Now you know what fiction is, what about non-fiction?

What is Non-Fiction?

Non-fiction is a narrative that concentrates on facts. The writer may well be giving their own opinions as a response to the facts but non-fiction work has one purpose – to communicate facts and truth.

The following are examples of non-fiction:

Memoirs, autobiographies, biographies

Books containing interviews, commentary or essays

Books about personal development, self-help, relationships, health, etc.

Scientific and science books, including engineering, health, and nutrition, psychology, etc.

Artbooks with works from a school of art or a specific artist, generally known as ‘coffee table’ books

Religious or spiritual works

Travel books or blogs

Documentaries

And that really is only the tip of the iceberg.

Think about the research papers you might have written. Think about how carefully you had to ensure the facts were correct and you always had to cite your sources at the end.

Think about a time when you needed to use a logical argument to defend your opinion or position on something. Each premise had to be verified to ensure that you were using sound and valid reasoning. One false statement or premise, one incorrect detail and your opponent would be on you, yanking the rug from under your feet very quickly.

Non-fiction isn’t always about telling stories. Its credibility does rely on truth, it does depend on fact otherwise it is, quite frankly, useless. Creative non-fiction depends on how the writer conveys the truth in a compelling way, one that doesn’t bore their readers to death!

Non-fiction doesn’t equal unimaginative, either. Creative non-fiction can be written to appeal to the imagination while still communicating truth and fact. Truth is what the book is there for; it’s the creativity, the way it is crafted that makes it easy to read and understand.

Faithful delivery of fact and truth is what gives non-fiction work meaning; it may be telling a story but not at the sacrifice of the truth.

Examples of non-fiction books include:

The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

Becoming, Michelle Obama’s memoir

Summing Up

So, when you are asked what the difference is between fiction and non-fiction, now you know what to tell people. Fiction tells us a story. It may have some elements of truth in it but it certainly isn’t factual. Fiction books do not need facts to make them powerful, that comes in the creativity of the story itself.

Non-fiction is always about fact and truth. It might be telling you a story but its one reason for existence is to communicate truth and fact, never sacrificing that for a juicy story. And let’s be honest here, some facts can be pretty juicy all by themselves, without needing an alternate reality to back them up!

In short, fiction will always put the story first. Reality is not important and, often, the more unreal a story is, the better it is. Non-fiction will always put truth first even though it may be done in story format.