What is BookSmarts?

Welcome! BookSmarts is a newsletter about research — specifically, research for writing. Exciting, right?? I think so. Research is my favorite part of the writing process. I mean, writing itself is great, but also hard and only as good as the material upon which it draws, which for nonfiction = research. Plus, I’m in hog heaven mucking around in hundred-year-old scientific manuscripts and wonky government reports. It feels a bit like record shopping: a quiet but thrilling adventure in which I might uncover some obscure gem, like Merle Haggard’s Rainbow Stew languishing in the dollar bin. (Some days, it’s all Loggins and Messina LPs, but I’m still happy metaphorically flipping vinyl and admiring cover art.)

If research doesn’t exhilarate you, that’s OK too. My goal is just to make the process easier for authors, journalists, essayists, and academics—anyone engaged in the quest of finding, consuming, and digesting large amounts of information. Twice a month (or so) you’ll receive a newsletter about a tool, strategy, or common research question. For instance, how can authors get access to academic books and journals? Where do writers find those perfect historical quotes? And, seriously, which is better: Scrivener or Evernote? (Spoiler alert: I’m allergic to absolute answers!)

I’ll do some research of my own, talk to smart people, and share what I learn. We’ll get into the weeds now and then, but I promise to keep this newsletter entertaining and accessible, or at least succinct and useful. And did I mention it’s free??

Finally, my hope is that BookSmarts will bring together a community of writers engaged in the difficult but rewarding task of digging deeply into research and wrangling its proceeds. I can’t pretend to know everything (or really anything!) about this process and I envision each post to be more of a starting point than a final world. I’ve turned on the chat function and I hope it gets lots of use. Book writing is a small, weird world, and I suspect we can all help each other!

It’s also why I want to hear from you, dear readers: What questions do you have about the research process? I’ll try to answer them in a future post.

Leave a comment

Who am I?

I’m a freelance journalist based in Portland, Oregon. I write about science and the environment for places like The New York Times, The Atlantic, Science, Hakai, and High Country News. And to be clear, I’m no expert on book research! I sold my first nonfiction book — about grass and humans — in the fall of 2022, so I’m just starting on my own research journey. But in the months since I began, I’ve already come up with a bunch of questions and a few handy solutions. I figured I’d share what I learn as I go and answer some of your questions along the way.

I’m so glad you’re here. Let’s make books!

Stay up-to-date

You won’t have to worry about missing anything. Every new edition of the newsletter goes directly to your inbox.

To find out more about the company that provides the tech for this newsletter, visit Substack.com.

Subscribe to BookSmarts

Research for writing

People

I'm a freelance journalist based in Portland, OR. I cover science and the environment, and am currently working on my first book, about grass, for Ecco.