The phrase "actually a work of" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to clarify or emphasize the nature of a creation, such as art, literature, or any other form of work.
Example: "This painting is actually a work of modern art that challenges traditional perspectives."
Alternatives: "truly a creation of" or "genuinely a piece of".
Of course, some who visit Whitby on the Dracula trail have trouble accepting that Stoker's novel is actually a work of fiction.
Passerby, a bare-bones establishment, is only some benches and stools, with a disco floor that lights up in response to music -- actually a work of art by Piotr Uklanski.
The reader's post (under the heading "Heat Surge fireplace — what's up with that?") also pointed out that close reading of the ads reveals that the craftsmen make only the wood mantels; the heater itself is actually "a work of engineering genius from the China coast".
Chowdhury's own work is overlaid with the artist's interest in the making of his work and thus displays a degree of reflexive self-awareness: Vastness in Eclipse, for example, includes on one screen documentation of the artist and his editor making the video we're watching, while on another the apparent "real" action of an elderly farmer struck by a dizzy spell is actually a work of fiction.
Years later, while doing research for his book, O'Connor realized that this was actually a work of nonfiction and that Shayne had not only been the author of this short story but also of the actual crime it described.
What actually makes a work of art — a film, a novel, architecture, fashion — seem "dated"?
Whether "A Serious Man" is actually such a work of art, or just one in which the idea is expounded but not embodied, is another question.
The cause need not even be noble, since a hopeless situation and senseless violence can actually fortify a work of fiction.
The relatively sober, straightforward Stahl version of "Magnificent Obsession" actually represents a work of extensive and judicious pruning by the team of screenwriters (Sarah Y. Mason, Victor Heerman and George O'Neil) assigned to adapt the original novel.
But perhaps the most interesting advantage, one which we haven't seen explored in Britain much yet, is the fact that a staged book needn't actually be a work of fiction, or even a story.
The longer I think about this, the more I come to appreciate what Lincoln Center's architects actually achieved: a work of public art in which modern New Yorkers could experience themselves transformed into citizens of ancient Greece.
