ABSTRACT
This chapter explains Lee Gutkind’s notion of the key ideas central to the practice of creative nonfiction to discuss the basic thought processes associated with this style of writing for qualitative inquiry. It provides an orientation to practical issues fundamental to crafting nonfiction narratives. The focus of any good narrative is its accurate rhetorical representation and rich evocation of what happened in a particular time and place. The use of personal experience to frame a larger question is a time-tested technique for writers of narratives. Think of choosing a frame for a story as scholars would think of a choosing a frame for a work of art. For artwork and for a narrative, not just any frame will do. Whether a narrative is pointless depends on the perspective of the reader, but perspectives are like opinions, and not all opinions are of equal value.
