Research Provenance v2.1

Maintain traceability from externally derived facts to the places in the novel that rely on them. A novel that depends on accuracy needs to know which facts are load-bearing and whether they are still true.

Records

Record in research/SOURCE.md and research/CLAIM.md.

For each source: ID, title, type, date or access context, authority, and which claims it supports.

For each claim: ID, the claim, classification, source, verification state, scope, confidence, where it is used in the novel, and review date.

Verification states: VERIFIED, UNCERTAIN, DISPUTED, CREATIVE_FICTION.

Load-bearing claims

Identify which claims the plot actually depends on. A novel that assumes a particular legal procedure, medical outcome, historical event, or technical process is relying on that claim; if it is wrong, the story breaks. These claims need verification, a review date, and a fallback.

Claims used only for colour need less rigour and rarely need a record at all. Distinguishing the two prevents the entire research apparatus being applied uniformly and pointlessly.