# Star Wars Style Prologue?



## Androxine Vortex (Nov 4, 2012)

I was thinking about my Aeon of Darkness series and realized that there is quite a bit of background info the reader needs to know. I do know that a lot of people frown upon prologues and I was thinking of having a sort of "narrative introduction" as i call it; something you might see in a movie. Sort of setting the stage, if you will.

I'm not infodumping here, but there's just some very crucial info that needs to be established. I did try messing around with the first chapter but anytime I tried informing the reader it just felt sort of "shoved in" and didn't flow quite right. It felt like I was making progress with the plot but had to keep pulling the reader aside to explain something. So I was thinking of using a sort of narrative prologue and I would center the text so it wouldn't read as a normal prologue. It kind of reminds me of the Star Wars intros. Think about first time you watched Episode IV. It gave you some very important information and then allowed you to leap right into the plot without having to slowly progress through it by having to explain all of that said info. It would probably only be a page or two long. What do you think?


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## BeigePalladin (Nov 4, 2012)

it's worked well is several works, so I can't see why it wouldn't work here 

I'd say go for it.


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## soulless (Nov 4, 2012)

I wouldn't have a problem with that, sounds like a nice easy way to get the important bits in before you start, though I would suggest keeping it brief as it could put off many people it there's too much.


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## wordwalker (Nov 4, 2012)

soulless said:


> I wouldn't have a problem with that, sounds like a nice easy way to get the important bits in before you start, though I would suggest keeping it brief as it could put off many people it there's too much.



Agreed. Of course Star Wars was different because movie pacing always is, but trimming it to less than a page (just reassuring the reader it's in one eyeful) would be a big help.

You could also select bare-bones facts that emphasize the world's juiciest conflicts (wow that's a mixed metaphor! ), and make the paragraphs not-too-long and structured around the contrasts between them, such as ending or starting one with "the last thing anyone expected was..."

This is a bit perfectionist, about how tough some readers could be about infodumps-- but if you can't be perfectionist about your first page, when should you be?


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## Sheriff Woody (Nov 4, 2012)

I think it could work as long as it comes across as something more than an info-dump. It's all in the style and how it melds with the way the story is told. 

Fellowship of the Ring has an 18-page prologue that pretty much just explains what hobbits are, but the storytelling feel melded well with the way the actual story was told, so it worked. It felt integral, like more than a simple crash-course in Middle-earth.


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## Steerpike (Nov 4, 2012)

If you kept it under a page I'd probably read it. More than that, and I'd skip it. A few authors have advised that you never put crucial information in the prologue simply because many readers skip them. If you can't figure out how to work the info into the story, it may not be as important to the reader as you think.

Keep in mind that the Star Wars prologue is quite short, had the visual advantage of scrolling up the screen, and was accompanied by the iconic musical score that opened the movies. In other words, it's far more engaging than the very same words would have been at the beginning of a novel.


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## Sparkie (Nov 4, 2012)

I'm not high on prologues in general, but this idea appeals to me.  I agree with Steerpike on keeping it under a page in length.

One book, I think, that gets the whole idea of a prologue right is _Elantris_ by Brandon Sanderson.  It's more of an introduction than a true part of the story.


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## Sheriff Woody (Nov 4, 2012)

Steerpike said:


> If you kept it under a page I'd probably read it. More than that, and I'd skip it. A few authors have advised that you never put crucial information in the prologue simply because many readers skip them. If you can't figure out how to work the info into the story, it may not be as important to the reader as you think.
> 
> Keep in mind that the Star Wars prologue is quite short, had the visual advantage of scrolling up the screen, and was accompanied by the iconic musical score that opened the movies. In other words, it's far more engaging than the very same words would have been at the beginning of a novel.



Strange...my biggest issue with prologues is that they often _don't_ contain crucial information, which makes them unnecessary, especially in many already-long-enough fantasy novels. 

