Lore Or writing

[FallenWriter]

So I’m posting this in an attempt to find what I’m lacking in my story writing. I’m able to design characters and a world they reside in, but I seem to get the story and lore confused if I solely focus on a character or place I can create a very detailed story of what I’m writing about but I struggle to tie them together currently I’m working on a web novel. I’ve started but have gotten stuck in the lore and not really pushing the story I guess. Any one got any ideas???

 

[Ruru]

Story first. Lore later, and only if it drives your plot. That is, of course, only my opinion. But I want to read about what is happening to your characters, and what is driving them to react the way they do. There is room there for a little lore, if it is driving reaction, reason for something etc. but mostly, I want to read about the story. If it helps, write the story, then when you have completed that first draft, go back and see where your can slip the lore in.

 

[Incanus]

If I understand the question correctly, then I essentially agree with Ruru.

This seems to be an issue of how to included exposition into a story as it progresses. Like most around here, I’m not a pro or anything, just someone trying to learn to improve my craft. But when it comes to exposition, I would advise efficiency. As often as possible, try to do two or more things at the same time.

I’m thinking of an example from my own work, but it deals more with character/setting, as opposed to story/lore. I think the principle is the same.

In a first-person POV, I had a character who is a servant of a sorceress describing the sorceress early on. A few things about the setting had already been established (that they lived/worked in an abandoned guard-tower at the top of a bluff overlooking the ocean). In referencing the sorceress’s stubbornness, the POV character compared his mistress to an old hickory stump in the courtyard that proved too difficult to remove. Although I was describing the sorceress at that moment, I snuck in this little detail about the setting as well.

I think that sort of technique can be used to include lore info, or just about anything.

Also, I would suggest creating one character that has a good, believable reason that they don’t know certain things about the world. Having them ask questions is a good way to get other characters to explain things to them, which explains things to the readers in turn.

Hope that helps a little.

 

[WooHooMan]

Most people use the term “lore” incorrectly.
Lore is a group of people’s understanding of the world around them.
Lore comes from characters making sense of their environment. Story comes from characters interacting with their environment and other characters.

Everything in a story, from the plot to the setting, serves the characters and what they do.

So don’t see it as a “this or that” thing. Your focus needs to be the characters.

 

[The Dark One]

"Lore is a group of people’s understanding of the world around them."

Perfect definition, with the proviso it can be broken up into very small parcels, hence Théoden's reference to Merry's herb lore. It's probably more a question for the world building threads, but lore is part of your background against which your story happens - although the richer stories have the two impact on each other.