Is it time?

I’m thinking about the book again.

You know, writing one.

It will have a lot of swearing in it, because there are lots of swear words bubbling out of me at the moment.

Do you think lots of swearing will put people off?

I’m thinking the book will be fiction. Well, along the lines of how the ABC explains its “factual drama” programming …

Factual drama is a powerful form of story-telling largely based on the lives of
real people and real events. The form, while primarily fiction, may contain real
archival elements, such as footage, photographs or sound recordings. While
the fictionalisation of reality creates the factual drama genre, fictionalisation
may also be required for the practicality of duration or legal reasons such as
the protection of children or victims of crime.

The extent of the fictionalisation in a factual drama can vary. Some programs
are based on a true story where all of the key characters portrayed are or were
real people (such as Curtin); while others combine real people with invented
elements to create fictionalised characters (such as Sisters of War). Some
dramas take key events of history where the accuracy of the facts and their
contextual presentation are central to the story. Others take a particular view
of a period of history, which may be contested to a greater or lesser extent.
Others may give one person’s version of a contested event where the facts
may be at issue.

In some factual drama, while the research is based on real stories further program
development has substantially fictionalised both characters and events to the point
where the real people on which the characters were based are unrecognisable. In
these instances, the veracity of the portrayal of events or people is not central to the
drama (such as Rake). This process may have occurred for dramatic reasons, or
to lessen the risk of complaints of unfair portrayal by real people or of legal action.

So, in a few weeks, once I get Easter and the festival of the birthdays out of the way – mine, the youngest’s, the ex’s – I’m going to knuckle down and see if I’ve got that freaking book in me.

The only way to find out is to start typing.

I have one mother of a drama to base it on.