July 27, 2009 The Fine Line Between Fact & Fiction, open chat 1
The transcript below covers the complete #litchat conversation on July 27, 2009. The order appears sequentially from the first post to the final post. Topic was open discussion The Fine Line Between Fact and Fiction.
| LitChat Welcome to #litchat. Today we’re discussing THE FINE LINE BETWEEN FACT & FICTION. Join us for the next hour for some great convo. -1:00 PM Jul 27th, 200 |
cloverover @nicolamorgan Trying the #litchat again I see? Good luck!  -1:01 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @cloverover er, thanks … #litchat -1:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Hi, there, @litchat. And hi to everyone. Looking forward to convo, and some of @nicolamorgan’s wine and choclate. #litchat -1:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat Creative non-fiction–memoir and personal essays–often blur the lines between what really happened and what author perceives. #litchat -1:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| hprw @nicolamorgan Sign in to TweetChat; put in #litchat; put your comments in the box which appears; hope to offend no one. -1:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| hprw @nicolamorgan Are you here now? I am! #litchat -1:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan kids talk about fiction as being “made up” stuff and I have fun+difficulty explaining that actually fiction is as true as “fact” #litchat -1:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs Hi everyone #litchat -1:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @hprw Hi! Nicola won’t share her wine. [pout] #litchat -1:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan because if there’s was no truth in it there’d be nothing to connect to #litchat -1:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| hprw @nicolamorgan Sometimes true-er! #litchat -1:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @hprw Oh yes, and I have SO got the hang of it #litchat -1:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan Maggie, i’m here for serious literary conversation and meaningfulness. You are only here for the wine. i know your sort #litchat -1:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| hprw @maggiedana I would but I’ve drunk it all…. #litchat -1:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dosankodebbie I’m here too. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes. #litchat -1:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan “Non-fic tells us the temperature of freezing point: fiction makes us feel the cold” #litchat -1:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana <— going to fetch her own damned wine. #litchat -1:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat If you have a question for the topic, send to @litchat w/o hashtag and I will post to group. Thanks. #litchat -1:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LyndaDW #litchat great topic. There is a natural tendency to believe what you read until you read a conflicting story. -1:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @nicolamorgan Oh, that’s great description. #litchat -1:06 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Trouble w/real life, it sounds too far-fetched when fetched up as fiction. #litchat -1:06 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @VanessaDobbs Just reading up on “delusional disorder,” where one’s beliefs are impervious to disproof. May apply to Da Vinci Code #litchat -1:07 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dosankodebbie SO TRUE RT @LyndaDW: #litchat great topic. There is a natural tendency to believe what you read until you read a conflicting story. -1:07 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan if you tell a story saying it’s true, people listen for a certain meaning; if they think it’s fic, they expect a different meaning #litchat -1:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana RT @LyndaDW: #litchat great topic. There is a natural tendency to believe what you read until you read a conflicting story. #litchat -1:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs @maggiedana well they do say truth is stranger than fiction #litchat -1:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat RT @nicolamorgan: “Non-fic tells us the temperature of freezing point: fiction makes us feel the cold” #litchat -1:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky Don’t we always expect that writing dances on the line between fact/fiction, regardless of type? #litchat -1:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @maggiedana yes, an coincidences that could really happen or even have happened are useless in a story #litchat -1:09 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns RT @nicolamorgan: “Non-fic tells us the temperature of freezing point: fiction makes us feel the cold” #litchat @karendionne! -1:10 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs RT @AndreaGardner: @VanessaDobbs yes and Fiction, unlike life, must make sense.#litchat -1:12 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Reminds me of current reading: non-fic abt Brit explorer who used Peary’s methods to reach North Pole to try & verify Peary did it. #litchat -1:13 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @mjmbecky I just read a novel that could have easily passed for nonfiction. #litchat -1:13 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| cookiebiscuit Hi everyone. #litchat -1:13 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan the “making us feel the cold” is something I often use when explaining why I love fiction, why it’s important #litchat -1:14 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
jeremyduns @VanessaDobbs Non-fiction also has to make sense.  (Funny it’s not called fact, but is defined in opposition to fiction.) #litchat -1:14 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @pussreboots What novel was that? Was it steeped in history? #litchat -1:14 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @kashicat My son is learning the difference between fic/non-fic in school. He asks about every book we read together. #litchat -1:14 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dweiums Identifying as non-fiction allows the reader to invest more emotion and empathy. #litchat -1:14 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @pussreboots Interesting – which novel? #litchat -1:15 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @VanessaDobbs thanks for the redirect! I can’t stand when I forget the #litchat! I end up talking to myself. Nothing new there though -1:15 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @kashicat I agree – but they can be led in that direction, often. It can be quite eye-opening #litchat -1:15 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots On the flip side… finished Grey Seas Under which is nonfiction that reads like fiction. #litchat -1:15 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dweiums Readers are forever asking what parts may be real in a piece of fiction. #litchat -1:15 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| hangingnoodles Hello litchatters #litchat -1:16 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @jeremyduns So, is there a diff. between “non-fiction” and “fact,” I wonder? Some reason for that distinction? #litchat -1:16 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @AndreaGardner It was Outside the Lavender Closet by Martha A