Biography and fiction

When I was in grad school a long time ago, the "biographical fallacy" was a phrase you often encountered in literary criticism, the mistake of forcing too much of an author's personal life into the work. I recently experienced an example of this.

My first posthumous play, Oregon Dream, is based partially on an intense relationship in my life. But it is a work of fiction, not a documentary. I shared the play with two friends familiar with the personal roots of the play -- and they responded in opposite ways. One, a director, loved the play, especially its humor. The other, who has no theatrical background, took the play as confessional and almost tragic -- and was inspired to give me her interpretation of the biographical inspiration for the play (rather than of the play itself). I didn't recognize much of myself or the play in the remarks, which is fascinating in itself.

Like any writer, I use my life as my best material. Consequently people who know me well find "things" in my work that they "recognize," or think they recognize, but if they themselves are not involved in the narrative arts, they typically give too much literal value to how these "things" are treated dramatically in the work. I'm particularly good at laughing at myself, so biographical moments of darker tones often get turned into dark humor rather than any semblance of tragedy. I'm my mother's son: "People are more interesting than anybody." I can wallow in self-pity as much as the next guy but I get over it and when it's time to get serious, I laugh rather than cry. We humans fill our lives with absurd humor.