Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Research

A frequent complaint when I run my cookbook reviews over at Epinions is that I haven't tried the recipes. In the minds of some there  the fact that cooking is very difficult for me, to be polite about it, doesn't matter. If you haven't cooked anything from the cookbook, your review is pretty much meaningless in their minds.

Which requires me to point out again that nobody ever asks me if the murder method worked or if the body disposal was done correctly in my mystery reviews.

Nobody asks me if the griffin was accurately depicted or if the lamenting soul would really glow that way in the fantasy novels I review.

Even more important, nobody has ever asked me to verify the sexual antics in any book I have ever reviewed.

Research is important and I do get that. But, there are limits. The fact that I have not done what is done in many books I read and review does not make the reviews worthless or inaccurate.



4 comments:

  1. Good thoughts. I'm reminded of that old maxim "Write what you know."

    Who among us have sailed a space ship through the stars. got into gun battles with criminals, Indians and/or cowboys, or do the things you cite. Certainly doesn't make them any less valid to read.

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  2. No, it doesn't. The criticism seems to me to say more about those saying than the reviews.

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  3. Verifying the sexual antics could actually be fun. Before I started publishing mysteries, I tried writing a futuristic romantic suspense, which is now a "trunk book." One of my critique partners and his wife acted out one of my sex scenes and told me that I'd reversed left and right in one paragraph. Fun for them, helpful to me! ;-)

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  4. I have suggested this kind of research to Sandi, but she continues to refuse to assist me with it.

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