Taylor. #litchat -1:16 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @mjmbecky Expect, maybe. But I generally want non-fiction to be as free of fiction as possible. I read it for research. #litchat -1:16 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| CarolyBurnsBass In memoir, the fine line between fact and fiction is drawn by the author, it’s about author’s perception, rather than fact. #litchat -1:16 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @pussreboots That’s cool! Do you find it hard to explain the subtleties & gradations? #litchat -1:16 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @LitChat Are we supposed to “be” somewhere to get “live” into the conversation? #litchat -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @mjmbecky There is also a distinction between Truths & Facts. The two may be the same, but not always. Fiction can present Truths #litchat -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dosankodebbie I often wonder what about the definition of “based on true events.” How much should be fact in a novel to make that claim? #litchat -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @pussreboots And we make it sound so simple +black +white, but it isn’t. Kids often say n-f is “true”, as though a novel isn’t #litchat -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jentropy Hello #litchat folks. My perception of reality informs my fiction and non-fic. Reader’s perception of reality determines what they believe. -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat Q1 fm @Doublelattemama When does it go from being a biography to a fictional novel? how will i know? #litchat -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @dweiums I’d have thought it was opposite: more emotion/empathy for fic than non-fic. Why do you think that? #litchat -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @kashicat He’s almost 7 so everything takes a bit of creativity to explain. At least he’s interested! #litchat -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dweiums @CarolyBurnsBass And perception is often blurred by memory & need for attention. #litchat -1:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @CarolyBurnsBass That’s exactly right. As long as the reader understands the liberties the author is taking. #litchat -1:18 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @nicolamorgan I am trying to teach him that novels can have truths in them. We are learning this with Hoot by Carl Hiaasen. #litchat -1:18 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat RT @dweiums: Readers are forever asking what parts may be real in a piece of fiction. #litchat ["Is this autobiographical?"] -1:18 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @pussreboots Maybe heightened cultural issues read like fact/nonfiction than fiction.Good nonfiction seems to go the other way too. #litchat -1:18 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @jeremyduns I agree non-fic is for research and growth. A good fiction can help you grow, but can seriously warp if used for facts. #litchat -1:19 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @jeremyduns I’m much the same ab. non-fic. As much objectivity as humanly possible, or agenda stated upfront, at least. #litchat -1:19 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @pussreboots He sounds like one smart cookie! #litchat -1:19 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 Q-1: Unless it is attributed and confirmed by multiple sources- it is basically fiction, opinion, story, etc. #litchat -1:19 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @TwinkleChar You’re “live” right now, so just jump in. It’s a bit jumbled sometimes. #litchat -1:20 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @CarolyBurnsBass I sometimes find memoirs hard to read because I’m unsure where that line is. #litchat -1:20 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @AndreaGardner It depends what kind of “nonfiction.” There’s “creative nonfiction”–not the same as factual material. #litchat -1:20 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @pussreboots I suppose novels haven’t happened but they could, and we can imagine them. #litchat -1:20 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @WayneHurlbert I once taught young kids class about Norse myth. A little fundie kid said it was bad because it was all lies #litchat -1:21 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @jeremyduns I agree – I don’t know how much to believe, as I know that memory is relative and skewed, but in a novel it’s no prob #litchat -1:21 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @kashicat Thanks! I think so. #litchat -1:21 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat @TwinkleChar Go to Twitter Search or my favorite is http://tweetchat.com. Log into hashtag #litchat. -1:22 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @rottenperson True. I tend to forget about creative non-fic. #litchat -1:22 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @kashicat The kid might be right, depending on the myth’s intention, yes? #litchat -1:22 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @nicolamorgan Novels can be based on actual events but simplified to drive home certain points or make a better story. #litchat -1:22 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @pussreboots “better story” – yes! Because real life doesn’t usually work out in a story way! #litchat -1:23 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @AndreaGardner Even in memoir, the author can stretch things–private conversations, say–if they’re reasonably inferred. Agree? #litchat -1:24 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jentropy “A great writer always brings his own world and its message.” Albert Camus #litchat -1:24 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @LitChat I sent you a question w/no hashtag. Did you get it OK? #litchat -1:24 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @jeremyduns Lik you, I like my non-fiction to be factual. When presented as fact, it had better be reliable.#litchat -1:24 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan “Non-fic tells us the temperature of freezing point: fiction makes us feel the cold” #litchat -1:24 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @WayneHurlbert @rottenperson There’s “profound truth” (myth, for eg), & basic facts (gravity, blah blah). So he was right/wrong #litchat -1:24 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
