“We who make stories know that we tell lies for a living. But they are good lies that say true things, and we owe it to our readers to build them as best we can. Because somewhere out there is someone who needs that story. Someone who will grow up with a different landscape, who without that story will be a different person. And who with that story may have hope, or wisdom, or kindness, or comfort.
“And that is why we write.”
-Neil Gaiman, Newbery Medal acceptance speech for The Graveyard Book at the annual conference of the American Library Association in Chicago, July 12, 2009.
Chel Owens 
I might not agree totally with Neil Gaiman, that those who make stories tell lies for a living. I remember this teen kid coming to me and saying he felt really ugly. I told him the story of “The Ugly Duckling”. His response changed my life: “That’s true”. I’ve since felt that the real truths in a library are not limited to the non-fiction section!
LikeLiked by 1 person
And fiction can really just be how we view the world, or wish to express it.
LikeLiked by 1 person