Take the oath...Tell the truth!

When a person begins to read, or develops a passion for reading, there is always a specific style that they tend to lean towards. They might like reading memoirs, fictional stories, or have an interest in horror books. Whatever their choice, the reason why they like it must have something to do with the writing or the way that the story is told.

For most people, including myself, when you choose to read a book of memoirs or journal writing, it is mainly because it is assumed that the events that will transpire throughout the book are based on actual events that have taken place. I believe that if a writer is writing something that readers will believe to be true, they have an obligation to writing only the truth. If they are writing fictional stories then naturally readers will already be wise to the fact that the story is false and will not be left to feel like they were mislead.

This is important to notice when reading John Glassco’s memoirs. The main controversy around the memoir was not his style of writing, or the time period, but mainly the fact that most readers believed the events to be true. When the events were questioned the readers left feeling betrayed. It is because of this that I am a firm believer in writers taking an oath to be truthful when writing.