#WritingResearch

[wheretheeternalare]

man. for #writingresearch i'm watching this video from when marriage equality was legalized in new york of the most lameass 2011 gays imaginable partying at the stonewall inn and it's moving me to tears. i miss the cringe-woke culture of the 2010s can we go back please

[hylianengineer]

I love the /r/WritingResearch subreddit, usually because I get to help people by falling down Wikipedia rabbit holes. But today someone asked a question about field ecology and oh boy, they really opened the infodump floodgates with that one.

[geektasticjustine]

Doing a little research for a future book. It’s just in the very early research stages, but I’m starting to build an outline. And no, this isn’t connected to Never Say Never. This one is an NA Fantasy/Noir. This is just one of many book irons in the creative fire. ⚖️ . . . . . #igwritersclub #instawriter #instawriters #spilledink #writingresearch #writinginspiration #amwritingfantasy #calledtocreate #ilovewriting #ladyjustice #themis #goddessofjustice⚖️ https://www.instagram.com/p/CVMRorxL1ik/?utm_medium=tumblr

[bluestarscribbler]

Common Poisons (for writing purposes)

Hello there lovely humans, how are you doing today? I hope everyone’s feeling absolutely marvelous! 😊💖 Today I’ll be sharing seven common poisons to use in your wip (warning: please don’t use them irl, I don’t want to be the cause of an increase in poisoning. please, this is only for writing purposes). 

Deadly Nightshade: Atropa belladonna

Found: Europe, North Africa, Western Asia

What it does: contains chemicals that disrupt the nervous system’s ability to regulate activities such as heart rate, breathing and sweating. 

Symptoms of mild poisoning: dilated pupils, light sensitivity, loss of balance, confusion, hallucinations and convulsions. 

Toxicity level: All the plant is toxic, but it’s berries are the greatest threat because it can be confused for food (10-20 berries can kill and adult, 2-4 can kill a child). 

Poisons extracted from it: Atropane. 

Can cause: Narcosis, paralysis and heart failure. 

Has an antidote: yes.

Hemlock: Conium maculatum

Found: Europe, North Africa, North and South America, Australia, Western Asia. 

What it does: affects nervous system, causing paralysis of respiratory muscles leading to death from O2 deprivation. 

Symptoms: stops breathing.

Toxicity level: 100mg/6-8 hemlock leaves are fatal to adults. Your character can be poisoned if someone put hemlock leaves in their tea/drinks. 

Antidote: no, however, it can be treated by supportive care and artificial ventilation for 48-72 hours until effects wear off. 

Arsenic

Found: Volcanic ash and ground water. Acceptable low levels in plants and seafood. Rare to find at dangerous levels in nature.

What it does: Necrotic cell death resulting in disruption in ATP production and causing organ failure. This process can last between 2 hours to multiple days. It can also be fatal in lower doses administered over a period of time.

Symptoms: Vomiting and diarrhea but is almost always mistaken for a sickness and not poisoning. 

Toxicity level:  White arsenic, which is arsenic oxide, is a water-soluble, tasteless solid easily added to drinks and can be used as a method to murder your characters. 

Antidote: I haven’t found any proper antidotes that would be able to treat an overdose of arsenic (other than get them to a hospital asap); however, immediate medical attention and being under chemicals that can sequester the arsenic away from blood proteins are used in treating acute arsenic poisoning.

Cyanide

Found:  can be distilled from the kernels of certain nuts such as almonds and also present in the leaves of some laurels bushes. There is also the industrial chemical sodium cyanide which can cause death in a matter of minutes, making cyanide the fastest acting poison. 

What it does: disrupts ATP production, affects the central nervous system and heart, and causes histotoxic hypoxia: the inability of cells to take up oxygen from the bloodstream.

Symptoms: acute cyanide poisoning can cause loss of consciousness, seizure, cardiac arrests (heart attacks), and difficulty breathing. 

Toxicity level: 200 milligrams of cyanide (solid or solution) or exposure to airborne cyanide of 270 parts per million is sufficient to cause death within minutes. Writers, cyanide has a bitter/acrid taste, use belladonna (deadly nightshade) or arsenic (to murder characters not irl) instead, belladonna is sweet and arsenic is tasteless. 

