Creative Non-Fiction or Simply Creative Fiction?

             Creative Non-Fiction?  Creative Non-Fiction is a cruel mystery.  When this semester first started off I was under the impression that creative non-fiction was simply news report or an interview with fictional elements sprinkled in.   I realize now that I was sadly mistaken. I originally that ought that on the creative non-fiction spectrum that it fell closely to the journalism end. However as the classes came and went the more I was exposed to creative non-fiction and I realize yet again, I was sadly mistaken. Not only does creative non-fiction not hug the journalism end of the spectrum but, it doesn’t even have a defiant place on the spectrum.  Which bugs me to no end but, that’s just my acute O.C.D. kicking in.   Creative non-fiction is one of life’s mysteries if I do say.

However, I understand why it’s impossible to place creative non-fiction on the spectrum.  Every work is different. Every author is different; some take more “creative liberties” than others.  Which brings me to the question, what is too much? At what point is it no longer considered non-fiction? I suppose only the author really knows the answer to that question. How much creative license does the author have?  I think this mystery aspect hurts the overall genre of creative non-fiction. It is easy for readers to doubt or question the truth of what they are reading. After all it is not completely unheard of for an author to fabricate his or her work, such dishonestly also hurts the credibility of creative non-fiction.  I know as a reader I do not want to be lied to. If what I’m reading has “non-fiction” anywhere in the title it damn well better have happened. Granted it could still be a good story, I just want to know if it actually happened. I want to know if real people actually experienced the events that captivated me. It gives the story a certain appeal to know that it actually happened. Perhaps that is why some authors try to pass their work off as creative non-fiction when in reality it is nothing more than the product of their imagination.