A prologue should serve a purpose and not exist merely because other novels do the same thing. It should serve to set-up the world and the scope and the importance of what's to come. That's what Star Wars did so brilliantly. Imagine the film without that crawl. It would begin just as any other sci-fi space adventure, but when we're told about the turmoil in the galaxy and the Empire and the Rebellion and the sheer amount of conflict this story promises, it helps set the stage in a very brief amount of time and tell us that this is more than just another space adventure.

The Fellowship of the Ring film had a very crucial prologue before going into the Shire with the hobbits. Without setting the stage, we wouldn't understand the conflict in the way it was meant to be understood. The book did it differently because different mediums have different requirements, but even the prologue in the book was essential in explaining what we needed to know about hobbits, which is critical for the reader to comprehend the story in the way it was meant to be.

In short, I believe prologues of any sort should provide the reader with a necessary understanding of what they are about to get into. If the prologue doesn't do this, it shouldn't be in the book. It's filler, at that point.


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## Mindfire (Nov 4, 2012)

Sheriff Woody said:


> Strange...my biggest issue with prologues is that they often _don't_ contain crucial information, which makes them unnecessary, especially in many already-long-enough fantasy novels.
> 
> A prologue should serve a purpose and not exist merely because other novels do the same thing. It should serve to set-up the world and the scope and the importance of what's to come. That's what Star Wars did so brilliantly. Imagine the film without that crawl. It would begin just as any other sci-fi space adventure, but when we're told about the turmoil in the galaxy and the Empire and the Rebellion and the sheer amount of conflict this story promises, it helps set the stage in a very brief amount of time and tell us that this is more than just another space adventure.
> 
> The Fellowship of the Ring film had a very crucial prologue before going into the Shire with the hobbits. Without setting the stage, we wouldn't understand the conflict in the way it was meant to be understood. The book did it differently because different mediums have different requirements, but even the prologue in the book was essential in explaining what we needed to know about hobbits, which is critical for the reader to comprehend the story in the way it was meant to be.



I skipped the Lord of the Rings prologue. Understood the story just fine. It's not that important and prologues rarely are. I'm with Steerpike. Resist the urge to indulge yourself. Put it in the actual story or leave it out altogether. Most people won't read your prologue anyway.


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## Steerpike (Nov 4, 2012)

Sheriff Woody said:


> In short, I believe prologues of any sort should provide the reader with a necessary understanding of what they are about to get into. If the prologue doesn't do this, it shouldn't be in the book. It's filler, at that point.



Yes, this is why I generally feel that books shouldn't have a prologue. Readers skip them (I do, or put them back on the shelf and buy something else in some cases), so if they have important info in there the reader will miss it. If it doesn't have important info, then you don't need it. QED.


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## Feo Takahari (Nov 4, 2012)

Include whatever your story needs, in whatever form it needs.

To stray into personal anecdote, my current story is about people who're completely oblivious to the world beyond their personal lives. This creates the feeling that their world is only half-made, so I'm counterbalancing with scenes from the POV of a more aware character. The first of these is at the beginning, and sets up the action of the story. In other words, it's a prologue, without which the rest of the story wouldn't function.

(On a side note, have me and Steerpike ever agreed on _anything_? I'm afraid of coming off as a contrarian, but it seems like our viewpoints are just that different.)


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## Steerpike (Nov 4, 2012)

There's no such thing as 'need,' when it comes to prologues, however. It's a matter of preference. If an author wants to use one, she should, but there's nothing wrong with being aware of the fact that a lot of readers skip them. If it's that important, write the same thing and call it Chapter 1 and the problem is solved 

As for disagreement - if everyone agreed with everyone else all the time there wouldn't be any point in discussing this stuff


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## SlimShady (Nov 4, 2012)

Keep it at about a page and it would work.  It's a cool way to get the read to know what they need to know to understand the story.


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## Sheriff Woody (Nov 4, 2012)

Why would you not read a prologue?


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## Mindfire (Nov 5, 2012)

Sheriff Woody said:


> Why would you not read a prologue?



