9/17/14

This week we read two readings. One by Bret Lott titled, "Toward a Definition of Creative Nonfiction," and the other by Lee Gutkind titled "The Creative Nonfiction Police." I have to say that when I read these pieces the only thing I could think of was how comical it was to read them one after the other. These two guys are polar opposites!

Lott speaks in a more poetic voice. Although I'm usually more a fan of prose than poetry, I did enjoy this quote from the piece: "What creative nonfiction is will reveal itself to you only at the back end of things, once you have written it." It displays a very deep and passionate approach to this writing genre. This seems like it could be a part of the definition for "creative nonfiction." However, Lott leaves one tactic out that we spoke about in class, and I just can't let go: truth. The vibe I received from his piece was writers feel the truth, or it's about your truth.

Gutkind's piece proved a much different approach. Coming from a home that was rich in ethics and morals, I appreciated Gutkind's definition more than his polar opposite. The four pieces that he mentioned made me think that these could be the four parts of his definition.

• "Strive for the truth"
• "Recognize the important distinction between recollected conversation and fabricated dialogue"
• "Don't round corners..."
• "Allow them [characters] to defend themselves- or at least read what you've written about them."

I think the only thing Gutkind possibly left out was the description for the journey of creativity. However, this may have been ironically (yet cleverly) placed in his piece; which is creative nonfiction. Touche. 

I think what mentioned from both pieces would be my definition of "creative nonfiction." As far as digital publishing is concerned, I imagine our definition of "truth" will vary. Because documents are accessible on the internet (and the internet is everywhere), it makes publications easier to find. The more readers you have, the more likely one of them would be someone the writer wrote about. This is another reason why I enjoyed Gutkind's fourth part of his "checklist" (see fourth bullet point).

Writing Ideas:

Alright, so here's the thing: Every time I think about what I should write, I can't help but think of these crazy situations I always end up in. Whenever I explain them to people, they look at me like I have ten heads. I've even had one of my closest friends tell me that I need to keep a journal of these events because "these things don't happen to normal people." (A side note: she has also witnessed some of the craziness.) I thought about some of these stories, but at the same time I just don't know where to start. I wish I was in a room with maybe 12 of me, and just bounced around with all of these ideas that exist from my brain... crazy, I know!