Writing on Locations

I had the interesting and sometimes moving experience yesterday of seeing photos of places mentioned in some of the books I cherish. A small collection of books about women in Japan, spanning many centuries, has caught my imagination for no apparent reason.

My friend Barbara, who is currently living in Guam, visited Kyoto and Hiroshima recently and posted her photos on the Internet. I rejoiced seeing the shrines that were only a vague blank in my imagination and more beautiful in real life than I had dared to think. The Hiroshima survivor pictured and scenes of that devastation prompted some tears, I must admit. I once interviewed a woman who had lived through that holocaust and still suffered 25 years later.

Visual images and detailed descriptions add so much to story narration. Consider using the many resources the Internet offers to provide a firmer foundation when you cannot visit a place you're writing about. Even if you don't use every scrap of information you gather, your knowledge adds authenticity to your writing. Behind your words is the weight of contact, a sense of being there.