Fictionalizing Truth event brings acclaimed Ohio authors to Market Garden Brewery

Robin Yocum, Shelley Costa, and Casey Daniels discussing the craft of writing at Market Garden Brewery (left to right)

On Thursday 10/26, Ohio fiction authors Robin Yocum, Shelley Costa, and Casey Daniels gathered at Market Garden Brewery to discuss how they transform the real events of their lives into fiction. Each author read a passage of recent work - Yocum from A Brilliant Death, Costa from A Killer's Guide to Good Works, and Daniels from Smoke and Mirrors, set to be published in November - before taking questions from the audience. 

Interestingly, each author replied differently to the question of how their life experience informs their fiction. Offering stories of the small Ohio town he grew up in, Yocum explained that he imbues a bit of himself into each of his protagonists. Costa similarly spoke of fiction as "the art we make of truth", a kind of creative memoir (she then joked that she hates memoirs). Daniels instead described fiction as a form of "time travel", explaining her personal life rarely makes it into her books. When asked why they enjoy writing about Ohio, each author alluded to the state's rich, gritty, and ethnically diverse history. 

Like all Read Ohio events, Fictionalizing Truth was presented in partnership with Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library and supported by the Gund Foundation.