This thesis examines the porous boundary between fiction and autobiography through my short story collection Essays & Fictions, in which I play the role of an unreliable narrator. Although my work in painting and photography appears confessional and autobiographical, it has always been highly edited, constructed and performed; part of the intentional creation of a character or persona. In Essays & Fictions I explored this further by commingling fact and fiction without a disclaimer. Using the book as a case study I explore the tensions between author and narrator, between artistic control and reader projection, and between the appearance of authenticity and the instability of truth. Rather than seeking to resolve the discomfort of this tension, I argue for its creative potential, engaging with the themes of fraud, con-artistry, and fakery that have informed both my visual art and literary practices. In reference to Roland Barthes’ proposal in “The Death of The Author”—that a text is best served by being severed from its author—I examine the ways in which readers seem hard-wired to connect an author to their text, and demonstrate that his proposal is haphazardly applied, and contrary to human nature. I further explore how shame—particularly around addiction—functions as a powerful force in shaping autofiction, and how readers can find meaning and connection in sentiment, through sincerity that is both performed and genuine.