From: fairrosa
Date: Wed, 03 Apr 2002 00:12:14 -0500

I agree with Nancy's view as quoted below and believe that there are so many compelling nonfiction topics out there which do not need the "help" of fiction techniques to make them gripping.

Topic itself + vivid writing (great voice, precise language, rich description of the elements, etc.) + clear organization should be enough for many nonfiction titles to be enjoyed by readers AND satisfying for many writers. Not everyone enjoys telling a story -- some people simply like to make sure that the information is clearly and correctly conveyed.

What I am most wary when this genre is picking up force is that there will be many authors or editors who "employ" fictional techniques for every and each topic, whether it is appropriate and whether the author's talent is as a good storyteller. And I'm afraid that our young readers will be so exposed that they cannot read, enjoy, and absorb the information without some sort of narrative format.

We had some discussions on this topic in child_lit a while back and I still have not changed my mind:

There are plenty of kids who do NOT need narratives or a "story" in order to be inspired or interested in a particular topic. And in fact, there are plenty of kids who might NOT like narratives when all they want to do is to "get the information."

I have no objection of and indeed enjoy creative nonfiction. But I do feel strongly that we need to keep the young readers in mind and we need to make sure that both creative nonfiction and "purist" nonfiction have their balanced places in young people's reading experiences.

-- fairrosa

Nancy Feresten wrote:
Received on Tue 02 Apr 2002 11:12:14 PM CST