Many authors opt for fiction over memoir when writing a story, or stories, based on real events. For some, the subject matter is far too personal to reveal in its rawest, truest form, or might carry the threat of legal repercussions. Others may see a more adventurous, creative, expansive story than the one on which it’s based, with a broader, perhaps more compelling list of characters; while shyness can play a part too, with the anonymity of a fictional front – different appearance and voice, for example – preferable to the nakedness of a far more personal account seen in memoir.

Fictionalising a story can be very effective, its authenticity ringing true if based on a nucleus of real events and emotional validity. One of my clients engaged in a profession that some would have looked down on her for, and one that even her own parents weren’t aware of; so by writing her story with a fictional front, I was able to retain the core and heart of her experiences, while simultaneously camouflaging them – names were changed, as were physical appearances and backgrounds, and the events themselves were often expanded upon, curtailed or taken in a different direction, so long as those grains of truth remained.

Since she gave me free rein to run with it and experiment with story and character, I was able to formulate a fresh take on the core material I was handed at the beginning of our time working together. I occasionally invented entirely new characters and plotlines, so long as they were consistent with the overall tone and feel of the story, which afforded additional distance from the reality of what actually occurred. And, thankfully for me, the end result was well received, as I adhered to certain truths within that account, however dressed up they ultimately became.

Another client, who by telling his true story in memoir format would have risked potential legal action, sought instead to create aliases for himself and the people he wanted to represent. On occasion, we combined certain people, to minimise how many featured, as some readers, myself included, favour a smaller rota of characters. Certain tales were entirely omitted in favour of far more outlandish ones, and the author in question had to get used to the fact that the character who was based on him sometimes acted and spoke differently. To begin with, there was some resistance to this aspect of the storytelling process, and I had to remind him that we were creating a different world that was only based in part on his own tale. As we went on, it became easier for him to warm to this version of ‘him’, and he grew to appreciate the distancing inherent in what would have been a much more emotionally embedded account if memoir had been favoured.

So if you have a story that you’re aching to share, but don’t wish to expose the full, unvarnished truth, and in doing so risk emotional vulnerability and potential legal problems, creatively overlaying that story is one way of presenting it to the world. And at United Ghostwriters, we have a wide range of talented, experienced writers who know how to go about it.