Because I write for children, I read a lot of
children’s books. My recent reading has
been limited almost exclusively to picture books and I’ve discovered a wealth
of nonfiction gems including Mr. Ferries and His Wheel by Kathryn Gibbs Davis, illustrated
by Gilbert Ford (Houghton Mifflin) and The Kite that Bridged Two Nations by
Alexis O’Neill, illustrated by Terry Widener (Calkins Creek).
Or at least I assumed they were both nonfiction until I
looked more closely and made a surprising discovery. The
Kite that Bridged Two Nations is a fiction book based on a real event.
In the back matter of the book, author Alexis O’Neill explains
that her decision to write about the event as fiction was based on what is essential
for a gripping story.
Conflict. A good story
has to have conflict. Homan, the main
character, couldn’t simply make a kite, fly it and win the context. For this story to be picture book worthy,
there had to be conflict big enough to bring Homan to a halt before he could
even build his kite. O’Neill introduced
needed conflict by creating a disagreement with Homan’s father, who strongly
disapproves of his son’s frivolous kite flying.
Do you see what O’Neill has done with this conflict? Homan not only win’s the contest, his father
comes around to see the value of what his son does. This subplot creates not only needed tension
but a warm, satisfying conclusion to the story.
The Catalyst. All good
stories require something to get the main character moving. O’Neill knew that the drive to win the contest
was what brought Homan to achieve the impossible. But how on earth did he find out about
it? O’Neill created a handbill, typical
for the time but not part of the historic record, to bring the contest to Homan’s
attention and get the story underway.
Acceptable Risk. Homan
wasn’t an adult but a journey to the Canadian side of the falls stranded the
real Homan for 8 days in Canada. A
picture book character separated from parents and family for eight days. Can
you say banning and censorship? Of
course you can, if the book would even be published. To make this Canadian stay more acceptable, O’Neill
invented a kind Canadian family who takes him in.
When you find a true story that just won’t work “as is,” consider
writing it as fiction. A story that
works as fiction will soar into the hands of your readers. A story that doesn’t work as nonfiction,
simply won’t fly even if it’s about a kite.
--SueBE
Sue Bradford Edwards teaches our course, Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults. The next section starts on January 5th.
2 comments:
This is a great post, Sue! I'm struggling with one of my WIPs where I have newspaper articles quoting the subject, but no letters or journals. Without interior thoughts, I'm wondering if historical fiction is the way to go.
Kirsten,
First, ask yourself what story you want to tell. What do you need to tell it? If you don't have that information, ficiton may be the way to go.
It isn't an easy choice, but sometimes it is the only way to tell the story you want to tell.
--SueBE
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