FICTION: the class of literature comprising works of imaginative narration, esp. in prose form.

My mind has been filled with fiction over the past week. I have been in the process of finishing a piece of fiction which has absorbed me. As I "put it to bed", in the sense of putting the finishing touches on it, editing it yet once more, having spent days editing it over the past month, and sending it out to several people to read for me, I have found myself at a familiar place. I have to ask myself, "Is this it? Am I done? Is it ready to go to publication?" The temptation to keep editing is great.

I studied oil painting once with a very wise teacher. She was an artist of the old school, incorporating a good amount of philosophy of painting into a class already full of instruction in technique. I guess I'm more of an art philosophy person than an artist, because I remember her philosophical instructions more than her words about technique.

One thing she pounded into my brain: "When you are finished, you are finished. Put the brush down and walk away. The revisions you add from this point on will destroy the character of the painting." It was great advice. I find that I employ that advice even more in writing than I did in painting.

The secret was to know when you were at that point. As she so correctly taught, you know it more in your gut that you do in your brain. You stand back, look at the painting and say to yourself, "I'm done." It's not so much a rational decision as it is a gut feeling.

A second issue that raised itself when completing this piece is the distinction between my own story and pure fiction. I have come to believe that there is no such thing as pure fiction. Writing is not some abstract act that is disconnected from the writer. Rather, writing calls upon all of the personal qualities, skills, talents, and motivations which have been years in the making within the writer's person. A great word used in writing is roman a clef. It is a French word (pronounced "ro-mahn'-ah-clay") which describes a piece of fiction written around a personal experience. In many case the piece is a thinly-disguised story which is, in reality, a true story from one's own history.

As I said at the beginning of this piece, there may be no way to write fiction without it relating back to the writer's self. But that is different from a roman a clef. The fact that a writer's traits can be seen in a piece of fiction does not mean that the story is about the writer. A roman a clef is an intentional re-telling of a personal story.

I raise this because the piece I have just finished is so far from my own life, story, and childhood that I am amused by my having written it. Granted, I can see traits in the story that are familiar, and the locations chosen are places I have known personally. Apart from that, however, I feel as if I have just met a new person. I like him. And I like his story.

The bottom line: I like this book. I can't wait for it to be published .

Graphic Credit: www.outpost-daria.com/fan_fiction.html
Definition Credit: Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.

roman à clef: a novel in which actual persons, places, or events are depicted in fictional guise. (Dictionary.com)

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I love this word/phrase. It is pronounced rōmäN' ä klā'. What I love about it is that it is something that happens intentionally to some authors, and unintentionally to many, many others. My suspicion is that it is a surprise to many authors to discover that their novel is more autobiographical than they expected. When I first began to explore the realm of fictional writing I was told that when an author begins to write the themes are drawn from that which is most familiar. The comfort level with their own story is available and approachable, allowing the author (either consciously or unconsciously) to focus upon the act of writing without struggling to develop a story.

A...common type of roman à clef is one in which the disguised characters are easily recognized only by a few insiders, as in Simone de Beauvoir's The Mandarins (1954).(Encyclopedia Britannica Online)

Developing a story line is a far more complicated process than many might expect. For me, at least, it begins with a simple idea (sometimes a word) and begins to unfold as I write. Sometimes there is a skeleton of a story in my mind or in my notes. But many times the story evolves as I write. There comes a point where I have to know the ending in order to arrive there effectively. But that ending may change numerous times in the course of writing.

Back to roman à clef , however, the fictional story may begin with an actual experience, but there comes a point where it must vary in order to become the short story or novel it is intended to be. This is where a roman à clef differs from an autobiography. Just changing the names and disguising the location is not enough. A new element must be introduced into the story which changes the facts.

Gradually, as an author begins to emerge into his or her voice the need for autobiographical information diminishes and plot begins to develop independently. There is a rush when this happens. It is as if another part of the brain has been tapped. Personal experience is not lost, necessarily, but its role in the product is diminished and may only appear incidentally.

John Irving, the novelist, for instance, writes almost exclusively about New Hampshire. His prep school and certain character types are in almost every one of his novels. But, whereas his earlier novels were specifically about Exeter and specific people, in more recent novels they have become more or less references which are laced into the story in a less prominent way.

It occurs to me that roman à clef is not restricted to the writing of novels. Isn't it true that this is a characteristic of social conversation, as well? When we first meet a new friend, there is much talk about personal background. As the relationship progresses, new material emerges as the common bond. Personal experience is not lost, but its prominence is not as visible as jointly-experienced moments become of greater significance.


Dictionary source:The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
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