Research!

The majority of my current work-in-progress takes place just north of Louisiana. It's set pretty far in the future, but I want to include hints of the Cajun dialect and culture, to imply where the characters in the story came from. I'm particularly excited about working on this, because it's the first novel I've tried to write that requires actual research (okay, writing my last one, I asked my dad some odd questions about the behavior of sharks/lions/etc., but nothing really extensive). So far I've checked out more books from the local library than I did from the school library my whole senior year (I wonder if I should be admitting that, hmm...).
Of course, this project may also be a huge, elaborate scheme to justify listening to awesome musicians like Beau Soleil perform, and to explain why I should visit New Orleans. But only maybe.