Oh, and I just searched the database we use to check for books, and Famous Flower is already in the OCLC database. You're also listed in our copy of the Cambridge (England) database. OCLC has Flower and Weaver categorized as Ghost stories and Mystery fiction. Lots of other books under your name, too, in the big databases.

Just keep reading, yo. There's all sorts of scary stuff and historical fun in there for you to munch on.

Did I mention that Fed Ex just came by with a box of two dozen copies? Go, me!

In writing matters, I am staring at a beautiful printout of a beautiful map of the Isle of Dogs from 1885. Nic's going to print it out at work, in 11 x 17 size, and then print out a current one same size, so I can sort of overlay. Now if only I could find one from 1950 or thereabouts...

edit: how much do I love having buddies who have access to OCLC? Ah, worldwide libraries....

Oh, mercy.

Thank you, Isis or whoever, for this researcher's dream site

edit: Oh, man, I struck purest gold. Was wondering about the disposition of BD units in London, and trying to figure out whether the event triggering what they think is the haunting in the second book should happen in 1948 (I wanted that year, for some reason) or later.

Looks like 1848 was the right choice:

With the peace came demobilisation and a drastic reduction in all army units. Bomb disposal did not escape. No 14 Company disbanded in February 1946, followed by No 20 in the May. By April 1948 only nine B D Companies remained in the UK.

DBD (Directorate of Bomb Disposal) had been accommodated in Romney House, Marsham Street, throughout the war. In April 1948 it was renamed HQ Bomb Disposal Units (UK) RE and commanded by Lt Col M D Maclagan RE and subsequently moved to Ashley Gardens in Victoria.

In the August of 1949 three more B D Companies were disbanded, leaving just Nos 2, 7 and 16, plus a plant Squadron. By now the ‘Companies’ had been renamed ‘Squadrons’. (snip) In December 1949 a ceiling for B D Personnel (U.K.) was set at 60 all ranks and on 1st January 1950 the three B D Squadrons were also disbanded.

This just saved me hours of work. I fucking LOVE the innernets. Bless you, Al Gore.

Gah! You blasted Brits with your blasted alternate spellings of words! I just spent 10 minutes trying to find a book with the word aluminum in it, then I realized it was spelled by the Brit spelling, with aluminIum! Gah.

All done now.

HA! Connie, I offer Barenaked Ladies (Canadian, not British):

Aluminum to me, aluminium to some
You can shine like silver all you want, but you're just aluminum....

Hey, all, Spent the morning finding Phoenix history in order to be my town's Barry Levinson...hope I can use this stuff. And I need to call the detective again...what should I tell him? I think I blew the message last time. I got thrown by all the "Let me transfer you..."

erika, explain what you're writing about, tell them you don't want to do the department any possible disservice by messing up the terminology. If they offer you a shot at coming down and watching, and you can actually take them up on it, do it. That's the best way ever to get the flavour.

I am one happy puppy, speaking of research. Courtesy of the Royal Engineers bomb disposal unit website? I now have the basis for the prologue of "Cruel Sister", at least the tricky bit: 1948 is the year to use. The characters in question would be members of the Bomb Disposal Units (BDU), Royal Engineers, (RE). HQ was in Ashley Gardens, in Victoria; they would have been members of Company 21, stationed in London.

Damn, that cuts my work down to tiny little bites.

All this research talk is making me very, very happy for some reason. I love it when I research something and find a solution to a plot problem that I didn't even know I had, if that makes any sense.

I just had to look up some dates re: Napoleon and Waterloo just to appease the nitpicker in my head regarding a throw-away line in a fic. I'd be disturbed with myself if I weren't so pleased.

Oh, this is only half the issue - the biggie is the difficulty my brain seems to be throwing at me, in terms of visualising Isle of Dogs. But this was niggling, and it had to be done, and now I can really buckle in and get the setting sorted out in my head.

Such a nice thing, with names and commanding officers and places and details. And if you go to the site, and click on any of the photos, some amazing stuff comes up.