Please welcome Colleen Oakley as our guest today!|

Colleen’s debut novel Before I Go was a People Best New Book Pick, an Us Weekly “Must” Pick, a Publisher’s Lunch Buzz Book, a Library Journal Big Fiction Debut, and an Indie Next List Pick. Formerly the senior editor of Marie Claire and editor-in-chief of Women’s Health & Fitness, Colleen’s articles, essays, and interviews have been featured in The New York Times, Ladies’ Home Journal, Marie Claire, Women’s Health, Redbook, Parade, and Martha Stewart Weddings. She lives in Atlanta with her husband, four kids, and the world’s biggest lapdog, Bailey. Close Enough to Touch is her second novel.

People often ask me which I like better—writing articles for magazines or writing fiction, and I often say the two go hand in hand. Though fiction I’m obviously making up, I rely heavily on the research and reporting skills I honed in journalism to help guide and craft my novels. I think that surprises readers sometimes, so I’m passionate about sharing my process and the idea that the best fiction always has at least a small basis in fact.

Connect with Colleen on Facebook and Twitter.

How To Make Your Readers Believe the Unbelievable (Or, The Importance of Facts in Fiction)

Read more: http://writerunboxed.com/2017/04/23/how-to-make-your-readers-believe-the-unbelievable-or-the-importance-of-facts-in-fiction/