Creative Non-Fiction, Essay Example

Stuart Dybeck’s “Thread” was about his first Holy Communion. It is written in a narrative form and was done in an interesting and creative way. It is a biographical account of something very personal, and reading it almost makes me feel as if it were a mere story that someone made it. Dybeck’s description is amazing, and the story brings on feelings as if you were there in the event, or lost in time along with Dybeck. He goes into great detail, and does not miss a thing, especially on describing what people were wearing. It is hard to believe that someone can be so attentive, and even to remember such details from years before. He even did some very amusing comparisons in the middle of the story, which made you feel that he was writing it from his childhood perspective, and not viewing it in accordance to his age now.

Patricia Hampl’s story has very vivid descriptions as well, and it captivates you to read more. She writes it as if she were re-living the moment, every event seemingly coming to her a surprise. Hampl’s confusion became also the reader’s confusion and she writes this in a way in which you feel that you are seeing things through her eyes and it brings a level of sympathy.

“Do He Have Your Number, Mr. Jeffery?” by Gayle Pemberton gives out a sense of a message. Unlike the previews stories, this one was not just writing something into account, Pemberton felt the need to share something deeper with her readers. She does this also in a descriptive manner, and I felt that the author was somehow telling me or the readers that her life she felt that she struggled with stereotyping.

All stories suggest that with creative non-fiction, you have to be able to relate the readers to what you’re writing, make them feel what you felt during the time. And most importantly, bring them back to the past with you through great detail and description. Creative non-fiction does not simply mean you write about the past, it should be a story you want to tell people, or even feel the need to share to others. It may be as significant to them, as it is for you.