Writing to a University Professor

Madame de Plume

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Hi all. I am currently in the midst of research for my WIP and I was wondering if anyone has ever written to a college or university professor asking questions about a specific time period. Do they tend to respond or ignore? I realize they are busy people and may not be open to unsolicited questioning from random strangers. Thoughts? Experiences?

Thanks
 

Marlys

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Well, I asked the university professor in my living room, and he says, "It depends."

He thinks short, specific questions would be easiest to get answers to. Big, open-ended questions ("Tell me about X") would be less likely to get a response. Professors are also a great resource for book recommendations to help you understand whatever it is you are researching.

But keep in mind that professors are as individual as the rest of us. Some might love to shoot the shit for a couple of hours over beer, while others barely have time to see to their own students, much less a complete stranger.

Oh, and I wouldn't recommend asking them the sorts of questions you can easily find the answers to yourself. I would always start with Google, next go to a reference librarian, and only then try the professor route.
 

Madame de Plume

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Marlys thank you. And thank that professor of yours. He wouldn't happen to specialize in early 19th century France, would he? ;)

Right now I'm trying to find out the main differences between the funeral procedures of France and England in the early 1800's. I've been internet researching for over two hours now and there is very little information from reliable sources. I found a professor at a university and I was thinking about sending her a short email to see if she would mind giving me her input. I just wanted to see if anyone has ever had success in this sort of endeavor. :)
 

ULTRAGOTHA

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Has your professor written any books?

Have you checked out archive.org to see of there are any out-of-copyright books that cover a French funeral?

Also, JSTOR offers free access to some academic journals.

Ah, and you have started a thought that I should do some research into Tsar Paul's funeral to contrast it to a British funeral for my story. Thanks!
 
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Telergic

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In my experience they're mostly pretty approachable. But it's probably a better idea to call the departmental secretary or administrator who will have a better idea who has the right specialty and who is most apt to respond. Ideally call someone at your own alma mater.
 

snafu1056

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Not only did I get an answer, the prof addressed it "dear colleague", which made me feel like the scarecrow recieving a brain from the wizard of oz.

It helps to have very specific questions, and not too many of them. If it sounds like youre asking for a personal mini-course on an entire period of history, you probably wont get very far.

Have you tried looking for forums or communities dedicated to the topic? There seems to be a history forum for pretty much every country on earth, I'm sure there are French history forums out there somewhere. Those kinds of people will answer all your questions because its their hobby.
 

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Or, for another idea to find answers, you might try Help A Reporter Out. You'd be surprised how many people with varied backgrounds might answer your question.
 

veinglory

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They are all individuals. I would suggest sending the letter by email, and asking clear and specific questions. If it is their area of interest there is a good chance they will want to talk about it.
 

Ian Nathaniel Cohen

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I've contacted several professors in the United Kingdom with research questions, and I always hear something back from them. Occasionally, there's some back and forth, and other times, it's just a sentence or two, but they do respond.

Not sure how a professor in another country would respond, but British academics are excellent sources of information.
 

Madame de Plume

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Has your professor written any books?

Have you checked out archive.org to see of there are any out-of-copyright books that cover a French funeral?

Also, JSTOR offers free access to some academic journals.

Ah, and you have started a thought that I should do some research into Tsar Paul's funeral to contrast it to a British funeral for my story. Thanks!

You're welcome ULTRAGOTHA! ;)
And thanks for the JSTOR tip.

In my experience they're mostly pretty approachable. But it's probably a better idea to call the departmental secretary or administrator who will have a better idea who has the right specialty and who is most apt to respond. Ideally call someone at your own alma mater.

That's a great idea and the professor is from my alma mater so I think that may help me out a bit as far as getting a response.

Not only did I get an answer, the prof addressed it "dear colleague", which made me feel like the scarecrow recieving a brain from the wizard of oz.

It helps to have very specific questions, and not too many of them. If it sounds like youre asking for a personal mini-course on an entire period of history, you probably wont get very far.

