Borsia

I have a question about the form of the short story.
I have just written a story that falls into the short story format in that it is roughly 6000 words in 12 chapters.
But it is nonfiction about something that really happened in my life.
All of the descriptions of the short story start by saying that it is a piece of fictional nature.
I have looked it up on at least 15 different sources and it is always the same.
Can a short story be nonfiction?
Is there a better definition for it?
I tried to ask this in "writing 101" but it is closed.

silent-wish

Something that really happened in your life can be counted as sort of a fiction. I can't think of a better definition but theres a section for true stories in book shops over here in England.

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Noirllyn

Sounds like what you've written is a memoir (creative nonfiction given as a narrative). When I go to the book store, the memoirs are in with fiction books, even though (allegedly) they are true stories. I think that's probably because people typically read novels, short stories and memoirs with the same intent (pleasure), as opposed to reading for knowledge or professional perspective (nonfiction).

If you don't have the option or desire to treat it as a memoir, then it would just be a short story. We wouldn't know that any of it really happened unless you told us. If you take out the element of reality, it's like any other story for the most part.

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Just Jim

I think Noirllyn has hit it pretty well. As an example, I wrote a piece about when I was 11 years old. Basically an exceptional day in the life of a kid. Nothing in it for anyone to learn. It's just a fun read, even though I know it is true. To me that is fiction. If I get it published, I won't even acknowledge that it is fact.

On the other hand, if I write a story about my experience with captive tigers, it will contain lots of information from experts and from my own experience. I will write it as a story, not an essay, but I would call it creative non-fiction, because the content is important beyond the story.

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Mike C

Sounds like creative non-fiction to me. But the definition is really unimportant unless you want to sell it, in which case you call it whatever your target market is buying; fiction, memoir, creative non-fiction, whatever.

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Borsia

Thanks everyone these are all good answers.
My father, who is a published author, suggested that I change everyone's names thus making it a fiction. I can do this to a point. But the story is about a Blue Jay (bird) who moved in with me and all of his antics. His name was "What" but I don't think I could change his name. I mean who ever heard of a Blue Jay named "Why" its ridicules! I wouldn’t believe it for 1 second!!

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Katastrof

I'm thinking fiction...

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Noirllyn

Considering most people don't name blue jays whatsoever, I'm sure you can pass it off as fiction.

There isn't a Wiki on a blue jay named "What", and it's not in my Apples-to-Apples deck, so you're probably safe in that one.

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