It's that word 'creative' that should set it apart. Yet a lot of nonfiction, including journalism, can be creative without becoming CNF. So, what then?
Discussions of “creative nonfiction” typically focus on the word “creative.” Is it true in every detail or is it creative — meaning it is made up. Some scholars claim that it is not the actual truth that matters but the “emotional” truth. I myself believe a better category would be “literary nonfiction,” where the quality of the writing is such that it reveals both actual truth and is universal in its appeal.
I am not sure about the meaning of 'creative' in creative non-fiction. For me, it is not so much the licence to make things up- I have no imagination, just memory- but it is the licence to reveal and enrich with metaphors and similes. That is what I love about the raconteur writer, we can take truth and turn it into art, as poets, painters and sculptors do.
But also, to be blunt, I fear the 'creative' side if it gives licence to bend or distort the truth. In non-fiction you run the risk of being sued for defamation. If you can stick within the lines of bare, evidentially proven truth you have a defence.
So my first drafts are verbatim diary entries copied out, maybe a few years at a time. These create the skeleton of truth, the framework for my story. The story arc will already be known to me, but the forgotten subplots and personalities that float up from the words can come as a surprise. I'm currently on a first draft of 'Shiksa' I'm 170k words in with I guess a hundred to go. Once finished that goes to one side. I take a copy and start crafting - cut out the fat, pad out the flesh and muscle keeping an eye on to preserve that skeleton of truth. And little by little over another year or so, persuade the story back to under 90k words. I love it, the time travel, and the crafting.
Yes, sometimes 'creative nonfiction' can exaggerate or bend the truth for effect, which means the reader must be willing to go along. It's up to the CNF writer to create the kind of mood that makes fudging obvious and acceptable.
CNF doesn't pretend to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. But it can if that's what the writer wants. Again, the writer will have to figure out a way to make clear what is truth and what isn't. Satire, for example, is heightened truth. We know it when we see it--or we should.
I think we humans have a tendency to overcomplicate. I think of creative non-fiction as true stories, well told. Creative non-fiction is the difference between memoir and biography. It's the difference between story and history. It's powerful writing on true things. It reads like literature, but it's truth not fiction.
We have to be careful what we are comparing. A "memoir" would be comparable to an autobiography, not a biography. A biography is about another person's life -- typically about someone who has distinguished himself or herself in some way.
I'm ruminating on this conversation. I see creative non-fiction as being the broad container for many types of storytelling--memoir, autobiography, biography, and personal essay--with compelling narrative and observation as key across all of those forms.
Mona, I agree that, done well, they all leave the reader feeling as if they've been given a glimpse of something real, honest, and...maybe a little bit precious.
Discussions of “creative nonfiction” typically focus on the word “creative.” Is it true in every detail or is it creative — meaning it is made up. Some scholars claim that it is not the actual truth that matters but the “emotional” truth. I myself believe a better category would be “literary nonfiction,” where the quality of the writing is such that it reveals both actual truth and is universal in its appeal.
I love the 'witness to a reverie'.
I am not sure about the meaning of 'creative' in creative non-fiction. For me, it is not so much the licence to make things up- I have no imagination, just memory- but it is the licence to reveal and enrich with metaphors and similes. That is what I love about the raconteur writer, we can take truth and turn it into art, as poets, painters and sculptors do.
But also, to be blunt, I fear the 'creative' side if it gives licence to bend or distort the truth. In non-fiction you run the risk of being sued for defamation. If you can stick within the lines of bare, evidentially proven truth you have a defence.
So my first drafts are verbatim diary entries copied out, maybe a few years at a time. These create the skeleton of truth, the framework for my story. The story arc will already be known to me, but the forgotten subplots and personalities that float up from the words can come as a surprise. I'm currently on a first draft of 'Shiksa' I'm 170k words in with I guess a hundred to go. Once finished that goes to one side. I take a copy and start crafting - cut out the fat, pad out the flesh and muscle keeping an eye on to preserve that skeleton of truth. And little by little over another year or so, persuade the story back to under 90k words. I love it, the time travel, and the crafting.
Yes, sometimes 'creative nonfiction' can exaggerate or bend the truth for effect, which means the reader must be willing to go along. It's up to the CNF writer to create the kind of mood that makes fudging obvious and acceptable.
CNF doesn't pretend to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. But it can if that's what the writer wants. Again, the writer will have to figure out a way to make clear what is truth and what isn't. Satire, for example, is heightened truth. We know it when we see it--or we should.
I think we humans have a tendency to overcomplicate. I think of creative non-fiction as true stories, well told. Creative non-fiction is the difference between memoir and biography. It's the difference between story and history. It's powerful writing on true things. It reads like literature, but it's truth not fiction.
Great points, Linda. "The difference between memoir and biography" is especially compelling. So true!
We have to be careful what we are comparing. A "memoir" would be comparable to an autobiography, not a biography. A biography is about another person's life -- typically about someone who has distinguished himself or herself in some way.
Yes, you’re right. That got past me. Thanks!
I'm ruminating on this conversation. I see creative non-fiction as being the broad container for many types of storytelling--memoir, autobiography, biography, and personal essay--with compelling narrative and observation as key across all of those forms.
Mona, I agree that, done well, they all leave the reader feeling as if they've been given a glimpse of something real, honest, and...maybe a little bit precious.