Q and A with Barbara

RESEARCH:
Researching novels via the library, the Internet, and experts 
How much research goes into each book?
That depends on the book. The only research required for For My Daughters, for instance, was about flowers that grow on the Maine coast. The Vineyard, on the other hand, called for research on the subjects of grape-growing, photo restoration, dyslexia, the trees and flowers of Rhode Island, the Great Depression, and World War II.

Since I write about true-to-life situations, I try to be as accurate as possible. I get information from books, from personal interviews with experts, and from online resources. For The Woman Next Door, I researched both fertility treatments and the job of a school psychologist. For An Accidental Woman, I researched maple sugar production. For Flirting With Pete, I researched both Beacon Hill gardens and persistent vegetative states.

Sometimes it's a challenge. With Looking For Peyton Place, for instance, I needed information on Grace Metalious. But the woman wrote Peyton Place in the mid-1950s, when there was no People magazine, no E! Channel, no journalism-of-the-spectacular such as what exists today. Moreover, Grace died at the age of 39, giving journalists precious little time to conduct interviews and write articles and books. I found the few that were out there, scoured them for clues, then recreated Grace in my own book based on what I had read. After my book came out, I received a note from a member of the Metalious family saying that I had gotten it right. I treasure this praise.

On occasion, research takes on a life of its own. Such was the case with lobstering, which I researched extensively in the course of writing The Summer I Dared. When I finished the book, the thought of packing away all of that research broke my heart. So I organized the material and sold it as an independent book, Does A Lobsterman Wear Pants?
Do you do the research yourself?
I like to. It's fun, and when I do it myself, I learn as I go. There are times, though, when I need exploratory research to be done - that is, when I want information on a topic so that I can decide whether or not to use it. In instances like that, my assistant may do the preliminary work. Likewise, if I'm in the middle of a book and need a simple answer to a question, I may have her chase it down so that I can keep on writing.
Do you ever make mistakes?

In my research? Sure I do. I'm human. Some fans love pointing those mistakes out - and I am grateful, as in the case of the nurse-reader who pointed out that comatose patients suffer from intRAcranial pressure, not intERcranial pressure. In such cases, I make sure that the correction is entered in future editions of the book. There are times, however, when readers "correct" things that can go either way. In these situations, I simply beg the reader to indulge me "my" way.