1300740018-lenin5_small
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Would a gonzo account of Afghanistan be recieved well as a piece of literature?

I've been working on a reflection of the Afghan war. Over what I've done, the stories I've heard, the experience of the deployment. I would love to compile the writings into a series of articles or a book. However, for the purpose of the writing I need to make it a semi-fictional account, mixing the truth with the little bits of realistic fiction (changing names, locations and leaving out certain classified details). I just don't know if it will be recieved well... I don't think gonzo is something the American public would like to read, yet, it is the only way I could get across the true experience to the people and the readers.

Free Busch asked in Writers & Publishing about 1 year ago | Report

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  • Sacri_ordines_by_charism_small
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    If the writing warrants it. However: It'd be received much better as a piece of journalism.

    Why not sell it in installments to a major news outlet/paper/magazine? That would pass the "I'd wanna read it THEN" test, for a lot of people.

    As a lesser ave, you could Blog it to provide 'true' Gonzo ala Thompson's ideal: instant, unedited, prankish reporting - ex: you could fictionalize the timeline and post the installments as if real-time, for example.

    Last resort: don't fictionalize a thing, include the classified stuff, and send it to wikileaks!

    True Gonzo is good, but damn hard to pull off if you're not Wolfe, Thompson, Plimpton, Bangs, et al (and/or arguably Robbins, Ellis, Mencken, Twain et al.)

    Good luck.

    Rev.Enant answered in Writers & Publishing about 1 year ago | Report
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  • Gogogophers_small
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    Well, it worked for Hunter Thompson (obviously). I don't think it's a matter of if the American public is ready for it. It's more a matter if you're a good reporter, with the ability to condense the whole picture, and if you've got the talent as a writer to pull it off. Not everyone does.

    LMNOP answered in Writers & Publishing about 1 year ago | Report
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