Fiction Still Requires an Author to Get the Facts Right

I believe authors must constantly be thinking ahead, even as they labor on the current novel, screenplay, short story, or book of poetry. For me, as I put the finishing touches on the current novel, the intricacies of the plot, the dialogue, and what happens in a scene are a combination of outlining the novel, giving the chapter titles, and the objectives along with spontaneity. Some of it is inspired by personal experience or observation of people. Some of it is imagined and entered in the very next paragraph or comes to mind while editing a previous draft. I often warn bystanders that they may written into the story and sometimes characters are compilations of different people I've met. I'm doing what most authors have always done.

Fiction can be completely imagined or based on real experiences. However, the setting, timeline, or logic of the story, if historical events are used, often must adhere to facts. A novel set among historical events needs to stick to known dates, places and, unless the plot's intent is to alter history, the casual facts of history--the background setting of the story--need to be researched and applied if the author is to be taken seriously. What the lead character does during that event can be total fiction, but, generally, what the public knows about the event should be truthful (exceptions noted).

Even as I work to polish the current novel, I've already been thinking about the next novel. The title and an opening scene set in 1750 BC are in my head. The book would be a romantic novel with a new twist on time travel. Of course, an author cannot give too much away so early in the process, but I'm very excited to the point where I see at least five books coming out of this story idea. Facts of science come into question. The most successful science fiction authors are able to successfully suspend disbelief, make us believe that the technology is possible, and, yet, never violate their illogical logic by introducing ridiculous tricks that contradict the science created in the story.  This is the primary problem in creating the possibility of time travel. Preparation for writing has required me to dig deeper into quantum physics and the theories of antimatter; take what has been proven at such places as CERN (Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire); and weave the science into the plot without turning the book into a dry lesson in physics. The science is the bones of the story, but the plot is the flesh, and the lead character the heartbeat.

Bottom line, fiction is limitless and free compared to nonfiction, but aspects of writing still require the author to research and get the facts right in the same way that nonfiction writers must do. Otherwise, expect the book to end up in the 99-cent bookstore bins or among the selections at dollar stores.