Antidote: Immediate medical attention, if it’s a severe case, doctors will administer either cyanide antidote kit or hydroxocobalamin (Cyanokit). 

Aqua Tofane

Found: Aqua Tofane is a strong poison that was reputedly widely used in Naples, Perugia, and Rome, Italy in the 17th century. It was created by a woman called Guilia Tofana who helped women in a time where they had no rights or protection, she would sell this poison to them so they can ‘get rid’ of their abusive husbands (I’m not saying I agree with her, but this is iconic. please don’t arrest me now). 

What it does: It is a slow acting poison and causes death from what would appear to be ‘natural causes’ such as those seen of a steadily progressing disease. It’s a colorless, tasteless liquid and therefore easily mixed with water or wine to be served during meals.

Symptoms:  The first small dosage would produce cold-like symptoms. The victim was very ill by the third dosage; symptoms include vomiting, dehydration, diarrhea and a burning sensation in the digestive system. The antidote often given was vinegar and lemon juice. The fourth dosage would kill the victim.

Antidote: I don’t think this poison is available anymore, unless you’re writing historical fiction or a story set in the 17th century, you can poison your characters with Aqua Tofane. I haven’t exactly found a direct answer of whether or not this poison has an antidote. 

Strychnine

Found: can be extracted from the seeds of the nux vomica tree, which grows in Southeast Asia. It became widely available in the west as trade with the Far East expanded.

What it does: Strychnine inhibits postsynaptic glycine receptors predominantly in the spinal cord, causing involuntary painful skeletal muscle contractions.

Symptoms:  Ten to twenty minutes after exposure, the body's muscles begin to spasm, starting with the head and neck. The spasms then spread to every muscle in the body, with nearly continuous convulsions, and get worse at the slightest stimulus. The convulsions progress, increasing in intensity and frequency until the backbone arches continually. Your character will probably die within 2–3 hours after exposure.

Antidote: There is no specific antidote for strychnine other than immediate medical attention, the doctors will be able to do their best to treat your character and it may or may not work. 

Thallium

Found:  this element was only discovered in the 1860s and while it has been used in some domestic murders – in some countries it has been available as rat poison –  it has been more widely used as an agent of assassination.

What it does/symptoms: Thallium sulfate is water-soluble and tasteless and they take several days for the symptoms to appear and even then these are generally attributed to other illnesses. Basically, your character won’t know they’ve been poisoned until a few days have passed. 

Antidote:  The FDA has approved Prussian blue as an antidote for thallium toxicity. 

Okay, Google may or may not think I’m planning a huge poisoning mass murder, please don’t arrest me, this is solely for research purposes and to help other writers not get accused of murder. Also, I’ve come to realize that some of these poisons aren’t even common but we’ll pretend we don’t know that for the context. I hope all of you lovely humans have a wonderful day! 😁❤

[arizonacolleen]

Agent Guinevere is mostly set in 1993, and as a result I had to do a lot of research to create a universe as real and authentic as possible. For instance, Sophie returns from a mission during this game in 1993. It is playing over the radio in her taxi and is referenced later in the chapter. Including real elements like this create a world that you can believe in. Where were you in June 1993? Sophie was in London, about to close the case. Check out her adventures, beginning with "Agent Guinevere." Link in the bio. #sophiehollanderseries #agentguinevere #romanceseries #spyfiction #writingresearch #happensinreallife #england #football #writinginspiration (at Together At Home) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBja8QeglCU/?igshid=ht4cwa8e6szf

[writ-ing-research]

Intro!

Hi there! Welcome, welcome.

So, time to introduce myself. I’m Kay. I made this account because I love to do research for my writing but, because I usually write fantasy, I never really have to research myself. Everything is explained by magic (and, of course, actual things that make sense to the setting)!

So here’s how my blog works: you ask me what you want to know, and I’ll answer. If you need to know how fast a character was going when flying five blocks, I’ll do the math for you. If you need to know how long someone can go without air but don’t want to look like you’re gonna suffocate someone, I’ve got you.

