Writing Information

How Did We Research Books Before Google?

Tim Vandehey

Seriously, I would like to know. I’ve been a professional writer for nearly 20 years, but I’ve only been writing books since the Internet became the most potent tool for information sharing ever devised. So I can’t help but look back with wonder, admiration and some pity at folks who had to spend their days poring over stacks of library books or scrolling through microfilm to find a key newspaper article or interview.

Admittedly, there’s a ritual quality to research that the journalist in me loves. I adore the musty smell of old books piled side by side in great stacks, the huge scholarly hush that abides when you’re in a research room with dozens of other people, all concentrating. It’s a wonderfully romantic, Dickensian image...and a huge waste of time! That’s why I adore the Internet as a research tool. I can find the facts I’m looking for and get back to my writing in minutes. I don’t have to lug books, spend time in traffic or waste hours flipping pages.

ONLINE RESEARCH BEST PRACTICES

That said, there are some pros and cons to Internet research. But since I’m a positive person, let’s have a look at the best practices and resources to be found online. First of all, the most useful research tool remains Google. It’s amazing how much awesome functionality the people at this company have managed to build into their online tool: maps, news alerts, and my favorite tool for book research, Google Scholar, which searches thousands of professional journals and university publications.

That said, there are many other very useful online research tools. Some of the best:

• • FindArticles.com — A great database of periodical articles of all kinds
• • Amazon.com — The best place to find out about books on any topic. Its “search inside the book” feature is a godsend
• • About.com — A wonderful destination for locating esoteric information on a huge range of topics
• • iTools.com — A bunch of research tools in one place
• • Bartleby.com — A great source of quotes, literary references, dictionaries, thesauri and all the rest

However, to make the most of your Internet research, there are some practices you should think about following. The most important is to check the accuracy of the facts. Just because it’s on the Net doesn’t mean it’s true. The downside to the egalitarian nature of the Web is that anyone can post anything and call it true. Unless your information comes from a rock-solid source like a professional journal or a government department, double-check it.

I also suggest you not only bookmark but print any website pages or online articles you find that you want to use. Why? Because web pages have a tendency to vanish. They get taken down, and you don’t want to go back to a dead link when you need to recall the facts you found. Make a file and keep hard copies.

THE DARK SIDE OF ONLINE RESEARCH

Of course, there are aspects of research online that are not so attractive. Inaccurate information is the monster inside every closet here. If you get your facts wrong, you’re going to be in big trouble. Take every piece of info with a grain of salt until you can corroborate it. Other caution areas with Internet snooping:

• • You can rely so much on online data that you get lazy and ignore the best source of information there is: interviewing other people
• • You might inadvertently plagiarize someone else’s work in citing your research. Be careful to use your own words.
• • Distractions are everywhere when one link can lead to 20 more. Stay focused or you can waste hours. Take it from one who’s done it.

All in all, the Internet is a fantastic tool for writers. Just know how to police yourself and be a skeptic and it will help you dramatically increase your productivity.

Tim Vandehey is a published author, ghostwriter and co-founder of Book Surgeon. He can be reached at tim@booksurgeon.com.