To Fiction Or Not To Fiction?

Posted on by goldfish

Yesterday, I asked my Fish of Gold readers for guest posts on Stories That Must Not Die. I was asked whether or not STMND allowed fiction. It was a question we had never considered since no one had asked it.

After much debate amongst the admins, we’re a hung jury on the matter. We’re roughly half for and half against.

I was no help since I vacillated wildly on my answer. At first, I said I thought it would be alright as long as it was fiction rooted in personal experience, or what I call autobiographical fiction.

Then, I changed my vote to no, since perhaps this is more of a place for personal experience, not fiction.

Then, I changed my vote again, because some of my most personal stories have been written through fiction. Sometimes, you need that distance to tell it. So, my final vote was yes with caveats.

Since we couldn’t make up our minds, we thought we’d ask you, our readers, the people who ultimately have the most say in what’s posted here.

So, what do you think? Should we allow fiction on STMND?

35 thoughts on “To Fiction Or Not To Fiction?”

  2. Well, I voted, even though I don’t really have any personal stories that story that are “too sad, too strange, too big, too angry, too fierce, too everything” to post on my own blog. However, I do think that if I did, it might be easier for me to relate it as a fictionalized version of something that I had experienced. That way, I could potentially be a little more objective. Anyway, that’s just me thinking out loud.

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  3. I’m sort of iffy on this. First, IF a story is fiction it should be clearly posted as fiction. But then again, I’m more of the thought that writing straight fiction is sort of downplaying the real stories that have been and will be on here. I’m not sure I like mixing the two, unless it’s autobiographical fiction. This site is all ready known for a safe place to tell real stories, not fiction. I like that about it. So ok, no longer iffy. No straight fiction. I do understand that for some people writing in autobiographical fiction is easier for them. That’s fine, but at least we would know that it is still based on truth, not fiction.

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  5. I believe a short fiction site would be wonderful, but I think each site should be one or the other, but not both. I’m amazed that it was easy to make a quick decision. I’m a Libra and we usually can’t make up our minds on anything,

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  7. Um, I really hope my question yesterday did not prompt this poll or the ensuing chaos/debate/confusion/food fight/discord/strife. I suppose these things happen when I don’t read the “about” page like normal people should.

    In all honesty, if this site is mainly dedicated to non-fiction stories that have big emotional appeal, but people want to read equivalent fiction, maybe there should be a “Fiction that Must Not Die” page. That way people who want to continue reading stuff that’s not made up can read it, while people who want to read made up stuff can do so on an equivalent blog. Everyone’s happy. Just kinda throwin’ that out there as a compromise y’all.

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  10. I’m saying yes, simply because — like you — I sometimes need that distance for my own purposes. I think there should be a headline above each fiction post saying “the following is a work of fiction” or something to that effect.

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  11. I voted no, this site is clearly defined and I think if you open it to other things it will get blurred and lose it’s structure and appeal. I also think starting a new site for fiction writing is a great idea though I would personally simply post my fiction on my own blog, I can see others submitting to it.

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  13. Nah, cos people can write their own stories in third person or whatever if they need to, AND submit them anonymously if they want the protection. I thought the point of this place was to share people’s OWN stories.

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  15. Reblogged this on The Matticus Kingdom and commented:

    Hi everyone. The Stories team was posed a question to which we debated, but couldn’t come to a conclusion. Should the site include fictional stories, fictional stories based in fact or purely factual stories? We invite you to visit and vote (and follow). Thank you!

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  16. No vote, since I don’t regularly follow, but shouldn’t the standard for the stories here be whether or not they share the principles of the site and tell the stories that shouldn’t die – be they fictional or not?
    (Also, by the time stories are written, there’s a lot of autobiographical fiction. Nothing is as concise or closed to interpretation, like the police blotter…)

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  17. Reblogged this on The Matticus Kingdom and commented:

    The admins over at Stories That Must Not Die need your help. If you’ve ever read a story over there please take part in our poll that will help shape the future of the site.

    Also, if you have a story you think would be a good fit for that community, or you just don’t know where else to share it, please consider submitting it through the Share Your Story page, or by emailing storiesthatmustnotdie at gmail dot com.

    Thank you!

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  21. I think part of the reason people come to this site, and others like it, is to have a shared experience. There is a wall between the writer and the reader when it comes to fiction, a wall that doesn’t exist when someone is writing from a place of realness. Even when people write anonymously there is a humanness to it you can’t get from a fictional piece.

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