Star Wars Style Prologue?

[Androxine Vortex]

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?

 

[BeigePalladin]

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

I'd say go for it.

 

[soulless]

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.

 

[wordwalker]

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?

 

[Sheriff Woody]

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.

 

[Steerpike]

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.

 

[Sparkie]

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.

 

[Sheriff Woody]

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.

 

[Mindfire]

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.

 

[Steerpike]

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.

 

[Feo Takahari]

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.)

 

[Steerpike]

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

 

[SlimShady]

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.

 

[Sheriff Woody]

Why would you not read a prologue?

 

[Mindfire]

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.

 

[Steerpike]

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.

 

[Sheriff Woody]

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.

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.

 

[thedarknessrising]

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.

 

[Steerpike]

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

 

[Anders Ämting]

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 matinée 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.