In my younger days I didn't read prologues because I got them mixed up with the introduction or the foreword. Consequently I thought it was just more of the author or some commentator blathering on and not actually part of the story, so I skipped it. Later on, I found out that, unlike the introduction and the foreword, the prologue (sometimes) did have something meaningful to contribute to the story. But I still often skip them because they are rarely necessary. It's like the bonus features on a DVD. Potentially interesting, but the movie is what I'm after. An imperfect metaphor, but it makes the point.

Sometimes I do read prologues now, usually when I'm testing the waters with a new author. Prologues are even better for this than first chapters in a sense because they're shorter, so you can get a small complete piece and see if you like the author's style.


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## Steerpike (Nov 5, 2012)

Sheriff Woody said:


> Why would you not read a prologue?



Because they often suck in one way or another. The author herself _knows_ the story starts elsewhere, which is why there is also a Chapter 1, but she's subjecting me to prologue anyway.


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## Sheriff Woody (Nov 5, 2012)

Steerpike said:


> Because they often suck in one way or another. The author herself _knows_ the story starts elsewhere, which is why there is also a Chapter 1, but she's subjecting me to prologue anyway.



Maybe I'm just weird, but if it's a part of the story, I have to read it. I never skip anything in a book. I read every single word of every story, including the prologues. It's not possible for me to leave anything unread. It was all written to be read. 

Granted, not every prologue is worthwhile, but I don't like letting the bad ones get in the way of the ones that do work and are essential to their respective stories.



Sparkie said:


> One book, I think, that gets the whole idea of a prologue right is _Elantris_ by Brandon Sanderson. It's more of an introduction than a true part of the story.



I agree. It's short, sweet, provides valuable information, and gets me pumped to read the story - everything a prologue should do.


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## thedarknessrising (Nov 5, 2012)

I find this to be a very amusing idea. Do it! I like having the background upfront, it makes the story easier to comprehend. As for the Star wars style, oh heck YES!

BUT: If you plan on a prequel trilogy, don't make a Jar-Jar Binks related character.


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## Steerpike (Nov 5, 2012)

Sheriff Woody said:


> Maybe I'm just weird, but if it's a part of the story, I have to read it. I never skip anything in a book. I read every single word of every story, including the prologues. It's not possible for me to leave anything unread. It was all written to be read.
> 
> Granted, not every prologue is worthwhile, but I don't like letting the bad ones get in the way of the ones that do work and are essential to their respective stories.



I used to do that. Now I don't have an issue skipping a prologue, or even some text within the book that I don't like. I still prefer not to do it, however, which is why if I'm trying to decide between two books in the bookstore and one has a prologue and the other does not, I'll buy the latter


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## Anders Ã„mting (Nov 5, 2012)

Androxine Vortex said:


> I was thinking about my Aeon of Darkness series and realized that there is quite a bit of background info the reader needs to know. I do know that a lot of people frown upon prologues and I was thinking of having a sort of "narrative introduction" as i call it; something you might see in a movie. Sort of setting the stage, if you will.
> 
> I'm not infodumping here, but there's just some very crucial info that needs to be established. I did try messing around with the first chapter but anytime I tried informing the reader it just felt sort of "shoved in" and didn't flow quite right. It felt like I was making progress with the plot but had to keep pulling the reader aside to explain something. So I was thinking of using a sort of narrative prologue and I would center the text so it wouldn't read as a normal prologue. It kind of reminds me of the Star Wars intros. Think about first time you watched Episode IV. It gave you some very important information and then allowed you to leap right into the plot without having to slowly progress through it by having to explain all of that said info. It would probably only be a page or two long. What do you think?



Well, you are basically talking about spelling out the entire backstory before the actual plot begins. That's doable but I think it needs to be carefully worded so that the exposition doesn't come off as _too _blatant. Even in Star Wars, it mostly works as a stylistic approach - the whole thing is designed to resemble an old-school matinÃ©e serial. 

If I where to do this, I think I would word it like a narrator telling a story. Kinda like: "This is what happened, and that's the reason everything turned out this way." I've seen this done several times and it usually works okay.


