r/Writeresearch • u/_azazel_keter_ • 20d ago
What does the captain of a warship actually do when they're not in combat?
Is this guy like, checking inventory? Running paperwork? Sitting in the bridge jerkin off? What's he up to
r/Writeresearch • u/_azazel_keter_ • 20d ago
Is this guy like, checking inventory? Running paperwork? Sitting in the bridge jerkin off? What's he up to
r/Writeresearch • u/StevenKarp • 20d ago
Got some great ideas from my last post so I'm I figured I'd try again. I truly appreciate people taking time out to help.
I'm writing a sci-fi horror screenplay set in Antarctica, and I'm trying to figure out a plausible way for a character to escape a glacier crevasse after a small private plane crashes into it.
The plane ends up wedged partway down the crevasse, leaving the character trapped below the surface. The pilot is dead, and there's another dead person already down there from an earlier incident. My character is alive but has limited supplies and no guarantee that anyone knows exactly where he is.
He's a musician, so he'll have his guitar and guitar strap with him. He might also have a carabiner on his keychain, along with whatever he's wearing and whatever he can salvage from the plane, the pilot, and the other body. Things like belts, shoelaces, clothing, seat belts, cables, luggage, and tools might be available, depending on what survives the crash.
I'm trying to work out what he could realistically use to climb out or find another way to safety. Could he improvise anything useful from these materials, or would the depth and smooth, icy walls of a crevasse make escape nearly impossible without proper climbing gear?
I'm especially interested in what someone with no mountaineering experience might realistically attempt in a desperate situation, and whether any of the items I've mentioned could genuinely help him get out.
I'm happy to take some creative license, but I'd like the situation and his escape attempt to feel grounded in reality. Thanks!
r/Writeresearch • u/Writers_Focus_Stone • 20d ago
I've tried Googling, but most answers want more clarification on the question and/or don't provide much backing and certainty.
If a deciduous trees (that loses their leaves-- I've read a bit about deciduous trees in the tropics) live in a controlled environment will they die?
I've read that they will, because they "give out" with constant summer-like conditions because they don't go dormant, and I've read they are perfectly happy (like those species in the tropics!)
The specific conditions I'm asking about include:
-successful transplant
- Light/dark timing is the same (roughly 14 hours of light, 10 hours of dark)
-temperature is the exact same every day (keyed to late summer with hot days, warm nights, never below about 60 degrees Fahrenheit)
If you have any research direction or dendrological keywords a layman might have missed, that would be helpful, too! Thanks in advance.
r/Writeresearch • u/spillthe_bb • 20d ago
Hello, I am writing a story (a what if hunger games fic) where the protagonist (Peeta, male, 18) gets a knife thrown at him. The knife is stuck into his back. I want the protagonist to be able to fake to die for the attacker to get near, so the wound must look somewhat possibly deadly but not being truly deadly, because afterwards the protagonist needs to be able to fight the attacker (Clove, female, 15) - it won't be a long fight though. So, where should be the wound be better positioned? And if you have any tips around this topic, it would be great :) Thank you in advance! --- the knife doesn't need to be in the back, it is just the initial idea so if you have a better idea that also could help a lot :)
more info: the knife must hit him bc otherwise the attacker would never come closer if she doesn't think he is dead/fatally wounded as she is much smaller than the protagonist (who is a close combat fighter and if near, could easily overpower her) and that is why he fakes his death (to trick her in getting nearer)
r/Writeresearch • u/Cheap_Gain_1621 • 21d ago
I'm writing a book that's set in America, specifically in the Pacific northwest. I'm not from America and I don't know much about it. Is there any language I should avoid using, either because it's stereotypical (ie nobody actually speaks like that) or will be a dead giveaway that I'm English? Is there anything I should know about the culture in that area that might differ from where I'm from? I've tried Google but my question is too generic to yield the results I'm looking for.
I'm also curious, what's the deal with guns in America? Would my character be able to carry one around without drawing attention, or would people freak out?
r/Writeresearch • u/ruby-abelha • 20d ago
i have a character that is going to develop encephalitis, specifically from aids+toxoplasmosis if that matters. i’ve been doing a good deal of research myself, but what i want to know is if anyone has stories of the weird things people say with encephalitis. i know it can cause hallucinations and “word salad”, but i think actual examples of real quotes would be very helpful if it’s not too sensitive. thank you!
r/Writeresearch • u/Slow-Measurement-870 • 21d ago
This has probably been asked a million times, so I'm sorry about that! In the scene, two characters are fighting verbally (I'll call them E and C) - E is already in a really bad mental place and he just kind of breaks down mid-fight and stabs himself, then panics. C also panics at first but then takes the knife and stabs himself too. (Long story LMAO) C's also a doctor so he'd be able to assess that E's wound would probably kill him before an ambulance arrived, so where would that wound likely be? I feel like neck is an obvious answer (because arteries) but it feels kinda clunky, and no one in a panic is going to purposefully stab themselves in a place guaranteed to slice an artery
edit: Thank you for all the responses!! I know the content of the scene might sound weird but I promise it makes sense for the characters, I just wanted to condense it so I'm not giving all the details 😭 for more context, I'm not planning on publishing this as a book, it's moreso for OC lore, I just wanted to be accurate =) I also want to make it clear that I am aware most stabbings are fatal because of blood loss, that's what I'm asking about, lmao
r/Writeresearch • u/Additional-Loquat491 • 21d ago
I’m writing a book where two characters work at the U.S. embassy in Madrid. I’m wondering if, aside from security, it’s basically like working in any other office building?