WayneHurlbert @kashicat Now that is kind of scary on so many levels  #litchat -1:25 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @AndreaGardner I mean private conversations the author couldn’t possibly have overheard herself. She’s allowed some leeway, I think #litchat -1:25 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @maggiedana are you there??!! And where’s that Smith woman? Drinking again? #litchat -1:25 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana I’m always suspicious of non-fic with lots of dialogue. Makes me less liable to read and believe. #litchat -1:26 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| CarolyBurnsBass @WayneHurlbert Agree. Fact is like scientific formula with same outcome; truth is like theory, changes with individual perception. #litchat -1:26 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs @maggiedana me too. #litchat -1:26 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat Question 2 is coming up in 5 minutes. Watch for it. #litchat -1:26 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @nicolamorgan Smith woman is hiding under my sofa. @hprw #litchat -1:26 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @maggiedana Abso-lutely. #litchat -1:27 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @mjmbecky I #litchat -1:27 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat I think if we really want to know complete “facts” about s/o’s biography, we have to read several biographies of person. #litchat -1:27 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark #WRITERS: Do you ever wonder if the musicians whose songs you write 2 ever read any of your #books ? #music #writing #litchat -1:28 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat By the way, @rottenperson is our guest host on Friday. Check out his book of travel essays, A ROTTEN PERSON TRAVELS THE CARIBBEAN. #litchat -1:28 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @kashicat @rottenperson @CarolyBurnsBass The distinction between Truths & Facts is something some people can never grasp #litchat -1:28 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @mjmbecky I’ve read other LGBT fiction and it’s all been obviously presented as fiction. This one was written to read like nf. #litchat -1:28 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @maggiedana Well, get her out – she has to see that i am coping or she’ll have no respect for me. #litchat -1:28 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @rottenperson agreed because the reader would understand that it is the authors thoughts not fact #litchat -1:28 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @kashicat Good point. I read 4 bios of Edward R. Murrow and each one brought diff. facts into view. #litchat -1:28 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 @rottenperson That leeway is the fact that “it might not be so” #litchat -1:28 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dosankodebbie AGREE RT @kashicat: If we really want to know complete “facts” about s/o’s biography, we have to read several biographies of person #litchat -1:29 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @jeremyduns True. When doing research I want fact. Some nonfiction presents details to lead to author’s opinion, makes me nervous. #litchat -1:29 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @maggiedana I’m in the process of reading several bios of our former P.M. Pierre Trudeau, & having same experience #litchat -1:29 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @AndreaGardner Yes. Rachel Manley wrote a brilliant memoir about her father, Michael–former PM of Jamaica–in which she does that. #litchat -1:30 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @rottenperson I see myths (kind of my specialty) as ways of expressing almost inexpressible things ab. human psyche #litchat -1:30 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LyndaDW It’s a lot of work to keep asking yourself how much of this is true. After a while you tend to just believe what you read #litchat -1:30 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @rottenperson great example. #litchat -1:31 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @LyndaDW A case of ‘love the one you’re with’? … ‘believe the one you’re reading.’ #litchat -1:31 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @pussreboots Do you think has to be fiction for LGBT because it can go to depths that fact-based can’t because society not ready? #litchat -1:31 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat Q2 fm @Vanessa Dobbs How do you convince people that fiction is just fiction? eg controversy re books like Da Vinci code? #litchat -1:32 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar Readers sometimes “process” fictional characters as real, then start emailing worries about their health, love lives, choices #litchat -1:32 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @pussreboots Maybe more not ready to accept those authors or they are not ready to expose themselves in that way? #litchat -1:32 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner I think that if the reader cares they will do more research. #litchat -1:32 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan Well, for a start, with DVC, you wouldn’t pretend it was based on fact! #litchat -1:33 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @LitChat 2 a certain extent, you can’t. It’s the same principle if the Q were reversed. #litchat -1:33 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @TwinkleChar They certainly do this for TV characters. Witness large # of soap opera books at checkout counters #litchat -1:33 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jentropy People are seeking stories to explain the unknown. Fiction/myth/religion, who are we to ask them not to believe? #litchat -1:33 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 That’s just good writing! RT @LyndaDW: After a while you tend to just believe what you read #litchat -1:33 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs @TwinkleChar I find that sad #litchat -1:33 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @LitChat Q2 – my answer was that delusional disorder means someone’s beliefs are impervious to disproof. #litchat -1:33 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan Twitter seemed to stop talking my tweets just now: I was asking what “RT” means. Anyone? Please! #litchat -1:34 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky Q2–That line will always feel blurred, because you always believe there is a nugget of truth in fiction..especially hist. fiction. #litchat -1:34 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark Fact is in the eye of the beholder, despite proof to the contrary. #litchat -1:34 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @LitChat If I wrote that, I wouldn’t want to dissuade the reader from believing it’s fact. You? #litchat -1:34 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar RT @jentropy: People are seeking stories to explain the unknown. Fiction/myth/religion, who are we to ask them not to believe? #litchat -1:35 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 Q2- I do not see it as the author’s responsibility to keep crying it’s fiction- so long as he/she does not imply that’s its fact. #litchat -1:35 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TimOBrienNYT People who don’t know that fiction is just “fiction” can’t be swayed by explanations. They want to live inside a fantasy, yes? #litchat -1:35 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Sometimes hard to separate brilliantly-written historical fiction from straight history. #litchat -1:36 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @mmj5170 Great point #litchat -1:36 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 RT @rottenperson: @LitChat If I wrote that, I wouldnt want to dissuade the reader from believing its fact. You? <Not I> #litchat -1:36 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns I read tons of non-fiction books researching my fiction, but often find a photograph, an advertisement or a song tells me more #litchat -1:36 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @mmj5170 Wasn’t that part of its commercial success? How much was true? #litchat -1:37 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky Maybe just me, but I’m always questioning a text while I read. #litchat -1:37 