Sometimes you pick up books and immediately grasp the idea. I picked up this book and started reading because I couldn’t figure out what it was about. It takes a bit of explanation, but it’s worth it.
The Lifespan of a Fact begins with this note, copied from an internal memo at a magazine, concerning a story submitted for publication by John D’Agata. A story, it’s worth mentioning, that had already been rejected by one magazine because of concerns over factual inaccuracies.
From the Editor:
I’ve got a fun assignment for somebody. We just received a new piece from John D’Agata that needs to be fact-checked, thoroughly. Apparently he’s taken some liberties, which he’s admitted to, but I want to know to what extent. So whoever’s up for it will need to comb through this, marking anything and everything that you can confirm as true, as well as whatever you think is questionable. I’ll buy you a pack of red pens if necessary.
Thanks!
What seemed to be a fairly straightforward assignment became a seven year dialogue between author John D’Agata and fact-checker Jim Fingal. D’Agata’s story is picked apart line by line, each claim put on trial by Fingal with D’Agata defending his choices. The center of each page features the original story, and then around the margins the messages from D’Agata and Fingal are arranged in black text (to indicate confirmed statements) and red text (to indicate statements disputed by Fingal).
Some concerns have been raised over the last few years how publishers fact-check books; the James Frey (Million Little Pieces) and Greg Mortenson (Three Cups of Tea) scandals come to mind. The Lifespan of a Fact offers an inside look at this process, but I think it may do more than that as well. It’s not just a practical discussion between author and fact-checker over verifying sources; it seems to be almost a debate on the nature of nonfiction, a battle whose front line is the demarcation between fact and fiction.
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