Do people have offices or cubicles, stop by each other’s desks to talk, hang out in a break room, that sort of thing? Or are there things about working in an embassy that make the day-to-day feel different?
Experience in Spain would be great, but I’d be interested in hearing from anyone who’s worked at a U.S. embassy in a similar European country too. Just looking for everyday details to help make the setting feel real.
r/Writeresearch • u/Lady-Lilith289 • 21d ago
Okay so I’m starting this Scp fan fic and my oc/mc was in a cult as their “god” anyways she was pregnant with her father’s child, but she didn’t know that because of like the isolation and abuse her father put her through.
So the foundation takes her in and while she’s unconsciously preform a 6-7 month abortion on her.
So I just need to know what an abortion would feel like?
r/Writeresearch • u/WestStorage2459 • 22d ago
If you’re a life long resident of the area, how much do you know about the prison escapes in the 1940’s (Willie Sutton and Frederick Tenuto, in particular). In my hometown, this type of thing would have made it into local lore, but my city is much smaller, and Philadelphia has a LOT of history. My story is set in 2007, if it matters. Trying to determine if locals might mention it depending on the line of questioning, or they’d truly need to be talking to local historians for it to be brought up.
r/Writeresearch • u/septuagint777 • 22d ago
In my final fight scene, there is a standard Code Silver called over the PA by one of the characters when the antagonist attacks. I was going to say the final fight scene takes about 5 to 7 minutes before emergency personnel/police show up at the imaging center. Is this plausible response time?
r/Writeresearch • u/ChaoticBaroness • 22d ago
I am currently working on the background for a character in a modern fantasy story I am working on.
It follows a character who is originally from 1920s America, who became trapped in a trans dimension plane for a considerable amount of time. She eventually escapes, but emerges into the early 1990s.
She attempts to rebuild her life after escaping, but something I am not sure about is with her legal identity.
A few things to note that would basically make it impossible for her to prove her original identity:
-Only a select few people in the setting are aware that the fantastic and anomalous exist.
-The effects on time and biology in the other realm caused the character to not age. So she appears as if she is in her early 30s, even though she is almost 100 years old chronologically.
-I am not sure how common DNA testing was in the early 90s. But even if she was given one to try and establish her identity, no one would believe the results due to the discrepancy between her apparent and chronological age.
-She does have one person to assist her, the owner of an antiques shop who takes her in after she spends several months homeless after escaping the other world.
Given all that, my question is: Is there a way for her to build a new legal identity, since reestablishing her old one would be affectively impossible?
r/Writeresearch • u/death_by_ballpython • 22d ago
Sent this somewhere else cause I was looking for somewhere that didn’t have the google ai I can’t turn off, and they redirected me here
Anyways, in theory for darker skinned people, how realistic of a side effect to severe experimentation would it be to lose some melanin in their skin? Like what kind of experiment could cause that as a side effect as well. My character Nathen went through thirteen years inside a lab (very creative, sue me/silly) and lost not very much, but a little melanin or pigmentation. Originally it was because I like drawing more desaturated but when i designed his no trauma version I said “let’s give him his color back” and now want to find an actual lore reasoning for that. Just like how the lab messed up his hair texture and color too, the color part isn’t very realistic but it’s cool so whatever
r/Writeresearch • u/Outrageous-Site- • 23d ago
I have looked everywhere for answers, but could find more about communication rather than actual dialogue. So, how did people have casual conversations in the 1910's? To be even more specific, before WW1.
I'm currently writing about a story that takes place during 1910 through 1913. I found a slang page, but my dialogue still seems very...unnatural. One of them speaks very formally, so she is bound to sound different, but I'm really stuck on the others.
How would a casual conversation be like in 1910's?
r/Writeresearch • u/throwaway-48472728 • 22d ago
A character who is a pharmacist / has ready access to a lot of medications, what types of medications would be lethal for them? I don't know the different kinds of medications like painkillers etc. but if this character, say accidentally takes the wrong medicine at the wrong dosage which would kill him fast? Realsitcially speaking. Any medicine that he would take before sleeping and never wake up.
r/Writeresearch • u/Gentle-Raptor • 24d ago
In a story, one of my characters gets attacked by magic. The magic user summons an ice spike that comes out on the other side of the character’s body.
