I'm new to this writing a novel thing. When I wrote the first novel, *The Space Between Time*, in the series that I'm creating, I wrote and researched when I didn't have an answer for something that was happening in the story.

This time is different, however. In the second novel, Morgan in the story in the past, becomes a Suffragette. So, I have to do some research before I begin writing her storyline. Then there is the question of how much research do I need to do before I begin writing?

I'm lucky. I did some preliminary digging about women in the west who were part of the Suffrage Movement and found one prominent name, Abigail Scott Duniway. She arranged speaking tours for Susan B. Anthony, was also a writer, ran a school, opened a millinery and notations shop, published novels, and started a newspaper. All of that in addition to organizing suffrage meetings, taking care of her children, and her injured husband. I found her story so interesting, that I went to Amazon to see if they were selling any of the books she'd written, and I found her autobiographical account of the suffrage movement in the Pacific Northwest. What luck! I felt like I'd struck gold.

I wonder if other authors get this excited when they find primary source material to help them write their books.

The bottom line is, I can work on the storyline in the present, while doing research on the storyline in the past. I've got the best of both worlds.

If you're an novelist, how do you approach research and writing?