Q & A
Q: Can fiction be based on a true story and still be fiction?
A: Absolutely
Q: When do you know to call it nonfiction or a novel based on a true story?
A: That depends
I’m sure there are varying degrees of answers to these questions, but I’ll attempt to give you my version below.
Fiction Based on a True Story
The setting of the story may be in a real place and in a time during an actual historical event, but the characters are all fiction. While the setting and plot is true, the story is about characters that do not exist. Therefore, it is fiction. An example would be the Titanic movie released in 1997. The ship truly sank in 1912. Many perished while a select few were saved on life boats. There were lots of true historical details and some true to life minor characters, but to our knowledge, the two main characters Jack and rose never existed.
If the setting, place and events are real, as well as the characters, it could still be fiction if the characters’ decisions and behaviors are not historically accurate based on what we know in actual history. An example would be the movie Braveheart. We know that William Wallace existed in the place and time depicted by the movie and that he led a rebellion against the king of Great Britain, but we have no evidence, not even any circumstantial evidence, that he had an affair with the king’s wife and produced an heir not of the king’s bloodline. This is Hollywood’s version of distorting the facts and glamorizing the plot.
However, if the setting, place, events and characters are all true, but we lack accurate historical evidence or detailed knowledge of those individuals, information must be created in order to produce the story and move it forward. The author must create dialogue, personalities of each character, paint an image of what each character looks like, as well as their decisions and behaviors as the true historical events take place. An example would be a movie of North Carolina’s Lost Colony in the 1500’s. We know the colony actually existed, who was there, when they arrived, but we don’t know what happened after Sir Walter Raleigh returned for England for supplies and assistance. The rest is based on theory, imagination, and a number of speculations.
Nonfiction: A True Story
I consider a story to be nonfiction when the setting, place, events and characters are all true and there is clear and accurate details and evidence of what was said and took place and it is portrayed as it happened. This means we do not make up plot twists, glamorize inaccurate details and throw in creative dialogue to fill in the loops holes. When you start creating dialogue and subplots to make it flow better, you sacrifice accuracy and delve into the “based on a true story” concept.
A great example of a nonfiction story would be the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. When he was on the cross, we know that he asked for water. He could have said, “I thirst” or “I’m parched” or “I’m dehydrated” or “Water, please”. All of these statements mean the same thing. How he stated it, is up to the interpretation based on translation, but as long as the story shows what he stated within the context of what he meant, it is nonfiction. If the story shows him asking for a Coke, we’d know it was fiction. Coke didn’t exist in his time. All the elements are based on fact and true events as we know them.
Another good example of nonfiction are historical books, documentaries, biographies and autobiographies. Keep in mind that biographies and autobiographies are based on a person’s personal perspective of what happened in their life or during a particular experience. It is based on what they know to be true from their perspective, but specific facts and historical details may not exist and we only have their story to guide us.
This means, that if another person experienced the same event and published a biography of their perspective, it may differ quite a bit from the first person’s autobiography. While it’s their personal story, a personal perspective is biased on that person’s point of view and their limited understanding of what only impacted them and what they may have seen and their position and role in the experience. A great example of this could be the biography, Spare, written from the personal perspective of Prince Henry. Right now we only have his version, but if Prince William were to write a story about his brother, or King Charles were to write a story about his son, I guarantee their perspectives of Spare would be very different regarding some of the events and view points of what was shared by Prince Henry.
Because of the lack of evidence and available facts, some people may still consider these type of autobiographies and biographies as based on a true story.