It's not news to you all, I'm well aware. But the internet is a goddess-send for writers, and I intend to do a bit of genuflecting here.
Take yesterday. I was halfway through my novel's third revision when suddenly it hit me that I needed to insert a brand new scene that takes place in a hospital's psychiatric ward. I won't say I've never had occasion to visit one, but it's been awhile. So I googled 'video, lock down psychiatric unit' and found a number of clips.
There is nothing like video at your fingertips for capturing details...in this case, the mannerisms of patients and attitude of attendants.
And have you tried YouTube for accents? Voice?
My protagonist's a Kiwi expatriate and while she's mostly American at this point, her spitfire sister newly arrived in the States is not. My visit to New Zealand was a year and a half ago. I'm losing the Kiwi cadence, inflection, pronunciation, and modulation. To say nothing of the attitude. So I googled 'video, kiwi personalities' and, after wading through all the YouTube hits for the current #1 animation about the flightless bird (called Kiwi! but a warning is called for - it's a tad heart wrenching) I came up with the sensational Squeegee Bandit and a number of others including a Burger King commercial bordering on soft porn and a discussion of the differences between Kiwi vs Canadian use of the expression 'eh' at the end of sentences.
Need a scene landing a helicopter? Firemen coping with a bomb in a building? Cleaning staff in a hospital? A heart transplant? With more than 300 websites offering free video footage, there's very little not available at the stroke of a few keys. And don't forget news clips. I'm sure we're all grateful to MSNBC for providing a link to a 26-minute long video on building a vest-bomb. I'm dead serious, folks. (Well, maybe the thriller writers among us....)
I don't recommend videos as a replacement for all your research. The details we write shouldn't be entirely visual and auditory. What about the grit in your character's eyes and teeth and the wind in her hair? To say nothing of that sulfur stench emitting from an aging camry while it tackles a climb up Mt. Peter....
My problem? I return to the manuscript only at gunpoint. So what's your favorite video research story?
- Lois
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Mining YouTube for Scene Details
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9 comments:
Lois
Yes, there are many great ideas you can get through YouTube. I would love to use some of them as part of teaching but they are filtered and cannot be accessed. I am sure seeing a video on something you want to put in your novel can bring the words to life.
MLD
If you haven't seen HBO's new "Flight of the Conchords" comedy series, it's hilarious. Two Kiwi gents in NYC trying to become a famous band with the help (?) of their NZ Ambassador, Murray. You get a lot of the accent and some of the fish-out-of-water contrast between them and New Yorkers, even some of the Aussie/NZ rivalry. I know they have songs posted on You Tube, and I think the show is terrifically funny.
And thanks for the tip.
MLD good luck with those irritating administrators who want to lock down the halls of academia.
Clare2e I've heard about the Conchords and bemoan my lack of HBO. Maybe I can get reruns on netflix...
That is a fantastic idea, thanks for the tip. And check out Flight of the Conchords, just do a youtube search or look on HBO's site. very funny stuff, very lowkey humor for smart folks.
clare2e and reid - I watched all of episode 4! Loved it!
This has never occured to me. What a great research tool. Thanks for the tip.
I have been toying with the idea of recording myself on youtube, either reading a very short story or one of my weekly feedstore chronicles so that my blog readers will get a better sense of me and my voice to go along with the image they already have.
As a recent (the last year)user of the internet, I am still agog about how simple it makes so much research. When I think back to the trips to libraries (although I still love that), the stacks of books balnced precariously as I trudge back to the car - the internet has made it all so easy.
Lois, I am constantly getting ideas from you! And this one allows me to surf when I should be writing! Double Whoo Hoo!!
I have to admit that I have never been to You Tube. I've only been to My Space once. That was when Sisters in Crime announced they had opened a My Space page.
Thank you for giving me a reason to discover a site the rest of the world already uses while helping myself to develop as a writer.
Terrie
Travis - I'll be watching for the fish video...I'd like to try one myself. Isn't it amazing that so many people are getting into sharing creative stuff that earns them not a dime! (Like us here on Women of Mystery....)
Dawn - your reference to teetering stacks of books reminds me with books online I don't see why kids have to cart around 40 lb backpacks full of books and notebooks. One e-book reader...or a laptop...and they'd be good to go.
Terrie - I'm with you...not getting a whole lot of writing done these days what with all the excitement online! But just so you know...I don't bother going to YouTube, I just google my video searches...because those access videos throughout 300 sites, not just YouTube.
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