Aphorism??

[Helleaven]

I am planning to use apothegms before the names of each chapters. The apothegms are from fictional characters which lived in the history of my fictional universe.

Do you think it would look and feel nice to do that?

For Example:

Everthing is bla bla bla, because bla bla is everything. - Chaders Anthora, King of Bla Bla Realms


Chapter 1

The Mighty Bla Bla

 

[Lawfire]

It could add to the flavor of your setting without being a distraction. If done well, it certainly cannot hurt.

 

[Philip Overby]

I typically sort of skim over those, but if the first one is really good, then I pay more attention to them and sometimes actually look forward to them. I've done them in my stuff before too.

 

[Devor]

Good aphorisms are hard to write. Just make it worthwhile.

 

[Penpilot]

I use them as a sneaky way to slip in a little extra world building. It's not necessary info but it ads flavor and hopefully brings a little extra to it all.

 

[coolstoneman]

Personally, I like them. Especially if they relate to the chapter at hand. I would say go ahead and use them, because people like me will read them; people that don't care for them will just ignore them. It's maybe an easy way to enhance your novel, add a little flavor.

 

[Helleaven]

Thanks to all, that was what I wanted to learn

Yes, adding a little flavor and giving a little extra information about the world is why I want to do it. After your replies, I've decided that I will totally use them.

And I know, I learned how hard it can be to write a good aphorism. I have written a few pages full of "would be" sentences, but only one of them is worth using. Although it is fun to try writing them. They will be related to the following chapter, at least that's what I aim for

 

[Queshire]

Heh, just make it clear that they're fictional and not from real world books or something.

 

[Ravana]

As long as they contribute, they're great. If they don't have at least something to do with the chapter, however indirectly, I tend to find them annoying.

As Devor mentioned, "good" aphorisms are difficult to write… especially good original ones: after all, if it sounds aphoristic, odds are someone has already said something very close to it.

[Dang. I thought I just made up "aphoristic." But the spellchecker didn't even flag it. See what I mean? ]