Have you tried looking for forums or communities dedicated to the topic? There seems to be a history forum for pretty much every country on earth, I'm sure there are French history forums out there somewhere. Those kinds of people will answer all your questions because its their hobby.

Snafu you made me laugh! I'd probably feel the same way if I got a similar response. I've taken your advice and started searching for history forums. I've already posted the question on one of their websites so we'll see what happens.

They are all individuals. I would suggest sending the letter by email, and asking clear and specific questions. If it is their area of interest there is a good chance they will want to talk about it.

Thank you veinglory. I was planning on sending an email and trying to keep it short and sweet. I think that may be the best course of action.
 

Madame de Plume

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I've contacted several professors in the United Kingdom with research questions, and I always hear something back from them. Occasionally, there's some back and forth, and other times, it's just a sentence or two, but they do respond.

Not sure how a professor in another country would respond, but British academics are excellent sources of information.

Ian do you have any good resources in Britain that you've had success with? I'm looking for someone with a concentration in French history, particularly Revolutionary France and the Napoleonic Wars. I would love British feedback as part of my novel takes place in early 19th century England.
 

Madame de Plume

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Or, for another idea to find answers, you might try Help A Reporter Out. You'd be surprised how many people with varied backgrounds might answer your question.

Jeffo I am completely intrigued by this Help A Reporter Out website. I looked it over, but it seems like you have to work for a media outlet in order to ask any questions. Have you used them before?
 

Ian Nathaniel Cohen

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Ian do you have any good resources in Britain that you've had success with? I'm looking for someone with a concentration in French history, particularly Revolutionary France and the Napoleonic Wars. I would love British feedback as part of my novel takes place in early 19th century England.

I'm afraid that's way outside of the range I was inquiring about. Sorry. :(
 

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Hi all. I am currently in the midst of research for my WIP and I was wondering if anyone has ever written to a college or university professor asking questions about a specific time period. Do they tend to respond or ignore? I realize they are busy people and may not be open to unsolicited questioning from random strangers. Thoughts? Experiences?

Thanks

I haven't done this as per history, but I wouldn't consider it strange to do so.

And as a biology instructor at a local college, I occasionally get e-mails from people who have questions about things related to biology. I always try to answer, even if it's simply to say their question is not really my area of expertise or that I'm way too busy to give a detailed answer right now (or to suggest someone else they can contact, or a book or other resource). I can't imagine why history professors/researchers/teachers would be any different.

If you're asking for something that's going to take a lot of time and effort on their part, as in it's more than a quick question, then it's probably a good idea to be appropriately appreciative and indicate that you know you're asking a bigger favor, and to follow up with an appropriate thank-you note and acknowledgement if they do take that time to help you.
 
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benbenberi

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As a former French history professor, my recommendation is:
1) Make your questions specific & focused. (I suspect you've already got this one covered.)

2) Research to identify someone with the right area of expertise to ask. You've already figured out what that is. So check the last 10 years or so of the relevant historical journals to see who's been writing on the subject--look at the articles, but also the reviews, & who's writing the reviews -- and also who wrote the recent works they're citing. H-France is also a useful resource, & full of helpful people.

3) When you figure out who you want to ask, you can probably get their contact info from their university website/directory. If it's not publicly listed, contact their department for the info.

4) It used to be that summer was a very bad time to try to ask anything of a French historian, because summer is when French historians go to France. (Long, long hours in dusty libraries and archives mining for facts.) These days they won't be totally out of touch anymore. But be warned.

5) That said, if you ask a professional specialist an educated question about their specialty, they're generally very happy to answer if they can, and/or suggest resources & bibliography you may not know about, and/or recommend someone better placed to help you. (For instance, one of their grad students who just happens to be writing a dissertation on your very topic.)

ETA: When you're doing web research, not only is JSTOR a great resource, but so is Google Scholar. Don't forget them!
 
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