Oct. 8: Technical Details

In today's reading Mr. White illustrates how fields of knowledge often have their technical side and special jargon. He gives the advice that if one of your characters is a professional person then that character needs to use professional jargon some of the time. This can be tricky because the reader may not have any knowledge in this area and have no idea what the character is talking about. A device to overcome this that he recommends is to have another character interrupt the professional and ask for clarification. Another technique that I have had some writers use is an aside remark, like a third party who explains things. Mr. White states that one genre that virtually screams for jargon and technical terms is science fiction and goes on to give the example of Star Trek.
In the "For Further Reflection" Mr. White states that technical details can add realism and believeability to a story. However, the writer needs to gain some firsthand knowledge, not just read about the field. Therefore, in the "Try This" section the assignment is to spend a few weeks learning all you can about the profession of your main character. Not only through reading books but also through field work so that you can pick up the way jargon and technical terms are used naturally on the job. Then be sure to incorporate that jargon in your story.
So far I have not written about a character who has a profession I don't already have some knowledge about.