I think that a book should be at least 70% true to be
considered non-fiction. I think it should be 70% because non-fiction is a true
story, and if you have half the book made up then it’s not true. I think 30% is
a good percent to be made up because it allows the author to be creative and
make their story a bit more interesting than a bunch of facts all piled
together. For example The Glass Castle is
considered creative non-fiction because there are stories she tells that are
not all the way true because she adds creativity to them to make them sound
more interesting to read and for the readers to fully understand her childhood
and the things she went through. I believe
that it’s okay if a story is only half true but a good read. Who cares if the person
added fiction to their stories, they just wanted to make their life sound more
interesting and not sound boring. I don’t think it matters that Frey and
Mortenson bent the truth to tell their stories because again they wanted to
make their lives and the whole story more interesting. I don’t think we need
fine lines between genres because if it’s a good story then it’s a good story,
who cares if it’s true or not, if it was written well and has a good plot line
then that’s perfectly fine with me.
How would you determine what is made up and what is not? It seems impossible to measure whether or not the fiction exceeds the thirty percent in a “non-fiction” book. I think that knowing what you are reading is one hundred percent real will completely enhance your read. Knowing the events actually happened without embellishment makes the story so much more interesting. Anyone can make up crazy events for a book, but few actually live them.
ReplyDeleteI think you make a strong point that authors often add creativity to their stories to make them better. But if the author is fooling the reader by saying that it has happened then they are betraying their trust.
ReplyDelete70% is seems pretty low... Say that the book is 400 pages long. 120 pages are fake, false, and lies. Personally, I wouldn't be too happy about that.
ReplyDeleteWe need genre lines because people need to know what kind of book they are picking up. They may buy a book because they think it's an inspiring story about how someone overcame a disability, but it's actually a complete work of fiction.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that there could be some fiction or faulty points in the text to make it more creative and interesting, but i think if you are going to read a non-fiction novel, it needs to actually be real, honest and true.
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