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| MGurman RT: People who don’t know that fiction is just “fiction” can’t be swayed by explanations. They want to live inside a fantasy, yes? #litchat -1:37 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| susanmpls RT @TimOBrienNYT: Ppl who dont know that fict is just “fiction” cant be swayed by explanations–want to live inside a fantasy, yes? #litchat -1:37 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @jeremyduns Tells you what you imagine by looking? #litchat -1:37 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner I just read a book claiming to be Biblically based to find it was a ruse to get readers. ONLY the names were from the Bible. #litchat -1:37 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @nicolamorgan DVC was at least presented in a novel. “Holy Blood Holy Grail” the “source” was presented as fact. More worrying #litchat -1:37 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @nicolamorgan But DB did in the foreword, quite specifically! #litchat -1:37 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @AndreaGardner The Red Tent? #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @nicolamorgan RT means “Retweet,” so you’re retweeting what someone else said, for emphasis or to add to it. #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @AndreaGardner How did you “find” out? #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat @rottenperson But of course, if you wrote that, you would want readers to believe it’s true. #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TimOBrienNYT RT @maggiedana I’m always suspicious of non-fic with lots of dialogue. Makes me less liable to read and believe. #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 @rottenperson How horrible to think that a story impels people to learn more and research out of curiosity! <Aghast!> #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @AndreaGardner Probably sold a lot of copies. #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky RT @linc0lnpark Fact is in the eye of the beholder, despite proof to the contrary. #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 or compels #litchat -1:38 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LyndaDW Or the good story sticks in your head, but 6 months later you’ve forgotten it was n’t all true #litchat -1:39 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @mmj5170 LOL #litchat -1:39 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @rottenperson MILLIONS! And created a ton of controversy. I say it’s a crime but oh well. #litchat -1:39 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @TwinkleChar Tells me more about a time, place or situation. A scene in my first novel was inspired by a very haunting photo. #litchat -1:39 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @mjmbecky I question texts too, esp. non-fic. Fiction * mainly question if it’s internally consistent & plausible. #litchat -1:39 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @LyndaDW great point! #litchat -1:40 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @maggiedana Hi #LitChat -1:40 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @mmj5170 Well, I found out that the Last Supper was a Friday night all-you-can-eat fish fry. Holy chalice was Heinz malt vinegar. #litchat -1:41 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @jeremyduns I know what you mean. Whatever it takes to ignite, to “bring alive” the story that circles us, looking for the inroad. #litchat -1:41 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @susanmpls Does that imply then that all readers are dense, and their responsibility and not the writer’s? #litchat -1:41 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @AndreaGardner Ka-chink. #litchat -1:41 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Author’s creds far more important in non-fiction than fiction. #litchat -1:41 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @kashicat The plausibility of fiction is dependent on the mind of the reader. #litchat -1:41 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @linc0lnpark And the presentation of the author. #litchat -1:42 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Also important with non-fiction’s veracity is beefy bibliography, endnotes, and a dynamite index. #litchat -1:42 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark In fact, some people’s true life story is entirely implausible to others. #litchat -1:42 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TimOBrienNYT Reading: ‘New Page: Can the Kindle really improve on the book?’ in NYer http://bit.ly/4nRpQU #books #litchat -1:42 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| susanmpls @mjmbecky I think it means that some people believe what they want regardless of facts, or lack of facts, that prove otherwise. #litchat -1:42 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @linc0lnpark Same can hold true for nonfiction. Sometimes readers are determined not to believe a word you say. #litchat -1:43 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat RT @maggiedana: Also important with non-fiction’s veracity is beefy bibliography, endnotes, and a dynamite index. #litchat YES. -1:43 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs Great point RT @maggiedana: Authors creds far more important in non-fiction than fiction. #litchat -1:43 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @maggiedana Agreed. Two different historians can give entirely different interpretations of the same events #litchat -1:43 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @TimOBrienNYT I still don’t have to recharge or put batteries in the books I read #litchat -1:43 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @mjmbecky No. I’ve read a bunch of nonfiction LGBT too. The book I used was an example of fiction reading like nonfiction only. #litchat -1:43 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @mjmbecky Good question. I think an author should err in the direction of being overly careful here. Ask Oprah. #litchat -1:43 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @TimOBrienNYT @maggiedana Re. being suspicious of nonfic w/lots dialogue, narrative nonfic journalists often tell reporting methods #litchat -1:44 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @maggiedana Yes! But I’ve read books with all those that are very flawed. Look great superficially, but dig and sources twisted. #litchat -1:44 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @TimOBrienNYT It probably can in some ways? But not in all ways- the book is the best piece of technology yet #LitChat -1:44 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jentropy I deliberately wrote this to see if readers would find it good or evil, their own truth. http://www.jentropy.com/archives/359 #litchat -1:44 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @TwinkleChar You’ve got it! these discussions sometimes forget the freedom of the reader’s mind in play. #litchat -1:44 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @jeremyduns I always look for names I trust in a bibliography. #litchat -1:44 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @susanmpls True. I actually think that readers not in the majority (unfortunately), so fact/fiction creates a discussion… #litchat -1:45 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat Q3 fm @maggiedana Can anyone define ‘narrative non-fiction’? #litchat -1:45 