Defining Creative Non-fiction

What is creative non fiction?
Before classes began I had no idea what to expect out of creative non fiction. The readings thus far have opened my eyes a bit as to what to expect out of CNF but this week's readings assignments have given me the impression that CNF is open to a good amount of interpretation.
However there seem to be a few consistencies that all three authors as well as I myself agree upon. Creative non fiction must be just that. Non fiction. It should be based on true events and characters, how loosely you'd like to 'base' it is up to you as an author I suppose. Personally, I  prefer it be as tightly accurate to the truth as possible.

Kidder states that "Point of view is primary; it affects everything else including voice." Voice is a very important part of defining creative non-fiction. CNF is about giving people a voice, a spotlight. It's telling someone's story so that they are heard, and people who have similarities can reach out and connect to that voice. It can be your own voice, or those of others who you have encountered.

Another major part of CNF is character development. You want the readers to really get to know the characters on a deeper level, a level that may parallel their own values, opinions, or experiences.

In Lopates' article he explains that character development occurs in expressing one's opionions, prejudices, half-baked ideas, but that you must always analyze the flaws in your thinking. He also mentions that research or contextualization is key. An accurate account of non-fiction, no matter how creative and narrative it may be must always have accurate and factual background information.

Brett Lott does the best job of attempting to define CNF upfront to the reader. He makes a point that I agree with when he says that CNF is the attempt to keep from passing altogether away the lives we have lived. CNF can be as entertaining, emotional and adventurous as fiction but allows the reader to connect to the characters even more because they are, or are based on real people. The situations that occur in CNF are relatable but not so much that they become boring and mundane, this can be achieved through voice.

On of us in class read from their journal last week about an encounter they had with a drug dealer, while living in the city. I really appreciated them sharing their personal writing because I could see the parallels to real life in it. But at the end he took it to another level. Which is exactly what readers look for in CNF. There's relatablility there, but also adventure. It is what makes creative non fiction different from simple non fiction. It's creative. CNF writers have the ability to take real life situations, and make them entertaining through literary techniques.

If I had to define Creative Non-fiction it would be a genre of literature in which true events are expressed in a way that readers can relate, enjoy, and envelop themselves in, without being too close to the normalcies of every day life. This can be achieved through perspective, voice, and expression of personal opinion. Luckily, it isn't my responsibility to define CNF, so even if I am way off the mark no one can give me a hard time about it. But now that I have some idea of what it is, it interests me much more than before.