Also: don’t worry that I’m going to think you’re weird. Chances are, you’re not the only one wondering how many ribs you can break and not puncture a lung. I’ve had to look up how fast a person would fall if pushed from the top of a five-hundred foot tall building.

Basically, I’ll look up what you’re scared to look up. That’s all!

[katbostickauthor-blog]

I’ve always believed in magic of some sort or another but my favorite secret imagining is of shapeshifters and creatures of lore. Monsters that hide right under our noses in the darker corners of the world. When I walk the forests in my #pnwhome I ponder the many tales of Bigfoot. And when I visit family back in the Midwest and hear the mournful call of wolves in the dead of night, I wonder what nightmares or fantasy had people dreaming up werewolves for centuries. Do you ever think about the frequencies of these myths and legends across cultures and time and question if perhaps there could be some scrap of truth to them? Maybe not. Maybe we’ll never know. #werewolves #montaguesummer #creaturesoflegend #writingresearch #currentread #reading #monsters https://www.instagram.com/p/Bwm40YdH9-M/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=18yzzgvmo0g5g

[itsredwritinghood]

Day 35/100 #the100dayproject Today was another crazy weather day. It seemed to change every 15 minutes today. The day flew by as drove or walked through rain, hail, lightning and thunder. Wednesday’s are always busy-busy, but the continuously changing weather really made it interesting to say the least. #illustratedlifejournal #illustration #illustrator #learningtoillustrate #journeytobeanauthorillustrator #writing #writingresearch #write #writersofinstagram #writerlife https://www.instagram.com/p/CqZhTvULuXX/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[thatfanwriter]

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A post shared by Evie Peralez (@ev_peralez)

Working on chapter 4 of "We have to tell you something" That means H5O rewatch!!! I love and miss you Kono 😭💕 Also sneaky supernatural! Baby Sam anyone? #mcdanno #h50 #h5o #supernatural #samwinchester #writingresearch https://www.instagram.com/p/BuDUF3VAFP5/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=q07bw07ehnu4

[thisliterarylife]

day off vibes: binge listening to @soundslikeacultpod 🎧 #bookstagram #bookish #bookworm #podcast #podcastrecommendation #plantsofinstagram #plantsagram #pathos #moon #moonlamp #moonvibes #darkacademiaaesthetic #darkacademia #cultish #amlistening #amreading #reasearch #writingresearch https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck_ldfVv9ur/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[blairthewriter]

Nanowrimo Day 8 Update

Word Count: 1643

Thoughts: Was hoping for a little over 1K more than what I did. Not the worst though.

[l33lzonwheelz]

Research Resource for Fantasy Writers by Lily-Lucid

[atruebloodwrites]

Sometimes research takes you to places you’d never expect, but I loved learning about the history of the NYE ball drop for my current #historicalfiction WIP. #historicalWIP #historicalreads #historicalromance #NYC1912 #writingresearch #historicalresearch #writinglife #edwardianNYC https://www.instagram.com/p/CYNPjkfv6KS/?utm_medium=tumblr

[quokkamocha]

I have to say I love weirdly specific history books. Currently rewriting my historical crime novel and this one has been invaluable! #amwriting #writersofinstagram #writingcommunity #writer #writing #research #writingresearch #books #history #montreuilsurmer #crimewriter https://www.instagram.com/p/CKrclbOAByL/?igshid=167qayeacjifx

[arizonacolleen]

Learning new technology, and discovering how to plot and plan an entire novel before writing it. It's a bit frightening, since I am so used to doing everything with my trusty notebooks. I will keep this part of the journey chronicled here and note how they compare and what could be better. Let's get started! #beshenitsa #minuetneroseries #writingthroughthequarantine #writingtools #plottr #newbook #writingresearch #writingtips (at Ireland (country)) https://www.instagram.com/p/B_X77s-gF6i/?igshid=1wgr9jr7ylhxe

[theuptownwriter]

Getting to travel 🧳 by taking courses on English history. The gardens at Hampton Court. ....#Writingresearch #Britain #travel #traveltheworld #Historical #Romance #gardeninspiration #hedges #scene (at New Orleans, Louisiana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CGLaRovgPU5/?igshid=1exn7n4lnifd4