existent or super low, and seeing as oxytocin is the ‘love hormone’ it would mean that psychopaths have low to no empathy. In psychology I believe it would be described or diagnosed as ‘borderline personality disorder’.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

So I did a huge dive on female psychopaths for an antagonist I developed. Ended up being on psychos in general because I developed a theory I was looking for proof of.

Then i researched torture devices for a short story, mostly to sort of unfocus my eyes and scan them, in order to come up with something unique but believable.

Then a dive into trail sign - how to track something through the woods. A different WIP based on somebody who lives in the woods. My son and I love primitive tech and camping and since I know something about it I thought I'd give it to a character, but he needed to be a tracker too.

It was recently, while researching a local hiking trail for a camping trip with some friends, it occurred to me that to the uninformed, my search history looked HORRIFICALLY sketch.

Right there with you. Did a little reflection on the family dynamics of our two serial killers, and now I know that there are at least three. A mom and her two 'kids' in their very late teens and mid-twenties. Now we have oh, so many books on serial killers by the gentleman who started the Behavioral Analysis Unit at Quantico with a simple question during a discussion of motive and mystery inside the head of a pattern killer: Why don't we ask them? Really good story fuel, really bent stuff. Fortunately, I've had an FBI file since I was 17 and I'm sure they'll just keep updating the crazy for decades to come. As long as they're enjoying themselves.

 

[Jackarandajam]

To my knowledge, and because I have a vague interest in psychopathy, because, cults and cult leaders are endlessly fascinating…psychopathy occurs when oxytocin levels in the body are either non-existent or super low, and seeing as oxytocin is the ‘love hormone’ it would mean that psychopaths have low to no empathy. In psychology I believe it would be described or diagnosed as ‘borderline personality disorder’.

In the end I based her on an ex girlfriend, haha. Cranked her narcissism up to 11, so that everything around her was either helping her get what she wanted, a useless extra, or an incredibly unfair impediment.

Then I turned her impulse control down to zero; still clever enough to disguise her behavior but inside if she wants to do something she's miserable and depressed and vindictive until she can bring it about.
It's about power, really; the power to manipulate people into believing she's innocent counts in her book, as well as the power to grant life or death to those around her, and the power to do whatever she needs to achieve her ends, which is basically to obtain power.
If she has a slogan, it's "everything is so unfair."

She wrote pretty well. She's the only person she cares about, everyone else sits on a scale of how useful they are to her/how good they make her feel about herself.
Her first kill is partially accidental but goes off pretty well and kinda opens up that door.

I don't think she's accurate to what science we have on female psychos, but I think her arc builds believably, and she's alot more colorful then what i read on the real ones.
I started with abuse in her past, but she developed so well I'm going to pull that trope out of her backstory.

 

[Jackarandajam]

Right there with you. Did a little reflection on the family dynamics of our two serial killers, and now I know that there are at least three. A mom and her two 'kids' in their very late teens and mid-twenties. Now we have oh, so many books on serial killers by the gentleman who started the Behavioral Analysis Unit at Quantico with a simple question during a discussion of motive and mystery inside the head of a pattern killer: Why don't we ask them? Really good story fuel, really bent stuff. Fortunately, I've had an FBI file since I was 17 and I'm sure they'll just keep updating the crazy for decades to come. As long as they're enjoying themselves.

There was a show about that Quantico guy, wasn't there? Mind hunters, I think?

 

[Jackarandajam]

To my knowledge, and because I have a vague interest in psychopathy, because, cults and cult leaders are endlessly fascinating…psychopathy occurs when oxytocin levels in the body are either non-existent or super low, and seeing as oxytocin is the ‘love hormone’ it would mean that psychopaths have low to no empathy. In psychology I believe it would be described or diagnosed as ‘borderline personality disorder’.

Also, I wouldn't usually recommend this movie because the content is so rough, but in "Bad Times at the El Royale" Chris Hemsworth plays a cult leader and does an incredible job.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

There was a show about that Quantico guy, wasn't there? Mind hunters, I think?

Yup! At least, I think so. He and his ghost writer have several books out, and the first is called Mind Hunter. I don't agree with everything he has to say about motive and pathology, but his work is still brilliant and will be of great use.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FC0RRY/