Whether you’re a writer or reader, it may seem obvious to you the difference between fiction stories and nonfiction books. One is real and the other is imaginative. Let’s take a closer look at the differences between fiction vs nonfiction books.
Fiction Vs Nonfiction: What’s The Difference?
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the definition of fiction is, “something invented by the imagination,” such as, “an invented story.”
Personally, I love that definition. I’ve never thought of fictional stories being inventions before, but it’s true. Stories are building blocks of imaginative ideas, what if scenarios, and fantastical worlds. Fiction stories create the unknown and then explore it.
However, the definition of nonfiction is, “writing or cinema that is about facts and real events.”
In a nutshell, fiction tells a story about a made-up plot, characters, and settings all from the author’s imagination. Of course, some fictional stories may be based on real events. In some ways, many fiction stories all come from something real.
On the other hand, nonfiction tells the story of something that happened in reality. The characters are based on real people and so are the settings. Depending on the subject and category of the nonfiction book, if the facts are proven to be incorrect, then the author loses credibility.
Genres In Fiction
Fiction stories are typically broken down in various genres, depending on the themes, mood, and main idea of the story.
For example, these genres include but aren’t limited to the following:
- Adventure
- Comedy
- Dystopian
- Fantasy
- Historical Fiction
- Horror
- Mystery
- Romance
- Science Fiction
- Thriller
As mentioned before, many fictional stories do begin with a little bit of truth. For instance, historical fiction is based on real events. However, the author has put fictional characters in a real-life situation to put an imaginative spin on the content but it still remains educational.
Science fiction can pertain to a variety of topics. For now, we’ll use space as an example. Most fictional stories about space still state truths about space, the laws of gravity, the planets, etc. However, since it’s fiction, the author can put their own spin on the subject. They can create new laws of gravity. They can share what they think aliens look and act like. The possibilities are endless.
Categories In Nonfiction
When most people think of nonfiction, a handful of categories comes to mind. However, the nonfiction category is much more vast than most give it credit for.
For example, nonfiction books come in the following categories:
- Art and Photography
- Autobiographies
- Biographies
- Business
- Crafts and Hobbies
- Cookbooks
- Education and Academic Writing (such as textbooks, literary reviews, etc.)
- Essays
- Fitness and Wellness
- Health and Medical
- History
- Journalism (news, sports, etc.)
- Memoirs
- Motivational
- Music
- Politics
- Reference (dictionaries, etc.)
- Religion and Spirituality
- Science
- Self-help
- Travel
- True Crime
Nonfiction takes an incredible amount of research and fact-checking. Fiction stories need research and fact-checking, as well, but they can get away with bending the truth. The point of nonfiction is to educate and help readers on a specific topic.
Fiction Vs Nonfiction: Which Do You Read?
Fiction is for entertainment and nonfiction is for knowledge. Both categories exercise your brain and spark new ideas. Overall, fiction and nonfiction books are equally important.
Rachel Poli is an indie author, podcaster, and content writer working on her debut cozy mystery novel.
Although she favors mystery, Rachel is a multi-genre author with too many ideas and characters in her head, often experimenting with short stories and flash fiction.
When she’s not writing, she’s reading, organizing something, or playing video games. She currently resides in New England with her zoo.
