In the previous topic, we saw how creative nonfiction evolved from the memoirs and essays of famous people to widely read texts from a diverse range of authors. Since 1970, the genre has expanded in new and exciting ways. Creative nonfiction is more popular than ever before.

Creative writing programs now offer degrees in the genre, alongside the more traditional genres of fiction and poetry. National magazines and bookstores carry works of creative nonfiction including books of memoirs, personal essays, and hybrid forms (which we’ll examine later in this course).

How did creative nonfiction rise to such prominence? Although the cultural causes of the genre’s expansions are many, here are a few explanations for the modern success of creative nonfiction:

An appreciation for “new journalism.” “New journalism” was popularized after WWII and describes a type of writing that combines creative writing techniques like vivid characterization and imagery, traditional forms of research and interviews, and the journalist’s own perspective or point of view. Writers like Truman Capote made this form of personal journalism widely successful.
The mass-market success of memoirs written by ordinary people. While in the past memoirs were often written by famous or popular people who shared their extraordinary experiences with eager readers, by the latter half of the 20th century, ordinary people began telling their stories in memoirs as well. Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt is a great example. Of course, famous people’s memoirs continue to sell well (think Prince Harry) but the form is now open to anyone who has a story to tell.
A renewed interest in the essay as a creative form. The essay demonstrates the desire to understand the world through as many sources as possible. From ancient texts to modern science, personal experiences, ideas, and thought experiments, the essay tries to make sense of the universe. With more access than ever before to information of all sorts, the essay feels distinctly modern. Despite its ancient origins, the personal essay has become increasingly popular on the pages of national magazines like The New Yorker.
The fusion of creative nonfiction and experimental forms. Writers like Anne Carson began fusing elements of creative nonfiction with poetry, creating hybrid forms. In addition, the flash, or very short, essay adopted the speed and power of flash fiction to tell real stories in under one hundred words.
Cultural interest in the self and identity. Call it “navel gazing,” call it self-discovery, but we live in a time that celebrates individuality and the exploration of self. Creative nonfiction is the ideal form of writing for this kind of inward examination. The success of memoirs and personal essays, as well as other forms of personal writing like blogs, demonstrates that now, more than ever, we are interested in the unique experiences of other people.

Creative nonfiction writing is now considered the “third genre.” (Poetry and fiction are the first two.) What’s fascinating about creative nonfiction is that it borrows ideas from both poetry and fiction to tell true stories. Over the next few modules, we’ll see how we can use the structure and craft of fiction, as well as the lyricism and imagery of poetry, to create our own works of creative nonfiction.