I have what I think is a pretty good idea for a novel and so I started writing it down, the general idea I mean, and I got stuck on this one point that involves economics, something I don’t know much about. A couple of weeks ago I asked my brother about it—he went to business school and had a couple of high-paying jobs that hinged on his expertise in, whatever, money and math and stuff. I asked him my question and he said no, my idea wasn’t going to work, economically speaking. Then he offered me an alternative, which sounded OK but not as much fun as what I had in mind.
A week or so later I ran into a guy at a Halloween party (it was my Halloween party, if you want to get technical), and he mentioned he was an academic, so I asked him if he knew any economics professors, I need to talk with an economics professor. (That exact tone, too, just like the one the boy gives the tree in The Giving Tree when he asks, can you give me some money, I want some money.) He said, yeah, he could maybe help.
But that was a week ago and I haven’t done anything. Maybe I’m afraid what this not-yet-existent economics professor will tell me? Because if my brother turns out to be correct, bad enough, but then I’m also left having to change my idea, which sucks because having ideas for novels this early on ought to mean unfettered inspiration, no wrong answers, everything’s up for grabs. Oh well. One way to find out.
UPDATE (12/2/2019): Well, I emailed with my professor friend, and he agreed with my brother. He even offered the same alternative! I suppose this is as good a sign as any to give up on my original idea. I also suppose this is why research is worth doing.