Instagram and Research

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If someone would’ve told me a year ago that I’d be using Instagram for anything but entertainment…

 

I wouldn’t have believed them.

But here I am, telling you that it is now one of my favorite forms of research. And not only for contemporary. I use it for historical research too. “Back in the day” I used Pinterest a lot and it is still a great resource, but now I love Instagram because I can watch videos that are real life examples of what I want to to know for my books.

Want to know how often a rancher feeds their cattle in Wyoming in the winter? Sure you do, and you might get to watch an adorable kid honking the tractor horn at his mother while you’re at it.

And this isn’t the only thing! There are so many ranchers I now follow. I grew up watching my mom and dad raise sheep but they sold them when I was about eight (so my memory was faulty at best). But I watched videos on Instagram that showed me how farmers do it now. When I wrote about the two types of dogs in To a Brighter Tomorrow, some to protect and some to herd, that was all from watching videos on Instagram!

I don’t want to advertise any specific content creators here (because I don’t feel like it’s right to endorse anyone) but if you like Instagram or are open to it, you can find so many interesting things. You can learn how to construct period clothing in period ways. You can learn about woodworking. You can watch short videos about the weather and landscape in Cody, WY. It really is fascinating.

There are two things you have to be wary of though on Instagram

  1. It can be a time suck. Just like Pinterest or YouTube. You can go on there to find a specific thing and realize an hour has passed and you now know more than you ever thought you would know about cats with neurological disorders….
  2. While the Instagram algorithm learns very quickly what you like and don’t (within a few weeks they were serving me Amazon clothing ads that were spot-on, even though I never bought a thing) you will still occasionally be served content that you won’t like. They are very good at finding similar content, but similar does not equal ‘the same’.

    I know quite a few of the Fillies are on Instagram (I follow many of them). If you’re on Instagram, be sure to follow us!

Are you on Instagram?

One surprising thing I learned there was about ranching in Montana and how cowboys dress in all seasons there. The non-fiction part of Instagram is really interesting and can be a lot of fun. If you do follow me, you can even see who I follow to help you find interesting content in a safe way.

You can find me Here: https://www.instagram.com/karitrumboauthor/ 

Author | Website |  + posts

Where western meets happily ever after.

Kari writes swoony heroes and places that become characters with detail and heart.

Her favorite place to write about is the place her heart lives, (even if she doesn't) South Dakota.

Kari loves reading, listening to contemporary Christian music, singing when no one's listening, and curling up near the wood stove when winter hits. She makes her home in central Minnesota, land of frigid toes and mosquitoes the size of compact cars, with her husband of over twenty years. They have two daughters, two sons, one cat, and one hungry wood stove.

26 thoughts on “Instagram and Research”

    • I wish I could say I was the one to think of it. I’m not. I was at a writing retreat this summer and Elana Johnson said it was something she does (she uses Tiktok for the same purpose, but I’m not on TT). It opened up a whole new world of research for me when I thought about using something I already do as a positive thing, instead of a time-waster.

  8. It is amazing what little tidbits can be found. Sometimes things that would otherwise be lost are preserved in the weirdest places. Of course, some of the odd things that happened can also be preserved; such as, a man in Western Kansas being trapped in his car during a blizzard. He was deep in the show and wearing a warm fur coat and hat when he spotted an airplane flying low. He tried signaling the plane and thought they had seen him and they had, sort of. They dropped a bail of hay for what they thought was a stranded cow. All they could make out was a furry creature with only a little bit sticking out of the snow. He survived and razzed the guys in the plane for years about not being able to tell a human from a cow.

  9. I am on instagram, but I never realized had a search function. I love research and it is dangerous for me to get started. I stopped following one blog by English historical authors. It is wonderful with many of their posts describing the results of research they have done. They also gave the links to where they found their information. Too often I would follow those links and get lost for 2 or 3 hours. I barely have time to check my emails so that was not a good idea. Interesting and edifying, but I don’t have the time. I do pop back every so often when I can spare the time. Now that I know what instagram has to offer, I will be doing some searches of my own.

    • Interestingly, I was just reading a book on writing that talks about distraction and how we each have differing propensities toward distraction (and triggers for it). Instagram definitely is one for me and I have to be careful to avoid “just one more minute” thinking.

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