For fiction writers, the thought of writing nonfiction can be a bit scary. At our recent AAG evening meeting over ZOOM, we discussed the topic of writing nonfiction and members present brought with them some of their favorite nonfiction books to add to the discussion.
What makes good nonfiction? It seems like a simple question but is a bit more complicated than I first thought. One of the things we discussed was the difference between simply presenting information and actually helping the reader understand it. That led us to analytical nonfiction—writing that doesn’t just tell you what happened, it asks why it happened and what we can learn from it. There is a difference between the two approaches. For example, you could tell us that a small Appalachian town lost population after the coal mines closed. That’s information. But an analytical approach would require you to dig deeper. And that is where the story forms gets interesting. Why did the mines close? What happened to the families? Did local shops go out of business? How were the schools and churches impacted? What happened to those people that stayed?
Another lesson from our discussion was that nonfiction doesn’t have to be boring. A great example of this comes from Hemingway in his book A Moveable Feast. His book is filled with amazing experiences during his time with friends in Paris and observations of people and places. He has an amazing ability to make the reader feel like they are present in his story. He understood that even when you are writing nonfiction, you are still telling a story. And that is where we, as fiction writers, have an advantage when (and if) we decide to delve into nonfiction.
The main takeaway from the discussion was to not simply give readers information. Give them a reason to care about the information. Facts provide knowledge. Stories provide connection. Analysis provides understanding. The best nonfiction combines all three.
If you are interested in writing nonfiction it would be wise to put on your news reporter hat and ask these questions:
What happened?
Why did it happen?
And why should my reader care?
Nonfiction may be about reality, but it doesn’t mean that it can’t be a great story.
by JC Schweingrouber, vice president of AAG
What makes good nonfiction? It seems like a simple question but is a bit more complicated than I first thought. One of the things we discussed was the difference between simply presenting information and actually helping the reader understand it. That led us to analytical nonfiction—writing that doesn’t just tell you what happened, it asks why it happened and what we can learn from it. There is a difference between the two approaches. For example, you could tell us that a small Appalachian town lost population after the coal mines closed. That’s information. But an analytical approach would require you to dig deeper. And that is where the story forms gets interesting. Why did the mines close? What happened to the families? Did local shops go out of business? How were the schools and churches impacted? What happened to those people that stayed?
Another lesson from our discussion was that nonfiction doesn’t have to be boring. A great example of this comes from Hemingway in his book A Moveable Feast. His book is filled with amazing experiences during his time with friends in Paris and observations of people and places. He has an amazing ability to make the reader feel like they are present in his story. He understood that even when you are writing nonfiction, you are still telling a story. And that is where we, as fiction writers, have an advantage when (and if) we decide to delve into nonfiction.
The main takeaway from the discussion was to not simply give readers information. Give them a reason to care about the information. Facts provide knowledge. Stories provide connection. Analysis provides understanding. The best nonfiction combines all three.
If you are interested in writing nonfiction it would be wise to put on your news reporter hat and ask these questions:
What happened?
Why did it happen?
And why should my reader care?
Nonfiction may be about reality, but it doesn’t mean that it can’t be a great story.
by JC Schweingrouber, vice president of AAG
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