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Step 1
Preface statements with words like "allegedly"or "reportedly" if you can't confirm that they are actual facts. Libel applies to statements or claims that are factually untrue.
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Step 2
Re-check your sources. Even if you have a reliable source, which confirms that your statements are factual, it's still your responsibility to verify these facts yourself. If your source reported false facts, you could still be held accountable for referencing them even if you were unaware that they were false.
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Step 3
Separate fact from opinion. If you write about a company and refer to it as a "heartless, cash-grabbing conglomerate," be sure to clarify that this is your opinion of the company, rather than a fact.
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Step 4
Change the names of companies and people if you want to alter facts and take creative liberties. Take the best-selling novel by Lauren Weisberger, "The Devil Wears Prada," for example. While it's reportedly based on the author's experiences working for Vogue magazine's editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour, the name of the boss-from-hell in the novel is Miranda Priestly, editor of Runway magazine.
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Step 5
Label your nonfiction with care. Disgraced author, James Frey, came under a firestorm of controversy when it was revealed that his novel, "A Million Little Pieces" was not completely factual--even though it had been labeled a "memoir" by the author and publisher. In this case, a more accurate label or tag line for the story would be "based on actual events."
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Step 6
Research defamation laws as they pertain to your country of residence, as they vary internationally.
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Step 7
Consult with a lawyer. When in doubt, a lawyer can answer any questions you might have about your work of nonfiction, and whether it leaves you vulnerable to a libel lawsuit.
