In March 2019 Whitman publisher Dennis Tucker spoke about writing and research to eighth-grade students of Meadow Glen Middle School(Lexington, South Carolina). This is a transcript of that lecture.

Hello. My name is Dennis Tucker. I'm a professional writer and editor, which means I get paid to do the things you're studying andpracticing in school.

Since 2004 I've been the publisher at Whitman Publishing, a company that produces books mostly in the fields of history andantiques-and-Collectibles. Many of our books involve numismatics, which is the study of coins, tokens, medals, and paper money. This touches onhistory, art, technology, industry, mining, banking and economics, metallurgy, geography, and many related subjects.

I've been a coin collector since I was about seven years old. So not only do I get to help create books, which is something I love to do, but Iget to work in what is essentially my lifelong hobby.

My general advice to writers is to know your subject matter; know your audience, and know your strengths and weaknesses as a communicator.

Take your research and writing seriously, but don't take yourself too seriously. By that I mean

Being a good communicator is an important skill. It always has been. It always will be. Good communication is useful, and valuable, in every fieldof human endeavor. I mention this not only because of the importance of sharing thoughts and ideas between people, but also because, on an individuallevel, being a good communicator will open up career opportunities for you.

If you're writing nonfiction, your reputation as a researcher and author will depend on the integrity of your work. Are you accurate? Are youprecise? When you go beyond reporting facts and you draw conclusions, are they based on reliable sources and careful reasoning? Can your readerstrust you as an authority on your subject?

Often in research, primary sources will be your best friend. That means going to contemporary newspapers and government documents, lettersand diaries, autobiographies, interviews, and the like.

Of course, keep in mind that primary sources can be colored by personal perspectives and biases, or they might contain mistakes. So don't dependcompletely on any one primary source. Gather information from as many as you can. If you find discrepancies, look for reasons why.

If you ever find missing pieces in the puzzle of your research, resist the temptation to fill in the blanks with speculation. Or-if you mustspeculate, and you present a hypothesis or an undocumented possibility, keep these three things in mind:

Let me give you three case studies on the importance of research. The first is about a researcher whose ground breaking work was marred by astrange weakness; the second is about a young writer, not much older than you, who solved a 200-year-old mystery; and the third is an example of aprimary-source document that had some hidden traps.

To read the complete article, see:
The importance of good research and writing(http://news.coinupdate.com/the-importance-of-good-research-and-writing/)