Research... what do you do?

Redtech · Post by **Redtech** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:09 am

Mine's based on a subject I know well and being Sci-fi I can use reverse-research. I have to create stuff instead!

RemusShepherd · Post by **RemusShepherd** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:54 am

For original characters, I don't do much research at all. I researched shamanism for the one shaman character, but that's about it.

Characters based on historical personalities, however, require a lot of research. I know tons of facts about civil war generals that will never actually be used in my comic.

Dr Legostar · Post by **Dr Legostar** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 7:15 am

I watch a lot of science fiction.

it's for research. i swear.

and for Shenanigan i've mostly been watching Batman the Animated Series and various other comic booky stuff.

Kemmy · Post by **Kemmy** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:25 am

My setting is one with which I am extremely familiar; my characters are fictional, but so far, I've had to do only minimal research on them (mostly related to the different requirements of their academic programmes; luckily, I knew a lot of this stuff already). I did have to brush up on my knowledge of Irish cursing at one point, and I've done a bit of reading on PTSD. Much of my research involves me taking pictures of various settings so that I can at least capture the flavour of them. I always screw at least one thing up, though.

My knowledge of folk tales, gleaned over a period of many years, has also come in handy, albeit in a subtextual sort of way (actually, a lot of my readers don't yet realise that this subtext exists).

Otherwise, I make it up as I go along.

Shishio · Post by **Shishio** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:41 am

I do very little research. I just can't stand it. Fortunately, it's only very rarely necessary for my current comic, but if I ever write anything else, I'm sure those stories will suffer a great deal from my lack of discipline. Oh well.

Geekblather · Post by **Geekblather** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 10:05 am

I just pick things up and squirrel them away for future reference. Psychology, science, myths, quotes... I rarely do any actual targeted research. I just keep an eye out.

- Joel Fagin

I believe Eddie Izzard calls that "passive research" you just kind of sit back and say, "come here research, come on, over here..."

Since I'm writing people, my research also includes (and I didn't actually even think about this at first) finding facial references for characters. In general, I think there's a general tendency for artists to draw faces similar to their own, because it's what they're most familiar with. However, I am not a 6ft football player, asian, a redehead etc. so I look through sites for faces that match the people in my head, to give me something to go off of. Some change a lot from the source, some stay almost identical.
For locations and houses, I also have sets of floorplans. And paint colors if necessary, and furnishings...

My library list makes me look like a future serial killer.

That's okay, mine makes me look like a drug addict. On the way to fleeing to Colombia...

NakedElf · Post by **NakedElf** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 11:26 am

You know what they say, write what you know...

It depends on the particular project. My main comic generally takes place in locations I'm familiar with and stars people similar to people I know in real life, so a lot of it I just already know. Occasionally I do something different and, say, send my characters over to London for a storyline, and then I *do* have to start researching--but since I know I'm going to get a hell of a lot wrong anyway, and it's a fantasy comic, I just purposefully set out with the intention that Fantasy London is not a perfect replica of real London.

If I'm setting a comic in a setting which is vastly different from my everyday life (say, Mongolia around the year 1000,) then I really do have to ramp up the research or else I'll fuck shit up majorly. "It's a fantasy" doesn't cut it when you do something stupid like put your characters in a kind of armor which would be *bad* for them to wear in their environment just because you did the character designs before you did your research. So if you're going to be writing about something in the real world, or something with lots of technical details, or something where you just aren't very familiar with the details, then I definitely recommend lots of research.

Rcmonroe · Post by **Rcmonroe** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 11:36 am

Whenever I have an idea that would require me to do research, I do everything I can think of to alter it into some form that will work without me doing research.

And I actually like doing research. I usually just don't have that kind of time.

Coyotzin · Post by **Coyotzin** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 12:10 pm

Even if Nahast is fantasy, it's based on the myths and cultures of very non-standard civilizations. Luckily, said civilizations have always been a favorite subject of mine so the research has been between passive and active

I do have several books and sources on clothing, weapons and architecture, and a couple on martial arts.

Orinocou · Post by **Orinocou** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 12:34 pm

Nice topic question! My comic is sort of fantasy/steampunk-maybe, and I usedto do wayyy too much research into things like costume design and technology. I find it tends to sap the fun out of comic making. Nowadays, I do my best to keep my art mostly realistic, but if there is something that doesn't add up (like soldiers using guns when the heroes are using swords) I juat say, "ehh, it's fantasy". Makes life a lot easier.

geekblather wrote: That's okay, mine makes me look like a drug addict. On the way to fleeing to Colombia...

I don't get it. Why is Colombia a good place for a drug addict to flee?

Neneno · Post by **Neneno** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 12:48 pm

I rarely do extra research for my characters.

Whenever I learn something interesting in my classes (some that were particularly helpful were anatomy & physiology, psychology, and US History), I make a little note in my special notebook thing

! I like writing about things I'm familiar with, so I usually don't go out of my way to research things.

Plus it also helps that I've moved a lot (and lived in Korea, Canada, and currently USA) and had contact with a lot of different people 8D!

Siabur · Post by **Siabur** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 3:17 pm

Reading, well looking at lots of pictures of women so they can have that nice natural look to them

when I draw them, while the guys look like dipships next to them. FHM, Maxim, I'm sure there's more but that's what the book mark button is for. Good research, women's...

Vorticus · Post by **Vorticus** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 6:33 pm

I rarely do research. Comicwise I believe I've done research about twice. Unless you count visual for items, furniture, and buildings, then it goes up to approximately a dozen times.

Kels · Post by **Kels** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 6:53 pm

siabur wrote:Reading, well looking at lots of pictures of women so they can have that nice natural look to them when I draw them, while the guys look like dipships next to them. FHM, Maxim, I'm sure there's more but that's what the book mark button is for. Good research, women's...

That may be the first time I've seen the words Maxim and natural in the same post...

Joel Fagin · Post by **Joel Fagin** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:18 pm

geekblather wrote:
I just pick things up and squirrel them away for future reference. Psychology, science, myths, quotes... I rarely do any actual targeted research. I just keep an eye out.
I believe Eddie Izzard calls that "passive research" you just kind of sit back and say, "come here research, come on, over here..."

It's more like beachcombing. You're out looking but just not for anything in particular. You just pick up and use whatever you come across that's interesting.

- Joel Fagin

Dutch! · Post by **Dutch!** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 11:09 pm

Wonder if beachcombing is a term used elsewhere..?

Shishio · Post by **Shishio** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 6:15 am

I've never heard anyone say it here, but I came across it in a short story by an English (I think) author.

NakedElf · Post by **NakedElf** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 10:37 am

orinocou wrote:
geekblather wrote: That's okay, mine makes me look like a drug addict. On the way to fleeing to Colombia...
I don't get it. Why is Colombia a good place for a drug addict to flee?

For starters, a good deal of the world's cocaine comes from Colombia. So not only can you escape US drug laws (Colombia's enforcement tends to be lax at best owing to large parts of the country being under guerrilla or drug cartel control,) you can probably get cheaper crack because you don't have to pay for shipping.

Snail · Post by **Snail** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 1:00 pm

On a previous comic I had to do a whole bunch of research about being homeless in Vancouver... but for this one - little to none so far, though I have to do a bit of research about paranoia and delusions... I just haven't had the time yet >.<

Renard · Post by **Renard** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 1:52 pm

We actually do a fair amount of historical research (seeing as it is set in France during the Hundred Years War), even if we end up ignoring so much of it. I think we just prefer to know when we're being anachronistic. A lot of it becomes a jumping off point if nothing else.