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3 Weird Things I’ve Done to Research My Novel

It’s no secret that all writers are on numerous watch lists because of our search histories. Okay, maybe we’re not, but it wouldn’t surprise me if we were. For older works I’ve searched such things as how long does it take a human eyeball to decompose and how long would it take someone to die if you buried them alive.

If you’re saying that happened no where in my Hemlock Mpreg Universe books – you’re right, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t searched weird things or done other weird forms of research for my Hemlock Wolf Pack Series. Even before writing the series someone looking through my search history might have assumed I was a zoologist student, but now if I type ‘W’ into the search Wolf/Wolves/Wolf Packs are just a few of the thing searches suggested to me. That’s not even the weird parts yet.

Without further ado here are 3 weird things I’ve done to research for my novels.

1.Watched Old Boy Band Music Videos/Concerts

Yes, even something as small as Zoey’s favorite boy band took some research to put together. The Grim Howlers play small, but important roles in Omega Magic and Healer’s Oath. And I have it on good accord that we haven’t seen the last of them either. The boy band will make an in person appearance in book 5. To prepare for this I started watching old boy band concerts. Of course, I fell into the rabbit hole and ended up on some popular/favorites from my younger days. I turn 30 in May. I’ll bake you a virtual cookie if you can guess who I was watching.

2.Nagged Relatives for Childhood Stories

My earliest funny childhood memory is morbid to my now adult self, but it was hilarious to the 8 year old Maggie. My brother (then 3) would freak out whenever someone said they got ‘fired.’ The poor brat thought they meant they were set on fire. Til this day we don’t know where he came up with the idea. -No. That isn’t my sly way of saying I told him. I thought it was funny that he was clueless, but I didn’t come up with it.-

As someone who writes M/M Mpreg Romance I’m obsessed with the parent/child bond and the unique experiences each person has. I’ve explored this theme and the theme of siblings throughout my series. No, I haven’t borrowed any story from relatives, but hearing stories I wasn’t a part of does get my creative juices pumping.

3.Walked Around the Baby Section of Stores Despite Not Having A Baby

I will do just about anything to get inspired to write. While writing Omega Magic I was stuck and needed to do something to get into the groove of things. I found myself at Walmart and walked past the baby aisle. Two seconds later, I was exploring the world of baby clothes, diapers, car seats, snacks, and everything in between. I was wondering/deciding which items Logan and Jessie would choose for their baby and if it would hold up to a baby dragon shifter. The answer of course was a resounding no. Nonetheless by the time I left the store I couldn’t wait to get home and write!

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Camp NaNoWriMo Day 8 Recap: The Day I Wrote All the Words

This morning I felt amazing! (Well, once I had my coffee!) After two days away from my novel I was ready to jump back in head first. Okay, fingers first on the keyboard. Last night I dreamed that Blake took my dog for a walk and came back with a parrot. I swear, he’s not that strange in the book, but my dreams have a way of turning the most sane people into total weirdos. The parrot kept chatting about Hogwarts and the O.W.L.s. I think I could do a whole series on ‘weird dreams I had during Camp NaNoWriMo,’ but I’m too busy writing a novel!

What I accomplished today:

Today was my best day of the month thus far. Not only with word count, but now that the first third of my plot is set in stone I was free just to write what I plotted without stopping to considered what would happen next. I went back through a few earlier chapters and fleshed them out and added tidbits to build on throughout the book.

I finished chapters 6 and 7 and started on chapter 8.

Snags Along the Way:

Today didn’t have any snags. I woke up early while the world was still quiet and wrote my heart out. I wish every day would go as smoothly as today did. lol

How today went:

Starting Word Count: 11,186

Total Words Written: 3,064

Ending Word Count: 14,260

After thoughts:

Today I got the first fight scene out of the way. The first fight scene and first sex scene of any book are the most difficult to write. Not to worry, that sex scene is coming up soon! Today is my best word count day of camp so far. With a little luck tomorrow I’ll beat that record!

Happy writing fellow campers!