Writing Advice - The Empty Coffee Cup

Good research, and good writing, are important to keep a reader from being thrown out of the story. If I'm reading a story and I happen upon a fact I know is false, I'm completely thrown out of my "story head space". I'm now thinking about that fact and how it's wrong and how the writer doesn't seem to know what they're talking about.

Take for example the fake coffee cup. This is a thing that shows up in many, MANY TV shows and movies. The characters are talking about something important and they have coffee cups in their hands. Usually the coffee is in one of those paper cups with the lid and the paper sleeve. Even though the person just got the cup they raise it to their lips and drink like it's almost empty. It's now obvious that the cup is just a prop and has nothing in it. The magic is suddenly gone and now I'm watching a high school stage play, rather than being engrossed in the story.

I did tons of research to write my stories. The food in the Kansem books is authentic to a particular culture (no spoilers, I'm not telling WHICH culture!). There are scientific reasons for the unique climate Kansem has. In Pirates of Kansas City, I had to research the names for the parts of a boat and the jobs of the crew. Like everything, writing isn't one thing. Writing is not just writing. It's editing, it's formatting, and most of all, it's research. There's a lot of work behind the scenes for any good piece of writing.

It doesn't just apply to writing. For everything you do, do your research. Know what you're talking about. And pay attention to the details. If you're not authentic, if you're not believable, you may lose your audience and never get them back.