Sometimes, my online research projects inspire my books. Other times, my book-related research branches into a online research project. At times, though, a research project winds up being nothing more than something I’m interested in and hope to share with others.
CURATED CRIME MOVIES
As the nine-volume series called the Curated Crime Collection nears completion, it occurred to me that movies offer an interesting way to further explore imaginative stories about criminals (as opposed to detectives or crime victims). Therefore, I’m starting a series of reviews of such films, but only about those I can recommend. This is my newest project, and it’s in an early stage. Right now, I’ll be very happy if I reach nine movies. This project’s main page is here.
THE SHORT FICTION
OF CATHERINE CROWE
The Short Fiction of Catherine Crowe is a chronological bibliography of the short stories written by once-popular, now-neglected author Catherine Crowe (1790-1872). Crowe was better known as a novelist and the author of The Night-Side of Nature, an important book discussing paranormal phenomena such as prophetic dreams, ghosts, and doppelgängers. As far as I know, no bibliography of her short fiction has been created, and I add summaries, commentaries, and links to online copies. I hope this will lead to collection of Crowe’s short fiction, but there are no immediate plans for that.
THE GHOST HUNTER
HALL OF FAME
The Ghost Hunter Hall of Fame examines the long history of actual ghost hunting by listing several of its most noteworthy investigators. “Ghost hunt” and derivations of it have been around longer than some might think, too, a topic I discuss on The Rise of Term “Ghost Hunter” TARDIS. Many of these supernatural snoopers worked during the Victorian period (1837-1901), and to get an idea of what books they relied upon, browse through The Victorian Ghost Hunters’ Library.
This ongoing project has helped me complete two books: The Victorian Ghost Hunter’s Casebook and Certain Nocturnal Disturbances: Ghost Hunting Before the Victorians.
RAILROAD HAUNTINGS
YOU CAN STILL VISIT
This project explores haunted railroad sites that can still be investigated. It might be a bridge or a tunnel — a depot, a roundhouse, or a freight yard — or even the stretch of tracks where a wreck occurred long ago. Do you have such a spooky location in your area?
Find out by scrolling down the page for After the End of the Line: Railroad Hauntings in Literature and Lore. These spots are fairly tough to find, so I only occasionally update the list.
THE CHRONOLOGICAL
BIBLIOGRAPHY OF
EARLY OCCULT DETECTIVES
Occult detective characters handle cases involving the supernatural and otherworldly with methods similar to those of criminal investigators: analyzing physical evidence, interrogating witnesses, conducting surveillance, etc. The Chronological Bibliography of Early Occult Detectives is a long list of fictional occult detectives, from 1817 to 1925, along with many links to online texts of their tales. There is one page for the 1800s and another for the early 1900s. A Key to the Chronological Bibliography of Early Occult Detective might be helpful in understanding that bibliography and my definition of “occult detective fiction.”
This project is mostly retired, but every now and again, I come across another character to add to the extensive bibliography. It has helped me finish two books: Ghostly Clients and Demonic Culprits: The Roots of Occult Detective Fiction and From Eerie Cases to Early Graves: 5 Short-Lived Occult Detective Series.
THE TARDIS PAGES
Scattered throughout my projects are what I call “TARDIS” pages. This stands for Trusted Archival Research Documents in Sequence (though some might have thought I was headed elsewhere). These are timelines with links to historical sources available online, and I hope my colleagues who enjoy research will find them useful. Here’s what I have so far:
The Cock Lane Ghost TARDIS
Crocker Land and Other Mapped Mirages of the Arctic TARDIS
Facts in the Case of Poe’s Demise TARDIS
The Rise of the Term “Ghost Hunt” TARDIS
BROM BONES BOOKS 