Metawritings: Toward a Theory of Nonfiction

Excerpts from Creative Nonfiction

excerpts from creat ive n onfict ion 139 LENA DUNHAM “The relationship to truth, especially in memoir, is a little, well, bendy. And that seemed like an apt comparison to what I aim to do when I write a screenplay, or just what I do naturally.” Excerpts from Creative Nonfiction creative nonfiction is a tale of a female undergraduate working on a screenplay in hopes of being admitted into a screenwriting program, while struggling with dating and friendship issues in her college dorm. The fictional elements, the italicized portions narrated by Ella’s explanatory voice-over (v.o.), are juxtaposed with the nonfictional elements of what is happening in her life. She struggles in her fiction, as her friends question her on elements of plot, setting, and plausibility. The excerpts appearing here highlight the fictional screenplay, Ella’s metawriting discussion with her professor,and real-life conversations that address the role that writing plays in her life. INT. CLASSROOM, DAY A GIRL sits at a desk in a classroom of girls in school uniforms.A MAN, the teacher,well dressed,about fifty,hands her back a poem with a large A written on it and a note that says, “See me after class.” ELLA (v.o.): Well, this girl in high school has taken up with her English teacher. He loves her poetry, which is how it starts . . . You know, that whole “see me after class” thing. RURAL ROAD, DAY THE GIRL and THE TEACHER drive in an old-fashioned convertible and pull into the driveway of a country cabin. ELLA (v.o.): And he takes her away to this cabin he has in the country . . . 140 lena dunham CHRIS (v.o.): To buck it? ELLA (v.o.): What does “buck it” mean? CHRIS (v.o.): Y’know . . . INT. COUNTRY CABIN, NIGHT THE GIRL sits at a table. She is tied to a chair with ropes, and she’s working at an old-fashioned typewriter. THE MAN, her teacher, leans over her, smiling at her work and pointing out mistakes. ELLA (v.o.): He keeps her there for three years. And he just makes her sit there at a typewriter and write. And you’d think she’d be miserable, obviously, but instead she’s under a spell of creative happiness. [ . . . ] INT. ELLA’S DORM ROOM, NIGHT ELLA, nineteen, played by the same actress as THE GIRL, sits on her bed wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt. Above the bed are a number of old photographs of family members. The room is lit by Christmas lights. CHRIS, about Ella’s age, sits in a chair, holding a mug. CHRIS: I can’t follow this, Ella. ELLA: It’s going to be different once it’s on the page,you know? I’ll tie up all the loose ends . . . And hopefully it’ll be funny, you know? CHRIS: Funny? ELLA: Well, I think the theft and abuse of minors is funny . . . Anyway . . . I’m sure you don’t want to hear about this. CHRIS: No. ELLA: Well, thank you for your honesty. CHRIS:I mean,I do want to hear about it,but I have to ask you something. ELLA: Yes, I’ll marry you. No, I don’t do anal . . . excerpts from creat ive n onfict ion 141 CHRIS: What? ELLA: I’m sorry.That wasn’t even funny. My brain is decaying. CHRIS: Well, my room is decaying. Seriously, there’s a strange mold growing in my room, and it’s giving me a headache. I was wondering if I could sleep on your floor. ELLA: What did you do? CHRIS: It’s not me, I swear! My room is right next to the bathroom, you know,and every time someone flushes,some water leaks through this hole in my wall. Plus the flushing, like, thunders in my ears. I just wanna be like, “Fuckers, don’t flush!” ELLA: That would be selfish of you . . . to make everyone stop flushing. CHRIS: I’m a selfish guy . . . Anyway, I brought you this mug of jug wine as an offering . . . ELLA: Well,it’s fine.In fact,I don’t even want your jug wine.I really don’t think that would help me right now. CHRIS: Okay . . . CHRIS gulps down the mug of wine. ELLA: You couldn’t sleep at Yvette’s? CHRIS: I don’t want to sleep at Yvette’s. ELLA: Because then you’d have...