Boots on the Ground - The Authentic Voice and Value of Travel Research by Martha Reed

Before I retired from my corporate career in 2020, I needed to fit my research jaunts into three-day weekends usually in conjunction with a federal holiday like President’s Day to conserve my precious hoard of vacation time. But no more! One of the real freedoms of retirement is travelling whenever I like – and for as long as I like in support of my writing projects.

Sidebar: I’m just as busy as I was pre-retirement, only now I spend my time focused on my writing life and creative projects. I’m calling this time of my life the “reward portion of the program.”

One of the shakeouts of 2020 was the realization that I could write from anywhere as long as I had WIFI and my laptop. So, as I started drafting NOLA Mystery #3, I decided to write it in situ, in New Orleans if I liked. And the more I considered the idea, the better I liked it.

Nowadays it takes a half an hour to rent an AirBnB location through an online booking service. Because Book #3 is a deep dive into NOLA Creole culture, I rented an authentic Creole cottage in Marigny on N. Rampart Street, very close to the Vieux Carre for the month of March. I asked my landlady how to pronounce “Vieux Carre.” She replied: “French Quarter.” She’s a comedian.

My studio apartment is on the top floor up a twisty set of narrow steps. My bathroom is the dormer on the right. There is a cute desk, and if as I’m drafting I begin to feel like the mad woman in the attic, I may be right.

Each day, after I drink my heavenly Creole coffee (with chicory), I write for four hours before I close my laptop and go for a walk to Jackson Square. The French Quarter layout is based on a grid system so I rarely get lost. And I never get tired of admiring the local architecture including this lethal piece of local hardware called a “Romeo Spike.” It’s meant to discourage ardent suitors from climbing up the balconies.

Every so often, I’ll fantasize about buying a house and moving to NOLA. Then I recall how much I disliked Florida hurricanes and flooding, and I remember that in 2005, when the levees broke, Katrina was worse.

It’s been a very productive experiment. The Creole coffee may have helped, but I’ve drafted a complete chapter outline for Book #3 and I’m still hitting my daily word count.

But the real treasure in working onsite is the authentic language you hear, the locations and the details you see, and the lovely and generous people you meet. I gather up these details as I walk, and then rush home to plant them in my manuscript. One of the reasons I write the way I do is that I want my readers to feel like they’ve gone on the journey with me.

For instance, I’ve been using the “Suds Dem Duds” laundromat on Bourbon Street. Diana, the proprietress, is warm, generous, open, and friendly, and a genuine neighborhood character. She knows the names of everyone she meets, including the names of their dogs. I was passing by late one afternoon, coming back from my Jackson Square amble when she called out to me:

“Martha, come on in. We’re doing shots.”

I said: “Why? Is it your birthday?”

“No, honey. It’s Thursday.”

Ah, New Orleans. You’ve stolen my heart. That exchange told me everything about Diana’s character and her lifestyle in eleven words. The brevity was breathtaking.

How about you? Do you travel to immerse yourself in your setting? Does Google Maps suffice for your research? Do you blend your imagination with the real world? Where do you draw the line?