An Introduction to Nonfiction

"A writer is dear and necessary for us only in the measure of which he reveals to us the inner workings of his very soul."  Count Leo Tolstoy

Fiction involves a book, story, or poem that is made up by the author, nonfiction deals with stories that are true.  These stories involve real people, real incidents, circumstances and places.  However, there is a great amount of creativity involved and a bit of wiggle room in terms of pure, unquestionable authenticity.  Consider the following quote:

Presentation [of a non-fiction piece] may be accurate or not; that is, it can give either a true or a false account of the subject in question. However, it is generally assumed that the authors of such accounts believe them to be truthful at the time of their composition. [7]

Nonfiction can also be written about fiction, giving information about these other works.  An example of this might be a book or movie review in which the author writes a non-fiction piece critiquing and analyzing a fictional work. 

In this section we will be discussing various forms of non-fiction: personal essays, biographies/memoirs, review writing, etc.  Nonfiction can come in the form of something personal and non-structured (such as journal writing) or it can take on a formal structure (personal essays and reviews).  The important thing to remember about nonfiction is that it is not, by any means, less exciting or interesting than fiction.  While we are able to step into the shoes of grand creator when writing fiction, nonfiction offers us the opportunity to explore our own interests and experiences in a creative and often therapeutic manner. 

Research Research Research!

“I enjoy doing the research of nonfiction; that gives me some pleasure, being a detective again.”  Joseph Wambaugh

When one builds a house, the structure itself isn’t created until a foundation is poured.  Researching your topic is the necessary foundation for any piece of nonfiction.  The research methods you utilize will depend on the type of nonfiction you are interested in writing.  Below is a basic guideline for the type of research methods you may wish to employ during the process.