The Transition from Writing Non-fiction to Writing Fiction

While on the book tour, I got a lot of questions from readers. One of the more frequently asked was about my transition from writing non-fiction to fiction. What was it like? How did I go about it? I should start by saying that when I began writing at the age of 30, my dream was to write fiction, but I was diverted from that almost before I started. I became enticed by the notion of writing memoir. For over a decade I was compelled by the idea of turning my own life into narratives. I was especially intrigued with chronicling my interior or spiritual life. My books The Dance of the Dissident Daughter and When the Heart Waits were narratives of my spiritual experience. I think many people need, even require, a narrative version of their life. I seem to be one of them. I need to see my life in context, to derive the deeper, more illusive meanings from it. You’ve heard the saying: “Being oneself is an acquired taste”? I can tell you with certainty that writing memoir definitely helps one acquire a taste for one’s less than perfect life. In fact, writing memoir, which technically means writing the story of one’s memories and reflecting on them, is in some ways a work of wholeness. Some have suggested that writing memoir is a self-absorbed endeavor. There may be truth in that, but I suspect, no more really than one would find in any kind of writing. In fact, paradoxically, I found that writing memoir tended to free me from myself. Given all this, I thought I would go on writing it the rest of my life. Ah, but never underestimate the power of a dismissed dream.

I think there must be a place inside of us where dreams go and wait their turn. In the early 90's, to my astonishment, my old spurned dream of writing fiction resurfaced. To be honest, initially I was both compelled and repelled by its unexpected return. Compelled because it was a genuine impulse from deep within and had a lot of passion attached to it. Repelled because I was, to put it bluntly, afraid I couldn’t do it. The dilemma set off a creative tension in me. It forced me to come to terms with my fear.

I took on the role of apprentice fiction writer. I read voluminous amounts of literary fiction, and set about studying the art and craft of fiction writing. More importantly I practiced, writing short stories, and re-writing them over and over.

Now, of course, I can’t imagine my life apart from writing fiction. Will I, then, write another book of memoir? Oh, undoubtedly. I still have a need to create a narrative of my life. To keep writing it until I see how it turns out.