ABSTRACT
This chapter contends that fiction plays an important role as a tool for the communication of archaeology, but it is a role that comes with the responsibility of writing within the bounds of academic accuracy. Examination of the archaeological discourse reveals the ways in which archaeologists themselves can slip from fact to fiction even when writing a site report, while consideration of the past reveals the significance of storytellers as educators. The worlds of fact and fiction collide in the production of archaeological narrative whether it is aimed at our fellow archaeologists or the public. It is important to understand how we create texts in order to ensure that we really mean what we say. Archaeology is a human science, and fiction helps us add personality to the bones of the past.
