For years, I have been asked to write a memoir by those who are aware of events from my youth. I have resisted the idea, at first because I wasn't sure how. Since then, I have had four books published, five journal articles, and am likely within months of receiving my PhD from one of the more prestigious UK universities. I am no longer worried about my ability to write it but do have another qualm. Some of the people I would write about have done things that are indictable crimes, though well outside any statute of limitations. Most of these are easy enough to deal with by giving the persons in question pseudonyms. Family members cannot be handled the same way. The reason is that if I write under my own name, it would be easy enough for a motivated reader to learn the names of my relatives. Because some of them have done things that would likely be frowned upon, it could be problematic.
Two days ago, my sister suggested for the first time that I write a book about our youth. I patiently explained that there are at least two critical events involving her that she would likely not want to see published. She wanted to know what I meant, so I described them to her. At first she denied them, but after checking with our mother, said that my version of events had been corroborated, but that she didn't want me to write about it because it would "destroy" her. Initially, I didn't want to write the book at all, but for some reason this interchange made the subject interesting. Moreover, the events in question are of general interest and I did personally witness them. For that reason, I resist the idea that another person can have veto power, particularly when the person in question seeks to conceal two attempted murders committed as a child. In the first, I was the intended victim, but luckily the police arrived in time and rescued me. In the second, our mother was the intended victim, but I managed to fight off my sister as she strangled our mother. When our mother went to call the police however, she found she could not speak due to wounds on her throat. She had to find someone else to make the call.
Now I want to write the book but prefer not to arouse the ire of any relatives, or other persons who also wouldn't appreciate seeing their actions from long ago see the light of day. One of these, for instance, was a child molester. Another is now a professor emeritus at a large university, but when I knew him was something of a sadist. Non-relatives can receive pseudonyms, though the professor is so well-known in some circles that it is possible he would be recognizable from my description of events he participated in. The only way to do this that I can think of is to use a pseudonym for myself and every other person in the book.
It seems to me that a pseudonymous memoir would be much less interesting due to the fact that the details cannot be independently checked by readers. The publisher could be given real names for fact-checking, but that might not be very interesting to them. Is my concern a fair one? Or would the use of a pseudonym on a book like this be a non-issue for an agent and publisher?
Two days ago, my sister suggested for the first time that I write a book about our youth. I patiently explained that there are at least two critical events involving her that she would likely not want to see published. She wanted to know what I meant, so I described them to her. At first she denied them, but after checking with our mother, said that my version of events had been corroborated, but that she didn't want me to write about it because it would "destroy" her. Initially, I didn't want to write the book at all, but for some reason this interchange made the subject interesting. Moreover, the events in question are of general interest and I did personally witness them. For that reason, I resist the idea that another person can have veto power, particularly when the person in question seeks to conceal two attempted murders committed as a child. In the first, I was the intended victim, but luckily the police arrived in time and rescued me. In the second, our mother was the intended victim, but I managed to fight off my sister as she strangled our mother. When our mother went to call the police however, she found she could not speak due to wounds on her throat. She had to find someone else to make the call.
Now I want to write the book but prefer not to arouse the ire of any relatives, or other persons who also wouldn't appreciate seeing their actions from long ago see the light of day. One of these, for instance, was a child molester. Another is now a professor emeritus at a large university, but when I knew him was something of a sadist. Non-relatives can receive pseudonyms, though the professor is so well-known in some circles that it is possible he would be recognizable from my description of events he participated in. The only way to do this that I can think of is to use a pseudonym for myself and every other person in the book.
It seems to me that a pseudonymous memoir would be much less interesting due to the fact that the details cannot be independently checked by readers. The publisher could be given real names for fact-checking, but that might not be very interesting to them. Is my concern a fair one? Or would the use of a pseudonym on a book like this be a non-issue for an agent and publisher?
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