[2] Names and locations are often changed and events are recreated to make them more dramatic but the story still bears a close resemblance to that of the author's life.
To be considered an autobiographical novel by most standards, there must be a protagonist modeled after the author and a central plotline that mirrors events in their life.
The term was first widely used in reference to the non-autobiographical In Cold Blood [citation needed] by Truman Capote but has since become associated with a range of works drawing openly from autobiography.
The emphasis is on the creation of a work that is essentially true, often in the context of an investigation into values or some other aspect of reality.
The books Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig and The Tao of Muhammad Ali by Davis Miller open with statements admitting to some fictionalising of events but state they are true "in essence".