I thoroughly enjoy researching literary-based subjects for this newsletter. But sometimes I have a “Wait, what?” moment with a topic I didn’t even realize was a thing. Such is the case this time, with Unreliable Narrators. This is a sophisticated writing tool that makes the story murky and convoluted to add intrigue.
Almost always speaking in the first person, the unreliable narrators come in three types:
A deliberate liar, who misrepresents the story for self-aggrandizement, or to avoid consequences of his evil deeds
An evasive character, who shades the truth to make it more palatable to the other characters
A naive character who is too young or inexperienced to know the real truth, so his narrative comes from a distorted perception
To use this concept effectively, the author must have the truth presented somewhere, however subtle it may be. This can be in unfolding facts as the story progresses, that disprove the unreliable narrative. Or it can be in contradicting dialogue from a believable character. What makes it fun is when the author leaves little breadcrumbs throughout the story hinting that the narrator may be lying. If there is no way for the reader to perceive the alternate truth, and is offered only the lie, the tool becomes pointless.
This device adds richness and dimension to fiction for adult readers, but authors writing for young children should use it with caution. Experts in the kids’ literature industry consider that young readers are still grasping the logistics of stories (having a point; a beginning, middle and end; a timeline; and a coherent plot). They therefore suggest that authors avoid flashbacks, tangent subordinate plots, and confusing characters. In my opinion, this shouldn’t preclude creating lying characters in children’s fiction, if they are obvious and ridiculous. Examples are: Carlo Collodi’s Pinocchio, with his nose growing longer; the Brothers Grimm’s Big Bad Wolf, deceptively wearing Little Red Riding Hood’s Grandma’s nightgown; and more recently,
I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen – Several animals lie or dodge the truth when Bear asks about his missing hat.
I’ll close with one irrefutable truth: You will have a lot of fun schmoozing all the authors, and buying their autographed books, at the Desert Foothills Book Festival on Saturday, October 18 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at:
The Holland Center
34250 N 60th Street
Scottsdale, AZ 85266
