1. Nick Kilcoyne

    Nick Kilcoyne New Member

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    Novel I am going to sell a book of not so true stories. Should I call it "True" stories?

    Discussion in 'Genre Discussions' started by Nick Kilcoyne, Feb 23, 2013.

    I have written a book and I am trying to give it an eye catching title that will be seen by search results and also make it apparent what the book is about.

    I want to call it "True Paranormal Stories: Bologna or Not?"

    Now being paranormal stories, it is questionable if any of the stories are true, though I based most of the stories on supposed actual events and witness testimony. But there are some totally made up facts and even some totally made up stories as well.

    So you could called it "faction".

    Would it be immoral or fraudulent to use the term "True Stories" in the title?
     
  2. idle

    idle Active Member

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    If you're worried that people might take it wrong, you could try the other way and emphasize the "true" bit in the title by somehting like "Absolutely True Stories". If anyone falls for that, they deserve it. :)
     
  3. chicagoliz

    chicagoliz Contributor Contributor

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    I'm not clear on what you are asserting this book is -- true or not true. It sounds like you don't believe they are true, particularly since you state that you made up facts and some of the stories are entirely made up. I would not call them "true," because a large proportion of the stories are not. Just because they relate to the paranormal doesn't mean that they cannot be "true" in the sense that they could describe events that did actually happen and that the people involved believe to be true.

    If you don't believe in the paranormal, I don't see why you'd want to write a nonfiction book about it. Since you seem to have written a fiction book, I don't think you want to confuse people by asserting that they are "true," particularly since there do exist nonfiction books about this subject. There certainly is room for people to deem your book "fraudulent." Although you could make clear in a subtitle or on the cover that the stories are fictional.

    Incidentally, I don't like the phrase "bologna or not." It's too flip and casual. But that's more of a personal thing.
     
  4. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    both...

    you could put 'almost' before 'true' to make it tongue-in-cheek...

    i agree about the bologna bit not being very appealing... besides, when used to indicated fraudulence, it's usually spelled 'baloney'...
     
  5. erebh

    erebh Banned Contributor

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    ah thank you Maia for clearing up the Nologna bit - I didnt get it at all :(

    You could always just stick a question mark after

    True Stories? You decide!
    "Victim's" accounts of alien kidnappings and Loch Ness Monster Surf Riders.
     
  6. swhibs123

    swhibs123 Active Member

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    agree!
     
  7. Nick Kilcoyne

    Nick Kilcoyne New Member

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    Thanks for the replies. This is helpful.

    Also, my intent is to be deceptive about the the fanciful details that have been added to the stories and pass them off as totally legit, though they would be obvious once read.
     
  8. chicagoliz

    chicagoliz Contributor Contributor

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    I think this is a pretty dangerous position. I'm not certain why you would intentionally want to be deceptive. You won't be attracting the readers you want. And readers who feel that they've been duped are not generally going to have pleasant feelings toward you.
     
  9. Bimber

    Bimber New Member

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    I really didnt see that one, i thought he meant Bologna a city in Italy and thought it weird :D
     
  10. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    Although I belive honesty is the best policy, I'll play Devil's advocate and cite a counterexample: Michael Crighton's The Andromeda Strain never wavered from its assertion that the events reported were factual.
     
  11. Xatron

    Xatron New Member

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    You can make it something like "They are true:Stories of the Paranormal" or something. If you are intentionally deceptive then readers might disapprove
     
  12. Yoshiko

    Yoshiko Contributor Contributor

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    As a reader, I'd feel cheated if I found out the author used "true" in something they knew was far from it. :/
     
  13. chicagoliz

    chicagoliz Contributor Contributor

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    But, The Andromeda Strain was a traditionally published book, categorized as a science fiction novel and sold as fiction. The OP seemed to indicate that he'd be publishing the stories electronically, findable via websearches, with no clear cut identification of the collection as fictional stories.
     
  14. Snicket

    Snicket New Member

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    I personally think there would be no problem with writing out something cheek 'n tongue with a play on true and what is true. I don't think there is anything dishonest about being tongue 'n cheek.
     
  15. chicagoliz

    chicagoliz Contributor Contributor

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    Tongue in Cheek is not quite the same as being intentionally deceptive. The OP stated that he wants to be deceptive in his comments.

    and
     
  16. Nick Kilcoyne

    Nick Kilcoyne New Member

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    Remember the Blair Witch Project?
     
  17. minstrel

    minstrel Leader of the Insquirrelgency Supporter Contributor

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    I think you can get away with it so long as there's a disclaimer in the front matter saying "This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to blah blah blah ..." (You know the rest of it.) It should also be classed on Amazon, and whatever other online retailers sell it, under the heading "Fiction."

    Like Yoshiko, I would feel cheated if a book not only had the word "True" in the title, but was sold as nonfiction without any disclaimer.
     
  18. minstrel

    minstrel Leader of the Insquirrelgency Supporter Contributor

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    Duplicate post. Sorry.
     
  19. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    Yes, unfortunately. Bad movie. Shakycam gives me a headache. That and boredom were my only reactions to the film.
     
  20. Nick Kilcoyne

    Nick Kilcoyne New Member

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    Good point. I do have that disclaimer on the title page and I will put it in the fiction classification.

    I bring it up because it was similarly implied to be a true story.
     
  21. joanna

    joanna Active Member

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    What about "Based on true stories"?
     
  22. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    that can work, if it's true... or 'inspired by real events' if farther afield from reality...
     

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