Use of Information and Sources

Use this forum to discuss the June 2019 Book of the month, "Cynthia and Dan: Cyber War" by Dorothy May Mercer.
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Chelsey Coles
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Post by Chelsey Coles »

After reading the book I couldn't help but to poke around the bibliography. I did not expect to find articles on the drone landing, Plan B, and the abortion pill. Did you find the articles useful? Why do you think the author chose to use these articles specifically? What articles would you use, if any?
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Post by María Andrea Fernández Sepúlveda »

I haven't finished the novel, and I don't think it's essential to include these resources in a novel whose purpose is entertainment, but it's a very valuable asset. I talked a bit with the author and she mentioned how important women's health issues were for her, so I'm sure that's why she took the time to include such resources. They could be helpful...We don't know what each person whos reading the book is going through. Or maybe some people just want to learn more.
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Post by Nisha Ward »

They could possibly be helpful if you take the time to read them. I didn't think so but that was because it was mostly stuff I already knew.
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Post by tristenb »

Honestly, I didn't bother to even look much at these articles. I wouldn't use any of them. I found them to be a bit odd, but they could be helpful to a reader that might have been triggered by something, going through something similar, or just interested. I think the drone article in particular might be great for someone who was interested in that subject. Perhaps the author put them there to show that she had done her research or because she wanted to inform the reader. Either way, they could be useful for the right person.
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Post by Lindsey Klaus »

I haven't finished the book, but I encourage writers to show their sources when able. While I don't think a bibliography is always necessary, at least a note in their acknowledgments of their resources is great. I don't think it's required for a fiction book, especially something like a romance/thriller which tend to bend believability in the first place for entertainment purposes, but it's a great way to connect with certain members of your audience. People who are interested in the same subject you're writing about can educate themselves on the issues. Again, I don't think it's a requirement or anything, but it's definitely a cool bit of bonus material.
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Post by Chelsey Coles »

Lunastella wrote: 24 Jun 2019, 11:39 I haven't finished the novel, and I don't think it's essential to include these resources in a novel whose purpose is entertainment, but it's a very valuable asset. I talked a bit with the author and she mentioned how important women's health issues were for her, so I'm sure that's why she took the time to include such resources. They could be helpful...We don't know what each person whos reading the book is going through. Or maybe some people just want to learn more.
You bring up a good point, I hadn't quite thought of it that way. Love that you had a convo with the author and got it straight from the source. Different people go through different things, and maybe a young lady out there was just as clueless as Cynthia, & needed the article(s) more than anything...
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Post by Chelsey Coles »

Nisha Ward wrote: 24 Jun 2019, 18:17 They could possibly be helpful if you take the time to read them. I didn't think so but that was because it was mostly stuff I already knew.
Yes, that is why I created this thread. I read all of the articles and they are very informative. However I personally already know plenty about the subjects of the articles, but wanted to know who might find them more helpful than me.
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Post by erinrb13 »

I liked the use of sources, but I wish the author would have included more sources for the information used for the cyber war/ technology side of the book, because I found this to sound not credible at times. But I think including the sources is a great idea and is a great way for readers to trust an author's writing
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Post by Erin Painter Baker »

I don't know about the drone landing information, but my guess is that since she provided medical information when discussing Plan B and RU486 in the book, she was trying to be responsible and provide the real medical information to anyone who might need it.

I wish she had shown the same conscientiousness in researching and sourcing other parts of the book.
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Post by AntonelaMaria »

To be honest I was so annoyed with this book that I just didn't want to read anything more beyond the story. I agree that can be helpful to someone who doesn't know anything about those subjects.
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Post by Sam Ibeh »

For Pete's sake, this is a novel. I even think the sources were distracting as you have to take momentary break to check out the sources. I didn't think it was necessary.
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Post by AntoineOMEGA »

I think if the author wanted to list sources they could have given a link for those interested instead of tons of sources at the end of the book.
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Post by Sanju Lali »

The sources seems distracting to some while some may need that information. I could be glad if some more sources on cyber crime and cyber war were shared. Sometimes giving sources in wrong context could be annoying.
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Post by eastandalchemy »

I enjoy when novels add sources since I am a bit of a researcher. I have several books that I enjoyed and wanted to know more about (whether it's the subject matter or just me wanting to get inside the head of the author), and I can always find some additional insight by looking through the sources.
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Post by Samy Lax »

I hadn't stumbled onto these articles until you pointed them out to us. I didn't actually find any of them relevant to my reading. Someone who is really interested to learn more about these topics could benefit from them, I am sure.
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