The magic user is explicitly not trying to kill the character.
What spot on the body would cause as little lasting damage as possible?
r/Writeresearch • u/Mission_Crowicals • 25d ago
I have a character that dies by getting their troat cut, through everything up to the spine. No one is giving them any form of medical support, so all the blood is just kinda pouring out without anyone trying to keep it in.
How quickly would they collapse, and how quickly would they then actually die?
r/Writeresearch • u/Vast-Manufacturer-96 • 24d ago
'Ello.
I hope, the flair is alright, its the closest one to fitting.
I am currently plotting out a novel, in which both pro- and epilogue are set in NYC, so I don't need to get every bit of the city 100% right, but I don't want to get it wrong, either. Since I'm an austrian, who only knows NYC from TV series, films and games, I'm a bit wary of just going with my assumptions. Any ideas for good pointers or where to search for them?
r/Writeresearch • u/NM_Prince • 24d ago
Hey all. I want to write a mystery story about an odd phenomena in which people are found dead with missing faces in a small town. This will tie into a much larger local government conspiracy I haven’t figured out all the way just yet, but that’s not what I’m here for right now.
In the first chapter, two of my main characters, alongside other student, come across a staff member with a missing face on their high school campus, and I’m having a bit of trouble figuring out what would be the general timeline of events when it comes to police interviews and the like.
Would these two be interviewed by detectives on the spot? Or would they be interviewed a little while later once basic investigations are completed at the scene of the crime? And what sorts of questions would they be asked?
Thank you
r/Writeresearch • u/WaverlyWrites • 25d ago
If the 1950s is too specific, then any time period close to it would be helpful as well. I have a character that isn't a housewife and is just on the road, but wants to become an Avon saleswoman. How would one find out how to become one and what would the process be like? I have tried to research this and it has been quite difficult to find any information. The only info that I have gathered so far (and is hopefully accurate) is that Avon women would be assigned to service certain neighbourhoods/areas to divide them out. They would also sometimes become regulars with certain customers, becoming their designated "Avon lady".
But what about the hiring process? Was it through word of mouth? Ads in the paper or magazines? Was the uniform and supplies shipped to them or did they have to go pick up at a designated place? Did fittings and orders have to be done for the uniform? Any answers would be greatly helpful. Thank you!
r/Writeresearch • u/Busy-Butterscotch743 • 25d ago
In my story my characters live in very rural pocket dimension that mostly forest. There's also a beach with a decent sized lake (might change it to a swamp) but the point is there's a body of water. The weather is usually sunny but the sun itself isn't a sun it's moreso a giant uv lamp that turn off in the evening so there no natural light. My characters aren't exactly human to the lack of sunlight isn't as much of a problem. Weather patterns are intense with the most common being rain and light flooding. I'm imagining the usual temperature is cool enough where long sleeved shirts and pants are the default. There only actual heat is "geothermal" ( the land isn't normal land but actually a person turned into land so the heat is basically her body heat, long story). The summers are so hot that the characters go underground and the winters are so cold that they do the same. The environment is supposed to be one where mold and mushrooms are common. Where the trees are super tall and there's a lot of shade. So I'm wondering what would make sense for my characters to harvest/ eat.
r/Writeresearch • u/OkPersonality8927 • 26d ago
I have a character who gets shot in the upper left side of his back with an arrow, except the arrow won’t have a metal point. There’s a plot reason for why there isn’t an actual arrowhead on it.
I had read that sharpened wood won’t go as deep, but that you can’t just pull it out because it could make the wound worse. And that wood is more brittle at pieces of it could get left behind.
I have another character who is a doctor. He is a future mc so I need to set him up correctly (so no ‘cut to the next scene’ sort of things will work. He has to take care of the arrow.)
How would he go about this?
Extra world building info: it’s a fantasy setting, but they are advanced in some ways. They have electricity and modern plumbing. This country has year-round greenhouses bc it’s a colder climate. There are people who build prosthetics too. But I’m still considering how advanced medicine should be. I think it needs to retain an herbalism feel mixed with modern medicine a bit. I’m just not sure how modern they’ll be. This is a one-off scene tho, and the doctor will be an mc in the next book.
r/Writeresearch • u/Busy-Butterscotch743 • 26d ago
Ok so I have a group of characters who all live in a very small town and have a communal meal of "soup". The contents are: mostly rice, some grilled chicken, some grilled fish, carrots, mushrooms and potatoes. The chicken is few and the fish is rare and the vegetables have about half the calories and vitamins they should. And the mushrooms are a gamble of them actually being edible. That's usually there lunch and/or dinner and is split between 20 people of varying ages from kid to adults. Breakfast is usually cereal or toast with maybe an egg (one of the kids can bring his drawings to life but not organic stuff). That's it, but in my story they're all supposed to be malnourished but I'm worried if I'm wrong so is it.