Being a rationalist at heart (though not always behaving in a rational way) I strongly believe in the importance of facts, evidence, logic, causality, fair-testing, etc. When it comes to persuading people to think and feel in a particular way, or just draw their attention to some new way of looking at something, fiction wins over facts. It's the head v heart thing. All the facts in the world won't always make people shift their strongly held position, but a simple story that presents characters and life in a different way is very affective and effective.
When I wrote The Badgers of Beechen Cliff, I wasn't necessarily trying to change hearts and minds. It's the classic set-up of the too-powerful against the weak, Goliath encountering David. See for yourself. Let me know what you think or write a review.
How about fiction laced with a number of verifiable facts, set to present the story in such a way as to make it so close to being historical in nature that the reader needs to examine certain long-held assumptions or beliefs? I try to do this in my fiction. Fourth novel due out soon.
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