A closer look

When pioneering the non-fiction novel, it helps to convince people you have superhuman abilities. While researching 'In Cold Blood,' Capote refused to use a tape recorder or notebook during conversations, claiming his brain had a 94 percent perfect photographic recall. Decades later, fact-checkers realized he had simply made up huge swaths of dialogue to make the narrative flow better. His 'perfect memory' was just a fancy excuse for aggressive creative liberty.