How much research should you do for your characters? Characters in novels come from all walks of life, and the better an author understands their professions, the better they can write those professional characters. The more realistic the story, the deeper the research needs to go—especially for stories set in the real world, where you should minimize the chance of errors. As authors write more stories and accumulate more material, they gradually become well-read without realizing it, able to chat about anything at gatherings.

Translated from Utsudo’s original Chinese column.

Every character has an occupation

As a novelist, you inevitably create many characters while writing. Whether protagonists or supporting characters, each has their own identity and story and comes alive in the work.

They may be teachers, scientists, doctors and so on, from all walks of life. When we authors “use” them, we need some understanding of their professions—sometimes even professional knowledge—so the character can move the plot forward plausibly.

Of course, gathering “information” on these characters isn’t always easy. But the better you understand the profession, the better you can write these professional characters and develop more variations, so readers stay immersed and focused on your story.

Realistic stories need deeper character research

When your characters or plot are more “realistic,” the research and study required go deeper, so you can craft a story that’s plausible yet surprising. For more “fantastical” stories, imagination may matter more—conjuring strange monsters and unusual worlds out of thin air and making these imagined creatures vivid in readers’ minds.

Either way, I think this is both a challenge and a joy of being a novelist.

And if your story is set in the real world, you have to put real effort into research to minimize the chance of mistakes. There are so many experts out there—it’s pretty embarrassing if a professional catches your error.

Admittedly, sometimes being called out actually draws attention and becomes an unexpected form of marketing. But a work full of errors won’t do.

The more you write, the more you know

Precisely because we have to be careful, we look up and digest lots of material. The more stories you write and the more varied your characters, the more information fills your head. You may not remember everything completely—you might forget most of it after using it—but even with a poor memory, you still recall the outlines of what you’ve encountered. Accumulated over time, this unexpectedly makes us “well-read.”

Writer gatherings full of hidden talents

That’s why writer gatherings are so fun.

There’s often a feeling that the room is full of hidden talents, and once people start talking, conversations range everywhere without limit. I find it fun—just listening teaches me so much.

After all, I’m the one with a not-so-great memory. Even when I research for writing, I may forget most of it after I use it. So I really admire authors who can absorb material and then talk about it eloquently XD

Fellow authors, have you unknowingly become well-read too?

Or has someone told you so?

FAQ

Further reading

• Previous: Hey! I Heard You’re a Writer on Ghost Island #181: Is Publishing a Print Book Really That Important?
• Start from the beginning: Hey! I Heard You’re a Writer on Ghost Island #01: Utsudo’s Debut — A Road to the Dream Covered in Frost
• Utsudo’s books

About the author

Utsudo is a Taiwanese light novelist and novelist VTuber with more than ten years in the industry and 40 commercially published print books. Her novel 《遺失的情書》 received a 2022 Ministry of Culture youth creative award. The 《嘿！聽說妳在鬼島當作家》 series records her experiences as a novelist in Taiwan.