Guest Post – Real Science in Fiction: The Power of Writing What You Know by Samuel Marquis

When it comes to getting the scientific details right in fiction, the clichéd advice to “write what you know” is one of the best pieces of literary advice. Why? Because if your actual background is well-grounded in science and you can turn a proper phrase, your science-based novel is going to be a hundred times more authentic than even that of a National Book Award Winner with an MFA from Harvard. And authenticity counts for a great deal to most thriller readers.

My Joe Higheagle Environmental Sleuth Series (Blind Thrust: A Mass Murder Mystery and Cluster of Lies, Book 2 of the series, coming in September 2016) is based on my nearly thirty years as a professional hydrogeologist involved in environmental health risk assessments, groundwater flow and transport modeling investigations, and serving as a groundwater expert witness in class action litigation cases. The verisimilitude factor is high in the series for the simple reason that I cheat: my Cheyenne protagonist Joe Higheagle does what I do for a living. In short, he rings true to readers because he is based upon my three decades of experience in the environmental industry. I know, how unfair.

For example, my earthquake thriller Blind Thrust is specifically based on my experiences in California and Texas as a Registered Professional Geologist in assessing earthquake hazards and fault classifications on behalf of real-estate developers in environmental site assessments. Consequently, when one book reviewer read the book, he could tell at once that it was written by an industry insider: “Blind Thrust is a page-turning adventure that will hold its audience with the attention to detail only a really well-researched author can bring to the table. The science of earthquakes is fascinating, and Marquis has captured this science and packaged it into a really fine thriller ‘against the clock’ style for almost anyone to pick up and enjoy, and readers will no doubt want more from Higheagle and his intrepid grandfather once they have devoured this installment.” Not bad, right? But again, I cheated because the book is about what I do for a living.

The original inspiration for Cluster of Lies, Book 2 of the Joe Higheagle Environmental Sleuth Series, was drawn from my professional experience working on the Rosamond cancer cluster case in Southern California. Think Erin Brockovich, A Civil Action, and Michael Clayton. Visiting the town, reviewing the documents on file in the local library, and interviewing the residents who had experienced the cancer cluster firsthand had a profound impact on me, and I would not have written the novel without having worked on Rosamond. Like most environmental cancer clusters, the Rosamond cancer cluster remains a mystery to this day and unresolved real-world mysteries are always a good starting point for a thriller.

In the case of Cluster of Lies, it was both my professional experience and the emotional context that provided powerful fodder for the novel. When I read the documents and worked on the project, I could not help but feel the sense of sadness, frustration, powerlessness, and anger of the families and townspeople who had been adversely impacted by the cancer cluster. The visceral emotions I felt in investigating the cluster ultimately enhanced the narrative power of the novel. Most importantly, without the combined real-world scientific and emotional experience of Rosamond, I would never have written Cluster of Lies.

Okay, so I cheated. But there’s no denying my Joe Higheagle Environmental Sleuth Series rings authentic because I took the clichéd advice to “write what I know.”

And you can do it too.

Biography

Samuel Marquis is a bestselling, award-winning suspense author. He works by day as a VP–Principal Hydrogeologist with an environmental firm in Boulder, Colorado, and by night as the spinner of the Joe Higheagle Environmental Sleuth Series, the Nick Lassiter International Espionage Series, and a World War Two Trilogy. His thrillers have been #1 Denver Post bestsellers, received multiple national book awards (Foreword Reviews’ Book of the Year, USA Best Book, Beverly Hills, and Next Generation Indie), and garnered glowing reviews from #1 bestseller James Patterson, Kirkus, and Foreword Reviews (5 Stars). His website is www.samuelmarquisbooks.com and for publicity inquiries, please contact Chelsea Apple at chelsea@jkscommunications.com.