Touching the Past in the NYT 'Lively Morgue'

If like me you enjoy the process of research for your writing you'll know that the saying 'A picture paints a thousand words' does often hold true in the real world. Find the right images and you're well on your way to understanding a time and place, and, with a little cooperation from serendipity, you may even find your characters.

It was thanks to serendipity that I discovered this surprisingly moving and very human story about a remarkable survival from past technologies that can add missing tactility to our – equally wonderful in a different way – digital age: Inside the New York Times 'Lively Morgue' on Vimeo

Whilst watching this piece I was reminded of one of my all-time favourite BBC TV dramas, Shooting the Past, by Stephen Polyiacoff. If you've not seen that excellent drama, do try to find it online or DVD. If you appreciate the value of research from reliable prime sources, I'm sure you'll enjoy it.