I think the issue arises when a public persona is attached to the work, taking it from the realm of art to performance. I doubt most people would react the same

I think the issue arises when a public persona is attached to the work, taking it from the realm of art to performance. I doubt most people would react the same to a fictional autobiography from a reclusive author a la J.D. Salinger like they did to authors like James Frey who went on Oprah to promote A Million Little Pieces. From the first few paragraphs of the TFA it sounds like Beatrice Sparks likewise attached the fiction to herself publicly through her lectures and self help work or whatever. It's like designing a fake medical license in Photoshop and printing it out: it doesn't really matter to anyone unless you actually try to use it to treat people in the real world.