What are documentary novels and realistic essays?

Documentary novel: a kind of modern novel, also known as documentary novel. It refers to a novel written by summarizing, refining and artistic fiction on the basis of collecting factual materials. This kind of novel is a branch of the development of realistic novels, and it is also influenced by the development of news and reportage. Documentary novels are often written according to newspaper articles, court records, archives and documents, and can also be written by collecting first-hand materials through surveys, interviews and other means. Most of his works have strong political inclination and moral consciousness. In China's contemporary literary world, documentary novels are also developed on the basis of reportage.