A memoir is a person’s recollection, a memoirists is an author who writes based on their memory. Therefore, not everything they remember is going to be the truth. However stretching the truth to far can mislead the reader and you never want to be persuaded as a phony. Statistics have showed that the more personal and non-fiction your novel is the stronger connection you have with your readers.
One of the most important thing in a book is connecting with the audience because if you make no connection then why by the book. That’s why sticking as close to the truth can take readers through a journey were they might also relate to. As Frey, James has learned “throughout this process, I have met thousands of readers, and heard from many thousands more, who were deeply sorry to any readers who I have disappointed and I hope these revelations will not alter their faith in the book’s central message” (Source B).
There are many skills and techniques that can be used to keep your novel interesting, thorough, affective, and most important in a memoir non-fiction. For example, Henry David Thoreau “evidently employed, by the way this is called “compression”-meaning that multiple incidents or situations are combined or compressed in order to flesh out the narrative” (Source G). All Henry did was take parts of his documenting in Walden Pond and combined different events together making his memoir non-fiction.
Memoirist are forced to strictly write from memory making hard to stick to the truth. But inventing details, facts, and experiences can be misleading and may disappoint some readers. That’s why it is important to use different techniques to keep it as close to the truth and a memoir.