Is 'And They Were Roommates' Based On A True Story?

I randomly picked ‘A Country Christmas Story’ a few days ago to watch on a lazy December afternoon and immediately fell in love with it. Although ‘A Country Christmas Story’ is not based on a true story, you can easily imagine it was. Most of all, the very real characters will probably make you wonder who they are based on. There’s the awkward homecoming of the heroine and her ex-high school boyfriend. And how the whole town comes together for the annual Christmas play. It is true that the movie did an excellent job of portraying the lives of many people and bringing out the love and humor between them. It was a wonderful movie in the sense that it portrayed the true life of many people. It is an excellent example of a movie that stays with you long after it has ended. Even though it is not a true story it could have been and that is what makes it such a great film.

My perception of ‘based on a true story’ is that the writer makes a contract with the reader before they start reading the book. The reader expects to read a true story and the writer warns them that the book is mostly true but contains also lots of drama and speculative dialogues etc. This book is no biography and relies on the few established facts of Hedy’s life to create a novel around issues of identity, survival and hidden talent. That in itself is interesting enough, but the facts of her life as an inventor are quite astonishing. The novel is a successful work of fiction because it is so very memorable and very emotional.

I get this one mixed up with The Book Thief because of all the fire imagery. But Incendiary is a completely different book written by a novelist, Chris Cleave, in 2005. It’s not a non-fiction book by a journalist reporting facts. The book depicts a terrorist attack on a London football stadium and it felt SO REAL after the real life attacks on London in the summer of that year. The protagonist’s unfiltered, raw voice of rage, of sorrow, and of dark and twisted humor is so real and therefore could be considered as ‘testimony’ to the way people are affected by such an atrocity. However, Cleave created this protagonist’s voice as a literary device. His story, although based on the real anxieties of early 21st century, is a work of fiction. Cleave explores how public fear and the way the media report it can have a very devastating effect on individuals within the storyline.

A rather interesting debate this sparked at my book club – is ‘The Girl in Room 105’ fiction or nonfiction? Although the book doesn’t market itself as nonfiction, the way Bhagat has written the book feels so very real – casual for one, the way he has incorporated WhatsApp messages, the dry, skeptic tone of the protagonist. I think the author is making a very pertinent point – love gone wrong and a callous, apathetic world is so very easy to happen in real life. This book is one of those rare stories that plants a seed of doubt and leaves it to fend for itself. It’s not a story with a happy end but a real-life like scenario and that’s what sticks with you.

This question triggered a whole line of inquiry for me a while back. ‘Heidi’ by Johanna Spyri is not a biography of a real person, but a novel heavily influenced by the author’s own experiences of growing up in a rural village just outside of Zurich, and her love of the Swiss landscape. The fictional ‘Heidi’ is likely a combination of people and childhoods that Spyri knew and adored, and her portrayal of them is unflinchingly real. The core of the novel, the struggle between mountain life and city life, is also highly true to life, 19th century Switzerland. There’s no Heidi living with her grandfather in the mountains, but a great deal that is true about Heidi and her world in the novel, is based on reality. The story is a fictional one, but solidly based in fact.

I wrote this as Fiction. I would hate for it to be marketed as ‘based on a true story’ as I am sure it would be picked apart for all sorts of inaccuracies. This is a work of pure imagination and as such it can be whatever I want it to be. It can exist in a perfect little bubble where all the rules are of my making. Marcellus can be as clever and observant as I need him to be in order to drive the story forward. Coincidences can occur in the most unlikely of circumstances and we will believe them because we have entered into a contract with the author to provide us with a meaningful story to read. The fact that her characters live in a world that is so very close to our own must be a wonderful compliment to her writing ability and not a worrying indication that she is writing fact rather than fiction.

I wouldn't call this a true story. But it is a really true story. In the sense that there is a big difference between this being a true story and it being a historical account, and if this were a true story we’d be talking about whether or not the dates were correct and whether or not she wrote the letter on the correct date, as opposed to this being a work of fiction very heavily researched to try and get as accurate as possible an emotional and social history of that time. And I think that Rimmer does an amazing job of giving us Alina’s eyes to see her world. Those are fictional eyes but the world that she sees is not. It is an incredibly accurate portrayal of life under occupation. It is an incredibly accurate portrayal of life in the USSR. That is why this feels so true. It’s not true in the sense that Alina and Natashya are not real people.

Reading 'Marlena' by Julie Buntin was such a visceral experience—it felt so real that I couldn’t help but wonder if it was inspired by true events. The novel’s raw depiction of teenage friendship, addiction, and loss has this haunting authenticity, like the author poured fragments of her own life into it. Buntin has mentioned in interviews that while the story isn’t autobiographical, it’s deeply influenced by her observations and emotional truths. The way she captures the intensity of young friendships, especially the almost gravitational pull between Marlena and Cat, mirrors real-life dynamics I’ve witnessed or even lived through. It’s fiction, but the kind that resonates because it’s built on universal human experiences. That said, the setting—rural Michigan—and the bleak, snow-covered landscapes feel so vividly drawn that they almost become characters themselves. Buntin’s background growing up in Michigan likely seeped into the book’s atmosphere. While Marlena isn’t a real person, her tragic arc reflects the stories of so many girls who slip through the cracks, making it feel uncomfortably true. The book’s power lies in how it blurs the line between fiction and reality, leaving you with a lingering sense of 'this could’ve happened.'

When diving into the world of 'I Am Legend', it's fascinating to note that Richard Matheson's novel isn't based on a true story but offers a chilling reflection of real fears. Published in 1954, the tale explores themes of isolation and survival in a post-apocalyptic landscape where a virus has turned humanity into vampiric creatures. Matheson’s inspiration drew from societal fears of the era, particularly the specter of nuclear annihilation and its aftermath. It feels hauntingly relatable today, especially considering how global events can isolate individuals and reshape societies. What’s particularly intriguing is how Matheson captures the human psyche grappling with loneliness amid chaos. The protagonist, Robert Neville, represents humanity's resilience but also its vulnerabilities. For me, reading this novel opened a window to how fear can transform individuals—almost like mirroring the current global pandemic experience where isolation became a shared reality. It makes me wonder how many real-life legends we've yet to comprehend in our present world. In adaptations like the Will Smith movie, some elements were amplified while others were altered, providing fresh perspectives on fear and trust. It's not just another zombie flick; it’s a profound examination of what it means to be human in a world that has seemingly abandoned you. What’s your take on how artists interpret fears?

Someone on YouTube went on a huge tangential analysis regarding the supposedly 'real' meaning behind ABZÛ and linked it to some slightly obscure Russian folk tale. As far as I know the analysis was pretty accurate, even when talking about things in the game that I had completely missed. But interesting analysis nonetheless. That and the setting and the protagonist in the game are all pretty similar to that story of a woodcutter being haunted by the knocking spirit of the forest. So it may not be based on a ‘true story’ but it could be based on a ‘true myth’ – a story that a culture has believed to be true for generations. Collective fear and the stories born from it are some of the most powerful ‘true’ things to exist.