Creative Truth

I turned in the cycling stories to my teacher.  I'm waiting for the grade and working on the next lesson.  The new lesson is all about truth in nonfiction.  For the sake of a story, authors of nonfiction sometimes find themselves distorting the truth or making things up.  Sometimes it's disturbing to find out something presented as truth isn't true.  Sometimes it's not necessarily untrue; we remember events differently than other people; we all have our own perspectives.  Sadly, some people outright lie and call it a memoir.

For my next assignment, I'm supposed to write about a memory that is hazy; if someone else remembers the experience differently, all the better.  Roger and I remember the day we met differently.  He says, "Love at first sight."  I say, "He was not impressed.  In fact, he seemed a little disturbed."  I may write about that experience.  I'd like more childhood memories if anyone wants to remind me of one.  Honestly, most of my memories feel hazy.

I'm embarrassed to say I did some truth-distorting in my last assignment.  It was hard not to, especially when I was writing other people's stories.  I wasn't there.  I had to approximate and interpret what they might have seen, the dialog they described, and their feelings about the events.  I had to fill in the blanks.  Even in my own tales, I said I have a "friend" named Maxim, when he's really just a person I quoted from the internet.  I promise, if I met Maxim we'd be instant friends!  I liked what he said that much.  And then there's the story where I combined two turtle-sighting biking experiences.  One turtle (the one in the picture above) survived.  The other didn't.  Both stories are true, so the whole thing feels true to me.  I was trying to make a point.  Two separate turtle stories wouldn't have worked. 

I need to practice being as honest as possible in my nonfiction writing. On the other hand, sometimes a creative retelling feels closer to the truth than freezing facts.