I believe writing needs to be honest. That doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t create imaginary worlds with magical creatures—far from it. There are several levels of honesty in writing.
First, authors should be honest with themselves. We should write what we know and feel to be true. Readers can always tell when we try to cheat in this regard.
In historical writing, with which I am very familiar, honesty to one’s sources, to historical accuracy and truth, must be held sacrosanct. There can be no playing fast and loose with historical facts and the historical record. The consequences of dishonesty in the stories we tell ourselves about the past are always bad. Every authoritarian regime in history has first attempted to rewrite the past to justify their ascension to power, to vilify their enemies, and to control the masses.
Historians are our society’s bards. We are keepers of the record of the human past. We collect, interpret, and retain the stories of the human experience until those stories are needed to help us confront the challenges of the present and to prepare us for the future. Without an honest record of the past, our ability to confront the future is seriously compromised.
Second, in fiction writing, writers must create characters that honestly reflect real human experience and emotion. No one likes to read cardboard cut-outs or stock archetypes. We want authentic, complicated, relatable characters that make us care about what happens to them. Once they are created, the writer must remain true to who they are. Even when the characters change, as they should in any good story, that change must be true to the character’s motives, backstory, fears, etc.
Third, writers must remain honest about the consequences of our character’s actions—not only because we have a moral obligation to do so, but because the story demands it. Stories in which characters experience no consequences for their decisions not only cease to be real, they cease to be interesting.
What other types of honesty do you think need to exist in writing?
Cheers,
James
