Wednesday, June 26, 2019

Creating, Chronicling and Crafting Words


Understanding Facts, Fictions, Truths and Tomes 

     To understand the complex dynamics of writing fiction, journaling current events or becoming a writer, an understanding of words seems a good start.  In any case, understanding of a few select words is a must for the writer. 
     First, the word truth is an important part of any writer’s vocabulary.  Truth, simply put, is a set of circumstances in which events unfold in predictable ways.  Truth is most commonly thought to be universal, and its implications are certainly widely shared, but truth cannot be reliably consistent within the given context, as it is very much subject to the perceptions of individuals within this context.  For this reason, one often hears the phrase, “to tell your truth.”  Truth can most often be defined as the specific honest perceptions and reaction of individuals within a specified context.  This is most often the purview of the fiction writer, as it is only the fiction writer that can alter the specified context to establish the predictable outcomes of situations through often differing perspectives of characters.
     Fact is yet another vital part of a writer’s tool box.  Facts are circumstances that are above reproach and beyond interpretation.  They establish a baseline against which truths and perceptions, as well as outcomes can be measured.  Fact is also a perspective, but it is most often a generic and more objective perspective, which can seldom be negated by individual perspective.  Fact is the omniscient third person logical perspective, most often captured by video, audio or through the amalgamation of individual truths which are interpreted by finding points of consistency.  Fact is most typically and properly in the dominion of journalists and news reporters.  Journalists who chronicle fact, often find it easy to establish trust with readers and observers, as facts are rarely able to be dismissed as maters of perspective, opinion or bias. 
     While fact and truth can complement one another, and do often, they can also conflict with one another as well.  A limited perspective of events may provide a truthful accounting that does not include all of the facts of a circumstance.  Similarly, a factual accounting of any circumstance may often negate the emotional, spatial or contextual truth of the same situation.  These ambiguities are relevant in many cases of journalistic reporting or even fiction development, as in order to establish a story of interest to readers, one must produce the most complete chronicle of events.  If the purpose of a chronicle is merely to inform, then it is likely that fact will be of greater import.  If the purpose of the chronicle is to move or convince or to elicit, in the case of fiction writing, the voluntary suspension of disbelief, then it is most beneficiary to have a truthful perspective that is easily relatable. 
 While the words fact and truth are often seen by casual observers as the same, they are not.
     A question in today’s journalistic community that is most often wrestled with is, “What is spin?” 
Spin by the most comprehensive and simple definition is the argument of truth to influence the outward reaction to a set of facts.  When done properly, spin should never oppose facts, and should always be derived from a position of truth. 

     As an example, if four people are seated at a perfectly square table, and a glass of water is placed on the table, spin is the art of reaching a consensus of all those seated that the glass has been placed truthfully as it is perceived from one person.  If the water is placed in front of one person, that person may perceive the water as being at the “front” of the table, while the person seated opposite them might perceive the glass as to the “back” of the table.  The person seated to the left, might perceive the glass as being to his or her right, while the person to the right will likely perceive the truth of the glass’s position to be to their left.  All are correct in their assessment of truth.  In fact, all that might be logically and objectively observed is that the glass of water has been placed on the table.  If one wished to reach a consensus that the water was in the position that one perceived it at, instead of the less specific fact, one would argue or “spin” the truth to convince the others of such a perspective.  
     One might argue that because the water was further from the opposite side, and because right and left are obviously subjective, that the most logical statement of position is that the glass is, in fact, right in front of one’s self, and thus might imply ownership of the glass or its contents.   While said argument is logically based in a truth, and does not contradict the fact, its implications may not be sound, but cannot be denied if agreed upon. 
     When a writer creates a fictional world and populates it with fictional characters and creatures, it is most often observed that these stories are best received by readers when creatures and characters act and react in logically predictable ways based upon circumstances that unfold in a truthful way.  In these cases, the facts of each circumstance are subject to the will of the creative writer who is creating the environment.  The truths however, must be honest reactions based in the most universal truths of the readers.  The more universal the truths, the more popular the story can be.  Love, discovery, ambition, and survival for instance are common literary themes that elicit very predicable sets of behavior and thus are seen as universal in their appeal.  In stark juxtaposition are themes such as satirical, political or socio-economic commentary.  While such intrigues are common place, the circumstances of each are often rooted in the collective moment, and while each tale might find popularity, they might find it difficult to remain relevant to future readers.  There are always exceptions to such, as stories that touch on the base emotional tones, while unfolding sociological circumstances can become staples of popular imagination, such as the case of many Charles Dickens stories. 
     As a writer, the most important thing to retain about these distinct words is that they are not the same.  That each of these words drives a story in a specific direction and once that direction is established, a faithful follow through to the inevitable outcome is essential.  If a journalist relies too heavily upon truth, rather than evidentiary act, then a news story will provoke emotional and often irrational responses that are either intentionally or unintentionally the result of bias and perspective.  If a fiction writer gets bogged down in the mire of historical or scientific fact, then inevitably their story might suffer from a lack of relatable characters or a mundane story-line, which will likely be detrimental to the tale or to the reader experience.  For this reason, it is particularly important that writers craft their works with a complete and full understanding of these tools, and their use, as well as an understanding of how they interact and can best serve the desired outcome of the written work.
     Now that we have established some fundamental guidelines, go forth and tell the truth, be it in fact or fiction, it will set your stories free!