Pebblepup's Writing Den

Should you use current events in your fiction? That’s a good question. I suppose it depends on what current events you choose.

On one hand, you would get a great sense of realism when reading the story. On the other, it can date the work. It boils down to personal preference.

My recommendation would be to use such things in as sparing way as you can. I would suggest that you make a list of pros and cons for it. If it’s essential to the story, include it. If it isn’t, you can still include it, but do it in small doses. Don’t let it overpower the plot.

If you aren’t writing a treatise on the event, it’s best to push it into the background if you must include it at all.

Take the COVID 19 pandemic. I have never included references to it in my fiction of the time. Not ones I intended to publish. My reasoning there was less that I didn’t want to date my story, as much as I was writing escapism. Including a pandemic is not much of an escape. That’s another thing to consider.

What are you writing? If it’s escapism, leave out the major problems going on around you. Sometimes that is the best way to decide if you should include something in your story. If you plan to write a heartwarming story against the backdrop of a pandemic, then include it. If not, leave it out.

That said, you can reference it through a newscast or having a character put on a mask before leaving home. I prefer a newscast that sets your story in a real time, without shoving the event in your readers’ faces.

Again, it’s down to personal preference. If you feel you should include something like the pandemic or the war in Ukraine, then do so. If you are unsure, write a scene with the event and without it. Then choose the one that imparts what you want your readers to take away from it.

It isn’t my intention to tell you what to write. This topic is only meant to help you if you’re struggling with it. I prefer escapism so that’s what I write. If you are write historical fiction, then you must at least refer to any major events that are happening. This would things such as the US Civil War in Margret Mitchell’s Gone With The Wind.

Major events that happen in the world can help you set up a story’s place in history. But, don’t let them overwhelm the story. Take a slice and incorporate it only if it impacts your characters in any way.

As always, what you include or don’t include in your fiction is up to you. Write what you feel is pertinent to the story and leave the rest in the past.

I hope I’ve helped you. Good luck and keep writing.