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## Christopher Wright (Nov 5, 2012)

How are you going to get the text to do that disappearing scrolling thing? I think that's your biggest hurdle. ;-)


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## Androxine Vortex (Nov 5, 2012)

Think about the first time you watched the Fellowship of the Ring. Remember that two minute opening that sort of explained some very crucial information? That was basically a huge infodump (though it's not as bad since it is cinema) but I thought that it was very effective. I felt totally immersed in the LOTR world. 

It is a shame that most people skip prologues. But I don't blame them most of the time. Most prologues are useless and hardly have any (significant) relevance. But imagine that I set up the first page as that same kind of intro that the Fellowship had. Do you think that would work?

P.S. Steerpike you changed your avatar! I already miss that hypnotic cat!


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## Drasn (Nov 6, 2012)

I generally try to read prologues as long they're there for more than just infodumping. (ie. Showing off a characters abilities in some situation that's not part of the story, showing an incident that led to the story without being part of the story itself.) Once I realize that I'm reading an infodump I usually skip the rest and go to chapter one.

I have a quote written out on a sticky note that I use through my entire writing process, whether it be outlining, drafting, or revising.

"Never explain anything to your readers before they care about it."

It really does help me to keep the story moving. What is the point of putting in this beautiful back story that I created if all it does is pull the reader away from the actual story. For me, this includes prologues because it is your first chance as an author to capture the reader.

I guess what I'm saying is if you create a situation where the reader actually cares about the back story and needs to know more about it, then you give them what they crave.


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## wordwalker (Nov 6, 2012)

Drasn said:


> I have a quote written out on a sticky note that I use through my entire writing process, whether it be outlining, drafting, or revising.
> 
> "Never explain anything to your readers before they care about it."



That's a *magnificent* rule, really keeps us in thinking of how facts have to be carried by appealing story, not the other way around.

Although, you could still have background that's worth putting in a prolog, if there's a key fact or two (no more) that are vital enough to put first but don't have to be kept with their related points and fleshed out in a mini-scene. With just a couple of facts you can relate them quickly in ways that, in their brisk style, do make the reader care. "They never expected an invasion" still works.

But you are so right, it's the emotion that matters, and (one way or another) it needs to be where the reader comes into the story. It's after that door is open that we can start exploring what could have got things to that point, as well as what might happen next.


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## JCFarnham (Nov 6, 2012)

There is no point in missing a single page of prose in a book. I much prefer to be disappointed in the order intended.

If I'm drawn to a book, and it has a prologue, I'll go with it. And so I think should all off you. You're doing the author a disservice just because sometimes prologues have been dodgy. Does that mean theirs will be. No. It could be terrible even, but I still think you should read it. 

I wouldn't skip any other part of a book, so why should you skip it just because its at the beginning?


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## Mindfire (Nov 6, 2012)

I assume you read the introduction, acknowledgments, foreword, afterword, about the author, and publishing credits also?


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## MadMadys (Nov 6, 2012)

I think it helps to sort of disguise the "infodump" in some sort of way that makes it seem less "dumpy".  For instance, I had a prologue for one of my side projects that was basically needed given the setting (scifi-ish) but I hated that it was just sort of there.  So I tried a few different framing tools before actually realizing I could weave it into the story in a way.  Making it an added part of the mystery that really takes off later on.

Now in general, I don't really mind prologues that just give information that is required but hard to work into the story either because there is too much of it or the story moves too fast to be bogged down with such things.  You just have to remember that there are people that do not like that so you have to sort of trick them into reading it.


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## Steerpike (Nov 6, 2012)

JCFarnham said:


> I wouldn't skip any other part of a book, so why should you skip it just because its at the beginning?



Like I said, even the author doesn't really believe it is the start of the story, or she wouldn't call it a prologue. Start at the beginning


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## Feo Takahari (Nov 6, 2012)

This is going to turn into the fanfiction thread all over again, isn't it? People who don't read something because they think it's pointless, and haven't seen it done with a purpose because they don't read it . . . I just don't see how this can become productive when the lines have been drawn and one side has no intention of moving.


