I had a conversation with Jack Payne the other day about the importance of research in professional writing . That conversation got me to thinking about the importance of thorough, fact-based research to good writing. I wondered whether most writers - particularly journalistic writers - really know how to adequately research a subject on which they endeavor to write.

Payne - author of Six Hours Past Thursday, a legal suspense thriller - has been recognized in many academic and scholarly circles including the Boston Writers' Group, the Thomas Jefferson Law School, and Virginia Intermont College.

Most writers know that thorough, comprehensive research is essential to quality writing. However, as a professional writer myself, I have met quite a few very talented writers who were not very good when it came to researching a topic. Meticulous research is a complex art; unfortunately, many writers are not knowledgeable of how to do it.

Without solid research, character, plot and dialog development lacks realism, dynamism and interest. Therefore, I think it is imperative that writing professors stress the necessity of comprehensive research in writing - and that they endeavor to equip their students with polished researching skills.