Tell it Slant

A lesson from ‘The Crown’

The new series of The Crown is out on Netflix and, despite vowing to watch it sparingly this time, I ended up binge-watching it in a few days. No self-discipline! The story lines and acting are just too compelling. But they’ve been controversial this time too. Royal commentators have lined up to criticise the drama, including Ingrid Seward who called it 'pretty inaccurate', Dickie Arbiter who said 'some of the actions are fiction' and Sally Beddell Smith who said 'the level of invention has been growing'. Peter Morgan, the creator of the series, claims that although some scenes were fictitious, they were ‘based in truth.’

And that’s the point. Is it acceptable in an obvious work of fiction, albeit one based on real events, to deviate from faithful representation for the purposes of drama and emotional truth? Morgan would say yes. The American poet Emily Dickenson wrote, ‘Tell all the truth but tell it slant.’ What I think she meant is it’s okay to put a spin on things for dramatic effect. All writers condense time, contrive events and shape dialogue to suit the purposes of the text. We want our readers to have a satisfying experience and sometimes we have to take a few calculated liberties to achieve this.

My work in progress is set on Channel Island Jersey. It’s been difficult to research events when I can’t currently visit and I’m worried that the history-loving islanders will take offence if I get my facts wrong. I’m trying my best to be accurate but ultimately I am writing a work of fiction. And telling a good story has to be my absolute priority.