Showdown: Fiction vs non-fiction

For anyone who's just tuned in, this is the second part of our series comparing different forms of writing. You can find a bit more background on the intention of the posts attached to last month's reflection, as well as read up on the differences between long- and short-form texts.

The vast majority of the time, writers go into their projects already knowing whether they’re writing fiction or non-fiction; it’s a pretty basic and integral part of the idea itself. Occasionally, though, the obvious distinction isn’t so obvious.

If, for example, you’ve done a lot of research for a project about a particular historical personage or event, that same research would be just as relevant for a piece of historical fiction as for a non-fiction book. A memoir can become a semi-autobiographical novel or play easily enough, with a few tweaks and a small departure from facts. There are also plenty of pieces of science fiction and literary fiction that are really just vehicles to discuss concepts held together with a loose attempt at a plot.

When the lines between fact and fancy start to get a little fuzzy, how do you decide which direction to go?