Mindfire
Istar
Part of writing is deciding what to reveal to the reader and when. But is there ever a time when some things should just remain a mystery in the reader's mind? Is it ever okay, or even preferable, to leave the reader in the dark and let them guess "what really happened?" I'm talking about this primarily with respect to backstory. Are there instances when it might be better to leave the reader in the dark about where something came from or "what really happened back then"?
More specifically, I have a people-group in my WIP called "The Mist". They're essentially swamp ninjas. (Stick with me here. It's a lot cooler than it sounds, I promise.) They're not of much importance in the grand scheme of things, but I'm planning for their encounters to leave a real impact on the reader and provoke questions like "what are they?" and "where did they come from?" Bits and pieces of clues to their backstory are actually embedded in the overall narrative, though they might not be recognized as such at first. So should I show the reader how the pieces fit together, or should I let the reader come up with their own theories, even though I have a canon backstory for them already thought out?
More specifically, I have a people-group in my WIP called "The Mist". They're essentially swamp ninjas. (Stick with me here. It's a lot cooler than it sounds, I promise.) They're not of much importance in the grand scheme of things, but I'm planning for their encounters to leave a real impact on the reader and provoke questions like "what are they?" and "where did they come from?" Bits and pieces of clues to their backstory are actually embedded in the overall narrative, though they might not be recognized as such at first. So should I show the reader how the pieces fit together, or should I let the reader come up with their own theories, even though I have a canon backstory for them already thought out?
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