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| anthonylevings … a valid emotional state aroused by writing. I had this sort of not knowing feeling when reading The Men Who Stare at Goats … #litchat -1:45 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @maggiedana But also in fiction? #LitChat -1:45 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @TwinkleChar @linc0lnpark This phenomenon is especially true in partisan political discussions #litchat -1:45 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Agreed ! RT @elizabethbuchan: @TimOBrienNYT It probably can in some ways? The book is the best piece of technology yet #litchat -1:46 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| alexisgrant Jumping into #litchat because I see it’s about narrative nonfiction. -1:46 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @jentropy I haven’t read it, but I doubt very much that most people have only one “truth”. #litchat -1:46 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @LitChat Do you mean so-called literary, or creative, nonfiction? #litchat -1:46 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @WayneHurlbert Bingo. #litchat -1:46 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dosankodebbie I translate a lot of true-events based novels. May be good to add intros to English version to point out how much is fact. #litchat -1:46 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| miuraworld I translate a lot of true-events based novels. May be good to add intros to English version to point out how much is fact. #litchat -1:46 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @elizabethbuchan In fiction, I trust authors I’ve read before. #litchat -1:46 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @maggiedana Same here. And I often check sources or head for primary sources. Interview if I can. #litchat -1:47 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| anthonylevings … and it can travel therefore both ways – fiction as fact, fact as fiction – and highlights important things about … #litchat -1:47 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark So in the scheme of things, is fictitious fiction the truth? #litchat -1:47 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat @alexisgrant Great to see you here. Feel free to plug #memoirchat at the end of chat today. #litchat -1:47 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @VanessaDobbs Agreed. Everyone views events through their own perceptions & experiences #litchat -1:47 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Karen_Palmer @maggiedana What do you think of no quotes in non-fic to indicate that the conversations are approximate? #litchat -1:47 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| anthonylevings … all factual writing being reliant on a set of writing techniques as fiction, since it after all also has to tell a story #litchat -1:48 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| alexisgrant @LitChat And thanks for hosting! Looks like a lively chat. #litchat -1:48 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @jeremyduns Primary Sources. Good book title? Has it been taken??? #litchat -1:48 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @WayneHurlbert Yes, but how malleable are those? #litchat -1:48 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jentropy @nkinnefick What I mean, is that people will find their own meaning in what they read, if that makes sense. #litchat -1:48 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @Karen_Palmer No quotes would be good. Better than fudging it. #litchat -1:48 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @litchat Narrative nonfic, literary nonfic, lit/journalism, creative nonfic=all terms of true writing using techniques of fiction. #litchat -1:49 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson RT @maggiedana: @jeremyduns Primary Sources. Good book title? Has it been taken??? Go on, use it. #litchat -1:49 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @jentropy Here, here! And there’s nothing a writer can do about it. #litchat -1:49 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @WayneHurlbert e.g. real life on our street:robberies. get-away car parked on street for 1.5 HOURS.Police received 5 diff. desc. #litchat -1:49 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| scgreen @maggiedana DIBS! #litchat -1:49 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @LindseyOConnor Agree.. its a question of emphasis? #LitChat -1:50 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| alexisgrant @maggiedana I’m learning there’s a difference between creating semi-accurate dialogue that helps advance the story and fudging it. #litchat -1:50 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns I think novels can sometimes tell you more about a period than non-fiction. Eric Ambler for 30s Europe, for instance #litchat -1:50 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson Anyone? RT @LitChat: Q3 fm @maggiedana Can anyone define narrative non-fiction? #litchat -1:50 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky Our discussion today reminds me why writing so difficult, and so unappreciated! There is so much to consider. #litchat -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| RitaJKing @TimOBrienNYT re: living in fiction. Reality is layered, and discernment requires leveling up. Or do you just mean a good story? #litchat -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @nkinnefick They are very malleable, subject to background, peers, family, social status, etc. too. #litchat -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TimOBrienNYT . @maggiedana @elizabethbuchan:Baker does not like his Kindle, in the end #litchat #books -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @dosankodebbie Sometimes that works, & sometimes it spoils story for reader. It’s hard to know when readers will take too seriously #litchat -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @jentropy That makes sense, but some “truths” are situational, or can change if the wording changes. #litchat -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LyndaDW @twinklechar Thanks for posting about tweetchat. I’ve never used it before and it’s great #litchat -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @jeremyduns Novels can also open your eyes to something that makes you dive for non-fiction accounts of it. #litchat -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @LindseyOConnor OK, thanks. This genre has a whole different set of rules from journalistic nonfiction. #litchat -1:51 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs @jeremyduns agreed. E.g Rose of Sebastopol -abt nursing in the crimea #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @TimOBrienNYT Give Mr. Baker a G&T. #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner RT @mjmbecky: Our discussion today reminds me why writing so difficult, and so unappreciated! There is so much to consider. #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @TimOBrienNYT At risk of being a Luddite, I’m glad. The physical book is precious #LitChat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs YES RT @maggiedana: @jeremyduns Novels can also open your eyes to something that makes you dive for non-fiction accounts of it. #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| danish_novelist @jeremyduns I totally agree. Fiction can get to a deeper truth than historians #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @Karen_Palmer I like no quotes in nonf. to approximate but danger is that it can confuse reader. I prefer author reporters notes. #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| anthonylevings We live in an art-scarred world #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @jeremyduns You’re right. Novels can tell you how people FEEL during the period. They can also shed light on a neglected class. #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @maggiedana Like DaVinci Code. #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @maggiedana A political thriller! Journalist on the run after interviewing a presidential candidate who claims to be the messiah #litchat -1:52 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| josholalia @TimOBrienNYT what if “fiction” becomes/predicts reality? Read @doctorow @bruces @greatdismal #litchat -1:53 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner YES! RT @maggiedana: @jeremyduns Novels can also open your eyes to something that makes you dive for non-fiction accounts of it. #litchat -1:53 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat @nathanbransford Seeing that you are interested in narrative nonfiction, would you please pop into #litchat and give definition? -1:53 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @elizabethbuchan Linking arms with you … Luddites Forever. #litchat -1:53 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @rottenperson Which genre? Fiction or memoir? Or both? #litchat -1:53 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Karen_Palmer @VanessaDobbs @jeremyduns Agree with this too. Have turned many times to non-fiction for the “real story” after reading a novel. #litchat -1:53 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @maggiedana But there was a time when you read each of those authors a first time.Your trust grew cumulatively, you mean? #litchat -1:53 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @danish_novelist That’s true. Fiction tends to rely more heavily on ideas vs. concrete facts, and ideas are more powerful. #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| alexisgrant I’ve wondered whether memoir falls under narrative nonfiction. I believe it does. Anyone? #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jentropy @nkinnefick Well, yes. Probably a million truths in each moment, then lost forever in our shedding cells. #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @josholalia It often does. If U watch BLAZING SADDLES again, you will swear it is the GOP and Obama. Uncanny. #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor Those interested in narrative nonfic check out Writer L. A listserve for narrative journalists. It’s great. #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @LindseyOConnor I thought no quotes was a style issue! You mean to tell me it means something? #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @AndreaGardner Readers are willing to believe almost anything, as long as the author doesn’t break the spell. #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jentropy @mjmbecky Can you anticipate all the gaps? #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @alexisgrant Oh definitely – doesn’t define it but is included in it #litchat -1:54 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @maggiedana Are Luddites allowed G&Ts? #LitChat -1:55 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @jentropy If I like first book of particular author, I will always try another, and keep going. #litchat -1:55 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @dosankodebbie That can vary too. I could see it at front of book if it wasn’t too emphasized. Short note or something. #litchat -1:55 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| ELDING RT @TimOBrienNYT: Yow. Provocative RT @josholalia what if “fiction” becomes/predicts reality? Read @doctorow @bruces @greatdismal #litchat -1:55 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson Could go either way. RT @alexisgrant: Ive wondered whether memoir falls under narrative nonfiction. I believe it does. Anyone? #litchat -1:55 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @rottenperson and finding that line is so very hard as an author. #litchat -1:55 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Hic <—- holding out Luddite’s glass to @elizabethbuchan #litchat -1:55 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar RT @rottenperson: @AndreaGardner Readers are willing to believe almost anything, as long as the author doesnt break the spell. #litchat -1:55 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @dosankodebbie My fave historical novels have lists of real hist’l figures at front, to establish context, & it doesn’t hurt story #litchat -1:56 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @maggiedana as long as they keep the same, standards I will stay with them. #litchat -1:56 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @jentropy No, but good writers consider readers’ perceptions to make sure essence of idea/point comes through. Right? #litchat -1:56 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @rottenperson Isn’t memoir often a kind of fiction however resolute the author to tell what might be called objective truth? #LitChat -1:56 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @LindseyOConnor I forgot my point. Sorry. #litchat -1:56 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| CarolyBurnsBass Narrative non-fiction is true events written in engaging, fictional style. One of my fave NNF journalists is LATimes Patt Morrison. #litchat -1:57 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs RT @AndreaGardner: @maggiedana as long as they keep the same, standards I will stay with them. #litchat -1:57 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana @AndreaGardner Agree, but I’m always willing to cut my favorite authors some slack. They can’t always please me. #litchat -1:57 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| crcpr21 RT @TimOBrienNYT: Reading: ‘New Page: Can the Kindle really improve on the book?’ in NYer http://bit.ly/4nRpQU #books #litchat -1:57 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| pussreboots @LitChat It’s non-fiction written in the style of fiction. #litchat -1:58 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Karen_Palmer @elizabethbuchan Memoir requires self-editing, which by definition makes it impossible to be objective. #litchat -1:58 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| VanessaDobbs @elizabethbuchan agree subjectivity can influence the memoir #litchat -1:58 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| danish_novelist @nkinnefick Fiction gets the feelings, the mood, the spirit, the subconscious of a historical period #litchat -1:58 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @rottenperson Chat’s fast. #litchat -1:58 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| FlossieTeacake @VanessaDobbs definitely true – absolutely devoured nonfic books on Afghanistan after reading The Wasted Vigil last year #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @CarolyBurnsBass Fictional style? Hm. #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| scgreen Time traveling tweets today. I write them once. Twenty minutes later, they appear. #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @LindseyOConnor My poor head. #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| alexisgrant