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## soulless (Nov 7, 2012)

Steerpike said:


> Like I said, even the author doesn't really believe it is the start of the story, or she wouldn't call it a prologue. Start at the beginning



The prologue is at the beginning.  I think of it as like the part of a TV show before the opening titles that sets up the episode, would you skip that?


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## soulless (Nov 7, 2012)

Mindfire said:


> I assume you read the introduction, acknowledgments, foreword, afterword, about the author, and publishing credits also?



I often do read the introduction, acknowledgements, foreword and afterword if present, though they are not part of the in story writing like the prologue or epilogue are.  I will sometimes also read the about the author section depending on the author.


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## PaulineMRoss (Nov 7, 2012)

I hate prologues with a passion. There are very few good reasons for one. The worst type are just an excuse to get some dramatic action upfront before settling into the much slower pace of Chapter 1 ("He was seven years old before he realised he was special....." zzzzz). It took me four attempts to read 'Game of Thrones' because I just couldn't get past the stupid prologue. Once I got to the execution in the snow and the direwolves, I was hooked. So now when I'm deciding whether to buy a book, I skip past the prologue and read Chapter 1, which is much more representative (but I do read it later, when I actually read the book).

There are some good reasons for them. The prologue in Daniel Abraham's 'Long Price Quartet' is the very foundation of the book, in terms of setting, characters and the whole later tragedy, and the story would be far less meaningful without it. The Elantris one, as someone said upthread, is excellent (and mercifully brief). Possibly it's excellent *because* it's brief.

To the OP, if there's some information you absolutely have to get out upfront and it doesn't fit in Chapter 1, then by all means put it in a prologue, but keep it as short as possible, because *some* of us do read every word and I personally get very cross if the prologue is just an irrelevant opportunity for the protagonist to kick some ass.


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## Mindfire (Nov 7, 2012)

PaulineMRoss said:


> I hate prologues with a passion. There are very few good reasons for one. The worst type are just an excuse to get some dramatic action upfront before settling into the much slower pace of Chapter 1 ("He was seven years old before he realised he was special....." zzzzz). It took me four attempts to read 'Game of Thrones' because I just couldn't get past the stupid prologue. Once I got to the execution in the snow and the direwolves, I was hooked. So now when I'm deciding whether to buy a book, I skip past the prologue and read Chapter 1, which is much more representative (but I do read it later, when I actually read the book).
> 
> There are some good reasons for them. The prologue in Daniel Abraham's 'Long Price Quartet' is the very foundation of the book, in terms of setting, characters and the whole later tragedy, and the story would be far less meaningful without it. The Elantris one, as someone said upthread, is excellent (and mercifully brief). Possibly it's excellent *because* it's brief.
> 
> To the OP, if there's some information you absolutely have to get out upfront and it doesn't fit in Chapter 1, then by all means put it in a prologue, but keep it as short as possible, because *some* of us do read every word and I personally get very cross if the prologue is just an irrelevant opportunity for the protagonist to kick some ass.



Actually, the action-filled prologues are the only kind I really like. The alternative is a boring infodump.


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## Steerpike (Nov 7, 2012)

soulless said:


> The prologue is at the beginning.  I think of it as like the part of a TV show before the opening titles that sets up the episode, would you skip that?



No, I don't think it is like that at all. Think about the word "prologue."


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## PaulineMRoss (Nov 7, 2012)

Mindfire said:


> Actually, the action-filled prologues are the only kind I really like. The alternative is a boring infodump.



Really? OK... but I see it as something of a cheat. The author's pulling something out of the middle of the story, or even the backstory, solely to start things off with a bang. The most charitable explanation is that it's a tease - the author's saying, in effect, yes, yes, I know the story starts off slow, but stick with it and look what sort of mega-action you'll be enjoying. Well, I'm a grown-up, I know that most stories start off slow. I'm quite happy to allow the pace to build, so that when the sh*t hits the proverbial, I actually care whether the characters survive or not.

But boring infodump - isn't that a tautology??


