Honesty and Ethics in Writing Non-Fiction
How to Keep a Clear Conscience and Avoid a Law Suit
Aug 5, 2008
All writers about to attempt a memoir, autobiography or biography must first sit down and do a little soul searching. The questions the author must ask themselves are those of honesty and ethics.
Although most elements differ for each genre, honesty and ethics are concerns which must be considered in both.
Honesty and Ethics in Memoirs and Autobiographies
In both of these genres the main thing for a writer to contemplate upon is honesty. The thing implicitly promised to the reader of an autobiography or memoir is the truth (although a recent surge in fake memoirs has been seen). These forms of writing are the true story of someone's life or a part of their life. If not offering the truth then the book would really sit in the fiction genre.
The question the writer needs to ask themselves is “Can I really be honest?”. Not an easy quest. To be honest with the reader the writer needs to be honest with themselves. In the case of an autobiography this may mean conciously realising for the first time the unpleasant characteristics of a loved one or taking accountability for times when life has not gone well. For the memoir writer this can be a drastically more difficult task. The very bones of a memoir are usually the raw emotions of a specific period in a writer's life. Emotions that sometimes may not have been confronted before. For the truly successful memoir writer these emotions, however unpleasant, cannot be shied away from. Honesty in a memoir writer is essential despite the sometimes terrifying prospect of digging up the past.
So what about ethics? Well in any memoir or autobiography there will rarely be just the one character. The writer will have parents, grandparents, siblings, children, friends or lovers. The writer owes it to them to protect them even when being honest.
The memoir could become very public as could the people within it. If the writer is about to out a relative as being gay or accuse a friend of an affair then they would be advised to stop and think about the consequences in their relationships. If even hinting at someone having committed a crime then the law may also be a consideration. It may be a great twist in the story that your mother is in love with her brother in law but is it worth ruining your parent's marriage for?
Honesty and Ethics in Biographies
Biographies host a different set of problems to keep in mind. With regards to honesty the writer owes it to their subject to represent their life truthfully and without prejudice or bias. Anything presented as fact should be backed up by primary evidence and referenced within the bibliography or footnotes. Anything which cannot be backed up should be presented as rumour, propaganda or general opinion. Not masqueraded as fact. A final and essential point to note around honesty is that anything less may lead to unwanted law suits or to the author being discredited and potentially damaging their reputation beyond recovery.
With regards to ethics in biography writing there is less to worry about. As long as the basic principles of honesty are bound to the ethics will largely take care of themselves. It is still worth noting however that the pen can be mightier than the sword and the information given out in a book should not aim to damage or ruin someone's life. Especially someone on the sidelines of the story rather than the main character.
So, dear writers, aim to be honest and ethical in all memoir, biography and autobiography writing or be prepared to suffer the consequences. Be they of conscience, consequence or law.
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