Gotta run, y’all. Thanks for making me think! #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @WayneHurlbert Interested at ‘especially 2nd-rate’! Wonder if that’s true, and if so, why. #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @rottenperson Too funny. Yes, I just think reader’s perspective maybe come in during editing process? Fiction and Nonfiction alike. #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @Karen_Palmer It’s a kind of relativity #LitChat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @mjmbecky I think a good writer CAN’Tconsider a reader’s perception — because who R we to decide what that may be? #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dosankodebbie @kashicat Good solution! #litchat -1:59 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner @scgreen here also. But you won’t get this for a while and by then you will have forgotten your tweet! #litchat -2:00 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Melwyk Indexes are imperative RT@maggiedana Also important with nonfiction’s veracity is beefy bibliography,endnotes, and a dynamite index #litchat -2:00 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Karen_Palmer RT @CarolyBurnsBass: Narrative non-fiction is true events written in engaging, fictional style. [good definition] #litchat -2:00 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| CarolyBurnsBass @rottenperson By “fictional style,” I mean the piece reads like a story, not like a news article. #litchat -2:00 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @linc0lnpark but I think that’s what we’re always aiming for, if futilely. (Well, speaking for myself) #litchat -2:00 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat RT @maggiedana: @jeremyduns Novels can also open your eyes to something that makes you dive for non-fiction accounts of it. #litchat -2:01 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @AndreaGardner I forgot everything. Monday, right? #litchat -2:01 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @mjmbecky If it’s a general perspective you could consider (or challenge) it. It’s too much to account for individual perspectives. #litchat -2:01 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan @scgreen yes, and some of mine haven’t … #litchat -2:01 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @linc0lnpark Then why write opinion pieces if you can’t consider reader’s perspective? You have to anticipate to some degree? #litchat -2:01 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner Only if I remember. RT @rottenperson: @AndreaGardner I forgot everything. Monday, right? #litchat -2:01 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Sirenland Narrative nonfiction also makes some huge leaps; e.g. Richard Ben Cramer recreating dialogue in “DiMagio” & “What it Takes” #litchat -2:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| danish_novelist In The Tsar’s Dwarf I think I get the mood of the Baroque period in Russia and Denmark #litchat -2:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @CarolyBurnsBass You mean has a theme? Emotional impact? Doesn’t that almost always require fictional diddling? #litchat -2:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat RT @linc0lnpark: @jeremyduns UR right.Novels can tell you how people FEEL during period….can also shed light on a neglected class.#litchat -2:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat @maggiedana So true. The hours fly by in #litchat. That’s why we chat three times a week. -2:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @elizabethbuchan @Karen_Palmer I like Walt Harrington’s teaching that in memoir we have contract w/reader to nonfic. always. #litchat -2:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner RT @Karen_Palmer: RT @CarolyBurnsBass: Narrative non-fiction is true events written in engaging, fictional style. [good definition] #litchat -2:02 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jentropy @mjmbecky I’m not sure I even know what a good writer is. #litchat -2:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @mjmbecky Good authors always know the “general” perspective. They don’t just flail blindly at abstract ideas. #litchat -2:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @jeremyduns The ideas & zeitgeist in 2nd rate literature fix them in a certain time & place. Timeless great lit transcends that #litchat -2:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan I think a huge part of the art of the writer is a relatively successful but desperate attempt to engage the reader’s perspective #litchat -2:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @mjmbecky No, U don’t. U may very well be enlightening a reader who had a diametrically opposed view prior to reading your words. #litchat -2:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Storycasting @LitChat Isn’t this just…telling a TRUE story? #litchat -2:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner Really? I believe a good writer is one you like. RT @jentropy: @mjmbecky Im not sure I even know what a good writer is. #litchat -2:03 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @Sirenland Even the great Capote took leaps. #litchat -2:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| wiremamma @litchat – missed whole conversation today. My apologies… look forward to the next one! #litchat -2:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana RT @nicolamorgan: Huge part of the art of the writer is relatively successful but desperate attempt to engage readers’ perspective #litchat -2:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @mjmbecky If they choose to trample all over that perspective, so be it. Knowing it’s there will make them all the better equipped. #litchat -2:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @Storycasting Few “true” stories are emotionally engaging. So, where’s the line? #litchat -2:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @AndreaGardner Agreed #litchat -2:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat So, our official 1-hr #litchat is passed and we have a couple of questions backed up. Shall we continue or save for Wednesday? -2:04 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Karen_Palmer @WayneHurlbert Not sure I agree. Particularity is imp. Can still be transcendent, but part of that quality comes from specifics. #litchat -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| linc0lnpark @mjmbecky It is through your words that your mind and imagination get credit. #litchat -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @LindseyOConnor He made famous (if not invented) the literary nonfiction genre in In Cold Blood. #litchat -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| CarolyBurnsBass @Storycasting Agree. Narrative non-fiction is storytelling at its finest. #litchat -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat Memoir can never be objective, by def’n. “Fiction” may come from person’s interp of his/her life, but facts are the non-fic part #litchat -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @jeremyduns Ex.The ideas in an Alger novel really give a sense of the thinking & assumptions of the Gilded Age #litchat -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 @LitChat Save- I need to concentrate on my paying job. #litchat -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| elizabethbuchan @LitChat Thank you so much for inviting me