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## Mindfire (Nov 7, 2012)

PaulineMRoss said:


> Really? OK... but I see it as something of a cheat. The author's pulling something out of the middle of the story, or even the backstory, solely to start things off with a bang. The most charitable explanation is that it's a tease - the author's saying, in effect, yes, yes, I know the story starts off slow, but stick with it and look what sort of mega-action you'll be enjoying. Well, I'm a grown-up, I know that most stories start off slow. I'm quite happy to allow the pace to build, so that when the sh*t hits the proverbial, I actually care whether the characters survive or not.
> 
> But boring infodump - isn't that a tautology??



Well it makes sense. You WANT to start the book with something interesting for the same reason that video games advertise the mid-game, the most exciting part, and not the early game when you start off as a scrub. Action packed prologues make it easier to judge whether I'll enjoy the story later on. The very reason you hate it is the reason I like it. Starting with a bang is a plus for me. 

And being a grown-up is overrated.


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## Ireth (Nov 7, 2012)

PaulineMRoss said:


> But boring infodump - isn't that a tautology??



Not necessarily. Infodumps don't have to be boring. Take for example the Council of Elrond chapter in the LOTR book -- there's no denying that that's an infodump of epic proportions, but it was interesting (to me, at least) and relevant. We found out what happened to Gandalf when Saruman betrayed him, some of the history of Sauron and the earlier Ages of Middle-earth, why the Ring is so important, and how it being found has affected countries as far as Gondor.


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## PaulineMRoss (Nov 7, 2012)

Mindfire said:


> And being a grown-up is overrated.



The perfect riposte. I concede defeat.


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## Twook00 (Nov 7, 2012)

There was a time when I skipped EVERY prologue.  I considered them optional, almost like an anecdote or a bonus chapter...  Then I read Game of Thrones and regretted skipping it because seeing 'the Others' that soon would have been a huge hook for me.  Instead, I spent the first 200 pages wondering... what is the freaking point of all this?  

Then I finished it (after putting it down a few times) and read the prologue.  It changed everything about the series, because it revealed the big picture and gave me something to look forward to.  

Wheel of Time did this as well, using the prologue to give insight to the big picture, which we wouldn't be seeing for some time.  

In Black Sun Rising, the prologue was used exceptionally well and actually added a big twist to the story.  The scene itself set the mood for the book and definitely kept me reading through some of the muck in the beginning. 

I think the best prologues raise questions while giving you an idea of what the real story is about.


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## Mindfire (Nov 7, 2012)

Twook00 said:


> There was a time when I skipped EVERY prologue.  I considered them optional, almost like an anecdote or a bonus chapter...  Then I read Game of Thrones and regretted skipping it because seeing 'the Others' that soon would have been a huge hook for me.  Instead, I spent the first 200 pages wondering... what is the freaking point of all this?
> 
> Then I finished it (after putting it down a few times) and read the prologue.  It changed everything about the series, because it revealed the big picture and gave me something to look forward to.
> 
> ...



If Game of Thrones had managed to inject the same awesomness I got in the prologue into the actual book, I might have finished it instead of reading part of chapter 1 and abandoning it forever after I heard about how it ends.


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## Helen (Nov 10, 2012)

BeigePalladin said:


> it's worked well is several works, so I can't see why it wouldn't work here
> 
> I'd say go for it.



D'accord.

I agree.


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## Benjamin Clayborne (Nov 11, 2012)

Steerpike said:


> If you kept it under a page I'd probably read it. More than that, and I'd skip it. A few authors have advised that you never put crucial information in the prologue simply because many readers skip them. If you can't figure out how to work the info into the story, it may not be as important to the reader as you think.
> 
> Keep in mind that the Star Wars prologue is quite short, had the visual advantage of scrolling up the screen, and was accompanied by the iconic musical score that opened the movies. In other words, it's far more engaging than the very same words would have been at the beginning of a novel.



Plus, you couldn't really skip it, since you were sitting in a movie theater with a few hundred other people  Well, once you're watching it on home video of some sort, I suppose...


