poetic license (licence)
noun phrase

- license or liberty taken by a poet, prose writer, or other artist in deviating from rule, conventional form, logic, or fact, in order to produce a desired effect

Dictionary.com

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ORIGIN

Poetic derives from the Latin poeta, which means "poet" or "maker." License comes from the Latin licentia, which means "to be permitted."

Popular examples are film adaptations of novels. You may suddenly find your favourite novel on the big screen and feel frustrated by changes made to the original story line, including parts that are completely taken out. However, this is more commonly referred to as dramatic license rather than poetic license.

Art, such as cartoons, are examples of artistic license. The exaggerations of a person drawn in a cartoon are understood to provide its audience with a clearer understanding of just who that person really is, or what the artist is trying express about the person.

In these interesting times of fake news "poetic license" is taking on a whole new meaning.

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SYNONYMS

license, artistic license, artistic license, literary license, dramatic license, historical license, narrative licence, licentia poetica;  embellishment of the truth, exaggeration, fudge, fib, hedge, hyperbole, white lies, lies

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Find an opportunity to SMUGGLE OWAD into a conversation:

"I'm afraid that Boris uses more than simple POETIC LICENCE when talking about European Union affairs."