in. Really wonderful conversations. Good night #LitChat -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| agnieszkasshoes I’ve missed tonight’s #LitChat harumph worth it, though, because The Street is just extraordinary brilliant -2:05 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| MSenkoji More, more, about those Kindles-RT @TimOBrienNYT: . @maggiedana @elizabethbuchan:Baker does not like his Kindle, in the end #litchat #books -2:06 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky @jentropy It would be a great #litchat conversation! Characteristics of a “good” writer. Such hard work, which is why I admire them! -2:06 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns Re indexes & endnotes etc in non-fiction: I see that as important architecture. But the foundations – the research – is what counts #litchat -2:06 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| danish_novelist @Karen_Palmer I once wrote a novel based on my Jewish grand father from Safed. It was more truthful than his own auto biography #litchat -2:06 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @rottenperson In Cold Blood is still the standard. #litchat -2:06 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| Sirenland @LindseyOConnor Most of what we call Literary Non-Fiction would not survive a fact-checker. #litchat -2:06 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| scgreen I often wonder about the author’s intent in writing a memoir. #litchat -2:07 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @alexisgrant <waving kerchief> Too brief an appearance! #litchat -2:07 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat We’ll hold the questions for Wednesday, but feel free to keep the convo going. #litchat -2:07 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mmj5170 Thank you @ LitChat #litchat -2:07 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
linc0lnpark I heart writers. Thanks for listing to my drivel!  Bye! #litchat -2:07 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @scgreen Ooo. Good one. #litchat -2:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor RT @Sirenland: @LindseyOConnor Most of what we call Literary Non-Fiction would not survive a fact-checker.>Why we should fact check #litchat -2:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @kashicat Memoirs lack of objectivity & emphasis on certain events & people provide better insights into the writer than the words #litchat -2:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @linc0lnpark You’re terrific. Drivel me anytime. #litchat -2:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nkinnefick @Sirenland I don’t think real life would survive a fact-checker, if such a dreadful thing truly exists. #litchat -2:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| AndreaGardner Thanks #litchat. I’ll be thinking about this chat all week. #litchat -2:08 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| mjmbecky Great discussion today. Thanks #litchat and @maggiedana for hosting. -2:09 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| nicolamorgan Agree – thanks, litchat – the fastest hour ever. Can language change the speed of time? #litchat -2:09 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat So the convo continues on Wednesday, 4-5 p/et. See you then! #litchat -2:09 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maureenogle YUP! RT @maggiedana: Also important w/non-fiction’s veracity is beefy bibliography, endnotes, & dynamite index. #litchat -2:10 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana {{{{{{{{{{@litchat}}}}}}}}} for moderating this. Must be worse than herding cats. #litchat -2:10 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor On fact checking, New Yorker did a great piece not long ago about their standards. Challenging for us nonfic folks. Bye all. #litchat -2:10 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| NathanBransford Narrative nonfiction definition: nonfiction that illuminates through story (memoir, history, true crime, etc.) #litchat -2:10 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maureenogle B. Tuchman called non-fiction “verity” RT @maggiedana: non-fiction’s veracity = beefy bibliography, endnotes, & dynamite index. #litchat -2:11 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| dweiums @LitChat Great! My system died so I’ll be happy to rejoin the convo on Wednesday. #litchat -2:11 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| rottenperson @NathanBransford But then we have to define “story,” yes? Let’s see if we can pin that down on Wed. #litchat -2:11 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| WayneHurlbert @Karen_Palmer I’m not saying that great lit can’t give zeitgeist but 2nd rate lit gives it better as it is clearly rooted in a time #litchat -2:12 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| jeremyduns @WayneHurlbert You may well be right. Intriguing thought – thanks. #litchat -2:13 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maureenogle Fictional history = history that tries too hard to be “novelistic” (according to my editor) #litchat -2:13 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @WayneHurlbert I agree, ab/memoirs, ubjectivity,insights into writer. Of course, we have to know where they weren’t objective! #litchat -2:14 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @scgreen Some people want to expl. themselves to history. I think memoir can also help *them* understand their life #litchat -2:14 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| scgreen A Twitter Memoir: *ahem* I started at A, blurred through l-m-n-o, stumbled on Q and X, but still made it to Z. #litchat -2:15 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @rottenperson Hope you didn’t feel like you were drowning! #litchat -2:16 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @rottenperson You too. I have to follow you now. #litchat -2:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @NathanBransford Oh boy. Including “story” opens the can of worms about whether that makes narr. n.f. non-fic at all. <g> #litchat -2:17 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @rottenperson Ha! I saw your tweet about “story” after I sent my own, making same point. #litchat -2:18 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| scgreen @kashicat But what if the memoir isn’t about themselves. Tuesdays With Morrie, for example. #litchat -2:18 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| TwinkleChar @LindseyOConnor And that is how a rottenperson reels you in. ;>) Bye, all. #litchat -2:18 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @scgreen Hm. I always think of a “memoir” as autobiography, but I guess it doesn’t have to be, does it? #litchat -2:19 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| maggiedana Twitter’s API #failing again. #litchat -2:21 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LindseyOConnor @TwinkleChar Thanks for headsup on #litchat. Fantastic! Went so fast I got dizzy. -2:25 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| kashicat @linc0lnpark I feel for ya! I’m writing an article on clinical depression in another window as we speak. <g> #litchat -2:25 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
| LitChat @NathanBransford Thanks, Nathan. Appreciate hearing from pub pros on questions asking for literary definitions. #litchat -2:26 PM Jul 27th, 2009 |
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