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## JCFarnham (Nov 14, 2012)

Twook00 said:


> There was a time when I skipped EVERY prologue.  I considered them optional, almost like an anecdote or a bonus chapter...  Then I read Game of Thrones and regretted skipping it because seeing 'the Others' that soon would have been a huge hook for me.  Instead, I spent the first 200 pages wondering... what is the freaking point of all this?
> 
> Then I finished it (after putting it down a few times) and read the prologue.  It changed everything about the series, because it revealed the big picture and gave me something to look forward to.



You are someone who gets that prologue. That makes me very happy . Take the Starks talk of "winter coming" throughout that first book. Skipping the prologue, you get a nice mention of something weird that happens in their seasons and a lovely allusion to the future of the main conflict. All good. Nothing wrong with that. Throw in the prologue and suddenly "winter" becomes more sinister, it becomes synonymous with the Others almost. To me it was a game changing prologue (as they ALL should be). It was also well executed prose. I like the series more knowing that there is something else out there, and in fact its not all about petty squabbling over a throne.

Anyway, prologues really are something you will never change peoples minds on. I've said in previous prologue threads that I'm incredibly dubious of the act of separating them from the book. I've even asserted I would rather call them all chapter one in my own writing or leave them untitled to get people to read the damn thing. And still you see me defending them in this thread... What the?!

Well my point is simple. The author chose to present it as they did and we have no right to edit it post-publishing. Even if I hate them more often than not like every one else, if I've picked up and more importantly paid for a book, I will give myself fully to that author.

Have a little trust that they know what they're up to.

I'm not saying I won't still put the book down if it fails me, I get disinterested like most.

If you're reading their fiction you have to have faith and trust them until they prove otherwise. That's my first rule of reading. Once again: that includes reading extraneous stuff they (and let's not forget the editors and agents) thought important enough to include.

I think we're past cute tricks like "would you read the contents?" don't you?


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## Steerpike (Nov 14, 2012)

No right, JC? If I buy a copy of a book I have the right to burn it in my fireplace or line a bird cage with it. No right to skip a prologue?


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## wordwalker (Nov 14, 2012)

Rights?

Well, let's just say it takes more confidence in yourself to say "I'm going to give this author a shot at my ten reading hours with however he's set up the story-- *except,* I'm still sure his prologue will be a waste" than "Let's see how he does it."


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## Steerpike (Nov 14, 2012)

The writer has already signaled that he has decided to start the book somewhere other than what he acknowledges is the beginning. That's a strike. There's a decent chance I'll just put the book back on the shelf and get something else. However, if I do buy it I can decide for myself how I wish to approach reading it. If anyone wants to start buying books for me, I'd be more than happy to entertain their ideas as to how I should read them. My paypal address is available via PM.


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## wordwalker (Nov 14, 2012)

Eep.

Sorry, nobody's doubting who has the right to read what.


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## JCFarnham (Nov 15, 2012)

I'm sure you know what I intended to mean, Steerpike. 

Oh well, were you see a strike against the author. I see; "This person is doing something that isn't recommend... *on purpose*." Even though I can say it'll probably be rubbish, I still what to read all of it. Sometimes meaning isn't totally apparent until you finish the book. If I ignored a prologue then I would fear the possibility that I may never get the point of it all. I trust the author. Innocent until proven guilty?

If not right, then you "owe" it to yourself and author? Is that a better way to put it? (Probably not.)

The apparent analogy here is Star Wars. I still prefer to watch it in the intended order (or "be disappointed in the intended order" to paraphrase a well-loved sitcom), whether episodes 1 through 3 pale in comparison to the others or not. I want to  appreciate it all.

Understand? Well, you may say why read or watch something you know will be terrible? Time isn't as precious as you want it to be. There's plenty of hours in a day to be cynical. And let be frank, if I didn't want to buy/read a book it would be over subject matter not interesting me or awful awful prose, not over a prologue. It wouldn't even get as far as that. That prologue could be misplaced, but still well written, and I'd be fine with that. Disappointed, but fine.


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## Benjamin Clayborne (Nov 21, 2012)

Steerpike doesn't like prologues, and that's fine; it's just a matter of opinion at this point. Stop trying to convince him.


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