When you're writing a book that is going to be a narrative…
“When you're writing a book that is going to be a narrative with characters and events, you're walking very close to fiction, since you're using some of the methods of fiction writing. You're lying, but some of the details may well come from your general recollection rather than from the particular scene. In the end it comes down to the readers. If they believe you, you're OK. A memoirist is really like any other con man; if he's convincing, he's home. If he isn't, it doesn't really matter whether it happened, he hasn't succeeded in making it feel convincing.”
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
Memoir blurs fact and fiction; its success depends on convincing the reader, like a con artist.
In simple terms: Memoirs mix truth and storytelling;
Key Takeaway
Make your story believable.
Themes
writing
truth
fiction
memory
persuasion
Mood
critical
analytical
skeptical
Type
Believe:0
Book:0
Books:0
Character:0
Convincing:0
Details:0
Ends:0
Events:0
Feels:0
Fiction:0
Fiction writing:0
Happened:0
Home:0
Ifs:0
Lying:0
Matter:0
May:0
Men:0
Method:0
Narrative:0
Particular:0
Reader:0
Recollection:0
Scene:0
Walking:0
Wells:0
Writer:0
Writing:0
Writing a book:0
Con Man:0
Writing Lying:0
Memoirist Really:0
Fiction Using:0
Going Narrative:0
When to use this quote
- writing memoirs
- publishing nonfiction
- editing personal narratives
Key Concepts
narrative technique
ethical storytelling
authorial voice
Questions to Reflect On
- When does artistic license become deceit?
- How much truth is needed to engage readers?