The Truth in Fiction

I wanted to start off with this quote from "V for Vendetta" because I believe, at the heart of it, is something very real and tangible:

"My father used to say artists use lies to tell the truth, while politicians use them to cover the truth up."

But instead, I think this one from Albert Einstein sums up what I'd like to talk about in a much more poetic and honest way:

"... knowledge must continually be renewed by ceaseless effort, if it is not to be lost. It resembles a statue of marble which stands in the desert and is continually threatened with burial by the shifting sand. The hands of service must ever be at work, in order that the marble continue to lastingly shine in the sun. To these serving hands mine shall also belong."

 

Even people without a background in philosophy know the idea of "Know thyself," but what I've found over the last couple of years is that so few people ever really sit back and deconstruct themselves or willingly have themselves deconstructed by others. Every author has an almost thematic (though not always intentionally so) approach to the stories that they weave. Some write about zombies, some write about relationships, and some write very intentionally from personal experience.

It was pointed out to me a few months ago that much of my writing is about loss, either of things, self or of love. It is mostly the latter and it's never been intentional on my part, but looking back on most of my work (both in poetry and in fiction) I can see that this is definitely the case. As I've said before, I refuse to write about my personal experiences outright, but I will say that I've had some rocky times with past relationships. This isn't to say that my experiences have been more unique than others, simply that they are unique to me. The intelligent person approaches the love life with a certain kind of tabula rasa every time; no lover is ever like another and they shouldn't be treated as such. Likewise, no book should ever be written with the same mentality either.

But ultimately, these moments from my life seep into the work without me realizing it. It is a subconscious decision, but one that is apparently inevitable. I've heard time and time again that writers should "write what they know," and I believe that to be absolutely false. If something fascinates you to the point of writing about it, then do the proper research and make the book as true-to-life as possible. I currently have 9 books that are sitting at different levels of completion. Out of those nine, I've done research on five of them purely to flesh the story out in the best possible ways I can. A story absolutely cannot be its best without some truth being the cornerstone of its foundation.

Saying that truth is necessary in fiction may at first sound like an oxymoron. After all, fiction is made up and constructed from the imagination on a whim or from the briefest scent of a moment. At its worst, it is a trite and cliched fabrication. At its best, fiction is a magnifying glass turned upon ourselves as readers, picking up on the minutiae of who we are and what we're made of. I've read books that have made me misty-eyed and I've read books that have made me want to throw the book across the room in anger. This visceral reaction is one of the many powers of truth within a text.

This entry has become something completely different than what I originally set out to write, but it's no less honest than the idea that sparked it. Either that or the scotch has done a quicker number on me than I expected. If you are writing, write what is true for the story and the real, the tangible, will often bubble up to the surface organically. The substance of a piece (be it music, art, writing, whatever) will be firmly planted in the real. It's foolish to think that you can write about an emotional moment without finding out how others (or yourself!) have experienced that same kind of moment before. Every ounce of concentration should be focused on making that moment as true as possible or it will fall flat when others read it. 

On the other hand, it is not foolish to write about other moments you know nothing about. There's no way you'll ever be able to experience the nauseating moments leading up to the storming of the Normandy beaches, but that's why the act of researching should be not only mandatory, but approached from a less academic way and a more personal way. I know nothing about astronauts or low-orbit space travel, but that's what one of my books is about, so I dig in and do the research. I knew next to nothing about art or museums (only that I loved both), but I can't even tell you how many hours I've spent researching for "Impasto" over the last year and a half. 

The truth in your fiction is important. If nothing else, aim to make the reader feel exactly as you do for every moment you put on the page. I swear they will stand by you if you can make that moment on the page as real as if they were truly living it, no matter how experimental or sci-fi your book may be. Once you figure out how to do that, you will be unstoppable.

(2,145)