From: kathleen duey <kathleen>
Date: Tue, 2 Apr 2002 13:28:02 -0800

Where does creative, scene-structured, (undocumentable but plausible)dialogue-augmented creative nonfiction end...
        ...and fact-rich, meticulously researched, primary source based, "reliable" historical fiction begin?

Certainly both are vulnerable to careless research and honest errors. If I mention a store on a street corner in my novels--with a lamp post in front and a sign quoting the price of eggs--I have correlated street maps, newspaper ads and community laws requiring shop owners on that block to maintain streetlamps.

My characters are firmly based on people I meet through their preserved letters, journals, etc, too. Yet, no one would ever call my books anything but historical fiction.

It seems to me that nonfiction and creative nonfiction exist on a continuum, and that they are stops along the route to historical fiction. Going either direction, if you miss your stop, you risk ending up at the other end of the line. The extremes are obvious. The middle is extensive, and blurred.

Deborah's point is wonderful. If it is YOUR story, can you rewrite the facts as needed with impunity? Historic memoirs, known to be inaccurate, are usually described by historians as unreliable. I have always thought this a kind and accurate label.

Enjoying this...

Best to all, Kathleen
** http://www.kathleenduey.com
** http://www.timesoldiers.com Just out: THE UNICORN'S SECRET a series for 2-3rd grade girls who are simply *not* ordinary. Available everywhere, almost.

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Received on Tue 02 Apr 2002 03:28:02 PM CST