When fiction and reality meet

I have recently been reflecting that often in my fiction I include vignettes based on fact from either my own life or the life of another. The information may not be portrayed exactly as it happened in the real persons' life, but may be loosely based about it. It becomes a record of personal experience to some degree, whether ones' own or that of an acquaintance. For the reader, as well as for the writer, it adds a deeper dimension of life to the story because there is some realism and actual fact involved. These are things that could possibly happen to a reader because they may have already happened to the author or a friend.

At present, my third son is writing an assigned story with the instructions that it be a fiction tale based around some actual historical event. He has chosen to write from the viewpoint of someone experiencing the original Woodstock concert of 1969, an event that took place when I was just a year younger than he is now. I found this to be fascinating for several reasons, not the least of which were the discoveries that he has a natural writing ability and that he does his research to perfection if he is able. He asked such questions as, "Was it called a VW micro-bus or mini-bus?" The truth was that I could not recall for sure which it was, but the fact that he asked and cared enough to be accurate about this and several other details impressed me and made me proud of him. I complimented him on his writing abilities (he knows how to draw a reader in immediately with realistic detail), whereupon he told me he wasn't sure he would want to do this very often--didn't really enjoy it that much--and he dashed any vision I had of him becoming a young accomplished writer. Just some of the joys and challenges of parenthood, I guess. Nevertheless, I am anxious to see the end result of his labors and to congratulate him on his efforts.

I am impressed that it is supremely important to write from personal experience to some great degree, because it will generate a unique subliminal appeal that will draw the reader into your tale in a way that total fiction will not. You will write with more detail, and more convincingly, than you would by generating pure fiction alone. You will bring your words to life more fully and paint more powerful pictures in deeper hues in the minds of your readers. Never--I repeat, NEVER be afraid to share personal experiences in your stories. Never be afraid to let down your guard and be vulnerable for the time it takes to record your story into the fiction you write. Only you will know. You will be glad you did and so will your audience.