In my article “Creating a Sick or Injured Character in Fiction,” I wrote about how fiction writers decide on what sickness or injury to give to a character, the steps that they follow to choose the injury or sickness, and the research process. However, that article did not fully explore the different research materials that a fiction writer could utilize to learn about different sickness and injuries that would work for their fictional character(s).

Television Shows and Movies

Television shows and movies can actually be good for preliminary research as long as they are carefully chosen. For example, an episode of Scooby-Doo or one of the Harry Potter movies would not be a good research source for a writer trying to figure out what condition to give their fictional character. One of the best sources would be documentaries that focus on the medical field or forensics. However, there are also some good fiction TV shows that could be used by a writer such as:

1. House

2. Grey's Anatomy

3. Nurse Jackie

4. St. Elsewhere

5. MASH

6. ER

7. General Hospital

These particular television shows can be used for by writers to see many different medical conditions and injuries. However, it is important that the writer remembers that these shows are in fact fictional and therefore should only be used to help choose the condition. The writer should then seek out non-fiction sources to learn about the condition in order to accurately portray it in their character. The writer also needs to be sure that they are only taking inspiration from these sources and not plagiarizing or copying them.

Magazines

Medical magazines can also be used by writers for both inspiration and research as long as the magazines are non-fiction, have references, and are written by medical professionals. Some examples of medical magazines are:

1.  Medical World News

2. Yale Journal of Medicine & Law

3. Fitness Magazine

4. The Challenge

Research Books

Medical research books are the absolute best source for researching medical conditions and injuries as they are the same books that medical students study with. Many writers worry that they will have to spend big money to buy one of these books and thus overlook them as a source. However, almost any university with a biology or medical program will have these books in their library and many of these university libraries will allow a writer to read the books as long as they remain in the campus library and take good care of the books.

Internet

The internet is often the most popular research choice for writers as it can be accessed from almost anywhere and offers such an abundance of research sites and articles. However, it is important that the writer takes care in vetting the sources that they plan to use for research to insure the sources are accurate and backed up by research.

Social Media

Social media can be a great source for inspiration, but not for research. In terms of inspiration, the writer could post about their brainstorming for what conditions or injuries to give a fictional character and ask for advice from their friends or followers.

News

The news can be a source for inspiration and potentially for research as long as the writer verifies all the facts with a secondary source. The news will often feature stories about real people who sustained an injury or became sick.