Creative writing - Mike Sanders 2014

What about authorial intrusion?
The realities of nonfiction and memoir
Long-form genres

Authorial intrusion, or when an author asserts him- or herself into the story, pulls readers out of the narrative and reminds them that they’re reading.

Once upon a time, it was common for writers to insert their own comments or statements into a narrative. In the middle of a romantic scene showing the protagonists finally coming together, for example, the writer might insert a little story about the statue they knocked off the dresser in their exuberance. The readers are left to cool their heels while the author takes this little segue.

Readers today don’t tolerate such devices. Writers can intrude on the story in many ways, and sometimes it’s unintentional. You might make a comment or observation that isn’t what the reader would expect from the point-of-view character, for example. Or perhaps the dialogue seemed to be directed to the reader to explain backstory or as a way to insert the writer’s personal view instead of being a natural part of the story. Sometimes the writer includes a detail about the characters or setting that isn’t consistent with what was previously written. Factual errors and plot holes are also forms of authorial intrusion.

When you insert or withhold information that isn’t consistent with the setting or the character’s POV, this is annoying for readers. A more intense scene usually is created without author intrusion to slow things down. Books aren’t like movies. The reader can’t see or know what’s happening off-screen because the characters can’t see it. You must show the events as they would be seen through the POV you’re using.

Using weak verbs or telling in narrative is another type of authorial intrusion. This is why you show rather than tell. Telling is one of the most obvious authorial intrusions. It reminds readers that they’re reading, pulling them away from the story.

To avoid author intrusion, you must ensure that the narrative adds something to the story, that it moves it forward. Narrative inserted for the sake of filling in a blank spot intrudes on the reader’s experience. The reader should only know what the POV character knows and see only what the POV character sees. If you stay out of telling by keep the narrative active, you don’t need to annoy the reader by inserting yourself into the book.

The least you need to know

·  Research deepens the world of your nonfiction book.

·  Facts are important, but the truth of a book can be emotional rather than factual.

·  Memory can be misleading, but it also can be reconstructed.

·  Avoid authorial intrusion to keep from pulling your readers out of the story.