Why I Write Paranormal pt 2.

Last week, I blogged a bit about why I like paranormal romances. A few days later, I found this great post at Yummy Men, Kick Ass Chicks about why some authors write paranormal romances. Check it out. There are responses there from authors such as: Larissa Ione, Moira Rogers, Nalini Singh, Jill Myles, Lara Adrian, Zoe Archer, Meljean Brook, and Jeaniene Frost.

Just just a lot of freedom with writing paranormal. There's more opportunities to think outside the box. With genres such as historicals, you have to fact check everything and make sure that it's every bit accurate to how it was. As much as I LOVE reading historical romance, I just couldn't write it and I admire those who can. For me though, I need more flexibility to let my mind wander.

I can't remember exactly when I first reading paranormals. Although I used to read scary scary stories when I was young, I never picked up a paranormal romance until I was in University. I believe my first step into this world was a Christine Feehan book called Dark Guardian. From there, I devoured pretty much her entire series, moving on to other authors. I was hooked. More than anything however, reading this genre gave me insight that this was where my books belonged.

Why I Write Paranormal

So the paranormal... well what does that mean? Coined ca. 1915-1920, the paranormal are the experiences that don't fall under range of normal or cannot be explained by science. Many things can fall under the range of paranormal, particularly: ghosts and cryptids (a creature or plant unrecognized by a scientifically such as vampires, werewolves, Bigfoot, etc). There are many shows I watch, so many I've become hooked on (in no particular order):

1. Paranormal State
2. Psychic Kids
3. Fact or Faked Paranormal Files
4. Destination Truth
5. In the past: Animal X

And many more. These are just some shows I enjoy watching that explore the unexplained. Really, we're just skimming what can be described as paranormal. There's so much out there we don't know about, so many things that maybe we don't even want to acknowledge. There are those who close their mind to it all and refuse to even give the possibilities a chance.

It's these possibilities that I love. The unknown. The 'what-if' factor. And it's why I write paranormal/urban fantasy. There's nothing wrong with contemporaries but I love the extra wow factor the supernatural can add. Historical romance with paranormal aspects, yes please! There aren't too many of these that I know about but I would love to hear about them.

Do you like the paranormal? Why or why not? What about it pulls you in?

Research: A Writer's Goldmine

Research, it's something that all writers must do. We just don't know everything, even though sometimes we like to think that we do. They always say to write what you know, but if that were the case, you wouldn't get all these great paranormals or fantasies, etc. There would be so much that readers would miss out on.

I recently had to write an action scene where the hero is trapped in a burning building. I definitely have never been in such a situation. Just like I've never been involved in a gun fight. I wouldn't know half of what to do if someone came up to me with a gun. In reality, I'm a chicken. A big one. I'm not brave enough to walk into scary situations. I run.

The solution? Research.

Obvious duh right? I'm constantly amazed with what's on the net. There's always someone who knows something about it. Even tv now, there's shows out there to give you a bit of an experience about what to do, whether it's Survivorman, Surviving Disaster, or whatever. What research sites/shows do you love?