Writing It All Started in Gündelbach has posed a problem. Owing to privacy
and “identity-theft” concerns, modern records are often more difficult to find
and use than are centuries-old accounts, and they are certainly more sensitive.
That we can choose our friends but not our relatives posed no problem when I
wrote Henry the Immigrant about my
father’s early progenitors, who have been dead for centuries. But one treads a
perilous path when writing of protagonists with still living close relatives
and descendants, as in the Imle book. One slip—an ill-chosen phrase, acceptance
of a biased story, disclosure of a sensitive tale—and a plunge into acrimony or
a family imbroglio can ensue.
In some other books I have written, I
have omitted personal details (but not usually names) for still-living
individuals, excepting a very few whose fame or notoriety had already put
specifics before the public or who had allowed, perhaps requested, their
particulars to be included. But I suspect most Imle descendants want to be
included and would be hurt if they were relegated to a name only. On the other
hand, I certainly cannot contact everyone for permission to include personal data.
Right now, I am traversing a tightrope trying to answer the question “Who and
what should I include?”
Comments?
No comments:
Post a Comment