Maps and Other Tidbits: Finding Authentic Detail
© Roxianne Moore
I've been surfing a lot lately, looking for those little tidbits that make a story come alive. I'm not talking about the odd news bites (although those can be fun, too), but the bits and pieces I use to create authentic detail. If any of you have read Natalie Goldberg, you know what I'm talking about.
Authentic detail can be the exact color of someone's eyes, or the way the light filters through leaves to form patterns on the grass. It can be the knickknacks on your mother's dresser, or the one hundred and twelve pieces of milk glass you had to dust every Saturday. These are things you'll find, not on the Web, but within the reaches of your own memory.
Where the Web comes in is the search for exterior details and memory refreshers. Say you've decided to set your short story in a city you visited last year on vacation, but you can't remember which street had all the artsy little shops. Mapquest will provide you with detailed street maps, highlighting sites of interest. I found this site while planning my vacation, and immediately saw the possibilities for fiction writing. I've read too many stories that gloss over details, or just plain get them wrong. Better to have a map in front of you, placing your imaginary restaurant on Restaurant Row instead of in a warehouse district, or your artsy shops in Strip Mall Heaven. http://www.topo.com/ TOPO! Interactive Maps offers topographical maps on CD-ROM. Right now, only maps for regions of California and Colorado are available, but more are upcoming. The US Geological Society offers downloadable maps in several formats, including satellite shots and line graphs. These are especially helpful if you need to know the topography of an area, or details on land use and political boundaries. It can certainly help you avoid major mistakes, like putting a hill in the wrong place, or running a river through the wrong part of town (a big concern if you're writing about a place like Pittsburgh, where I am - all hills and rivers). You can also view the Canadian equivalent.
Okay, so now you have your map. What about atmosphere? Many large cities have websites listing local events, tourist attractions, and chamber of commerce numbers. Yahoo is a good search engine for sites like these. You may be surprised at just how much you can find out about an area by visiting the website and calling or e-mailing the Chamber. Just typing Chamber of Commerce into Excite will give you hundreds of chamber listings, so make sure you use a specific town and state.
Go To Page: 1 2
| Here's the follow-up discussion on this article: | View all related messages |
For a complete listing of article comments, questions, and other discussions related to Roxianne Moore's Resources for Writers topic, please visit the Discussions page.