When we write a true story, such as our memoirs or the details of an event that occurred, is it always necessary to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth? I don\u2019t think so. In fact, I advise my clients to fudge a little. I often tell them to eliminate some of the facts. Why would I suggest they deviate from the truth and even, in some cases, tell a bald faced lie? Why? Because sometimes the truth is BORING.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not proposing that you compromise your story with untruths, but that you enhance it by NOT sharing so much truth. We probably don\u2019t need to know every detail that led to the event you are writing about. But if it is a true story, sometimes you feel obligated to tell it exactly like it was. Leaving out a detail or glossing over something seems to you like you\u2019re cheating the reader. On the contrary, if the detail is mundane and unimportant, you are doing us a favor by keeping it to yourself. <\/p>\n
The best writing is tight writing. Sure, you want to use interesting phrases and imagery to tell a good story, but not to the point where it becomes a burden to the reader. By way of example, here are two phrases that come to mind. Both could have been elaborated on, but would they have been as poignant? One is, \u201cJesus wept.\u201d <\/p>\n
These two words say volumes. How this statement would have been ruined by an elaboration. We don\u2019t care where he was, what he was wearing, how many times he stubbed his toe as he walked in his sandals, who else was with him. We don\u2019t need to know any of this, do we? Not at this moment.<\/p>\n
Another statement I\u2019d like to use as an example is from Khaled Hosseini\u2019s The Kite Runner.<\/em> He opens the book by saying, \u201cI became what I am today at the age of 12, on a frigid, overcast day in the winter of 1975.\u201d Of course, we want to know more and we\u2019re going to learn much more as we read through this story. But imagine this opening statement cluttered by unnecessary details.<\/p>\n Your reader probably doesn\u2019t care to know the exact positioning of the houses on your block\u2014that the one two doors up sits back further than the rest and you\u2019re not quite sure why, but you feel it was a deliberate attempt at being a nonconformist, etc. They probably don\u2019t care that Pumpkin was your 8th kitty friend. Why would you even tell them about the rickety back steps into the house, unless it relates somehow to the story?<\/p>\n Be careful about including unnecessary detail in your true story. Use only what is prevalent to the story\u2014those things that move the story along or make it more interesting. <\/p>\n From the Amazon ranking of my latest two books, they are selling. YAY! Check them out at Amazon.com. They are Publish Your Book, Proven Strategies and Resources for the Enterprising Author<\/em> and Promote Your Book, Over 250 Proven Tips and Techniques for the Enterprising Author.<\/em><\/p>\n http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com<\/a> When we write a true story, such as our memoirs or the details of an event that occurred, is it always necessary to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth? I don\u2019t think so. In fact, I advise my clients to fudge a little. I often tell them to eliminate some of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t
\n http:\/\/www.patriciafry.com<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"