Keep It Real

The one guide every creative nonfiction writer needs to turn to when being "creative."

Writers of memoir and narrative nonfiction are experiencing difficult days with the discovery that some well-known works in the genre contain exaggerationsor are partially fabricated. But what are the parameters of creative nonfiction? Keep It Real begins by defining creative nonfiction. Then it explores the flexibility of the formthe liberties and the boundaries that allow writers to be as truthful, factual, and artful as possible. A succinct but rich compendium of ideas, terms, and techniques, Keep It Real clarifies the ins and outs of writing creative nonfiction. Starting with acknowledgment of sources, running through fact-checking, metaphor, and navel gazing, and ending with writers' responsibilities to their subjects, this book provides all the information you need to write with verve while remaining true to your story.

Lee Gutkind is the editor of the journal Creative Nonfiction and of the books In Fact and The Best Creative Nonfiction, Vol. 1. A professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh, he is also the author of Almost Human.

Publisher: W. W. Norton
Distributor: W. W. Norton
Publication Date: 02-16-2009
Pages: 160
Measurements: 8in X 6in