The problem with creative nonfiction is it’s based on truth.
To me, truth means end.
Where something ends — a story line, a relationship, a plot, a piece of character development.
Our stories are still being told. I’m only 23.
What happens when you write something as is, and then suddenly, life turns it on its back?
You write about a banana, but then one day, you slip on the peel. You realize, it’s not about the banana; it’s about the peel and the subsequent fall and what you learned. Ultimately, the banana had very little meaning other than foreshadowing. Because, after all, a banana always means a peel and a peel always means a cartoon-like wipe out.
I slipped on the peel tonight. And now, it’s back to the drawing board.
Time to reimagine and recreate.
That original story wasn’t the story at all.
And maybe that’s
what makes creative nonfiction
both truthful and difficult.
Because this is part of the story, as well. This process here–this revelation.
Realizing the peel is the story IS the story’s climax. Or at least it might be. Sometimes.
So now what? You peel back the onion layers, hoping they too aren’t as slippery as that slimy yellow fiber? You dig deeper and feel grateful that you write in a craft that’s ever-evolving, ever-exciting, ever-challenging, ever-new.
This may be one of the best metaphors for life I’ve come across. I don’t have any sort of answer, but I just wanted to thank you for the imagery!
Thank you, Shadlyn – your compliment just made my day
Glad you liked the post.