fictionalizing
Fictionalizing is the process of turning real events, people, or places into fiction by altering facts, inventing details, or creating composite characters. It sits between strict fiction and nonfiction and is common in novels, screenplays, plays, and other narrative media. Writers may keep the general outline of a real event while changing timelines, motives, or outcomes, or they may invent scenes and dialogue to illuminate themes or character.
Techniques include amalgamating multiple individuals into a single composite, compressing or expanding timelines, imagining inner thoughts
Purposes vary: to examine moral questions, to explore social context, to preserve memory, or to engage readers
Ethical and legal considerations include consent of real persons or estates, potential defamation, privacy concerns, and
Critics discuss whether factual distortion undermines trust or whether narrative truth justifies it. Related forms include