Respect Your Readers and They'll Respect You

I read Michael Crichton’s Timeline back when I was in eighth or ninth grade. At the time, I was really into the quantum physics theory of parallel universes—to the extent that I plowed through some articles that were really beyond my comprehension. And by “plowed through,” I mean read slowly and repeatedly until I could force myself to understand them.

That’s not why I read Timeline. The reason had more to do with Jurassic Park. But I did read it, and near the beginning, I found an explanation of the parallel universe theory identical to a lot of what I’d learned elsewhere—only described with the skill of a writer writing for the masses rather than a scientist writing for scientists.

I’d heard, before then, that Michael Crichton really knew what he was talking about and did loads of research when he was writing a book, but it wasn’t until then that I could verify it for myself. I was impressed. I was more than impressed—I deeply and permanently respected him.

​I learned my lesson the easy way, this time: always fact check, do your homework, and consult with experts. No one is perfect—but I will respect the heck out of you if you try.

Deborah J. Natelson

Deborah lives with a fluffy member of fauna named Flora. She is the author of Bargaining Power and various other books. Her author website is www.deborahjnatelson.com.

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