In my latest scene I wrote something happened that there's no real explanation for just yet. The reader, if they've paid attention, may have a hunch, but I'm assuming they've either forgotten about the hint or just aren't making the connection (it's not intended to be a hint, it just turned out it might be).
I, as a writer, know what happened and there's an opportunity to explain it to the MC and the reader further on in the book. The issue is it's quite a lot further on. I should also mention that what happens isn't of any kind of relevance to the overall plot or story. It can add some depth to the world and the setting and it can give the characters something to talk about, but it really isn't important.
The way I see it I have a couple of different options.
1. Do nothing and explain the incident later on when it fits into how I originally planned the story.
2. Same as above, but drop reminders about the incident now and then so that it stays in the mind of the reader.
3. Explain what happened right away or in the very next scene.
4. Explain what happens as it does, removing the unknown from the equation completely.
5. Unmake the incident.
All of these seem to have their own pros and cons.
1. The advantage here is that I can put the incident out of my head for now and get back to it later, which gives me time to make up my mind about whether to keep it or not. The drawback would be that I'm leaving the reader wondering about something irrelevant to the story without giving them an explanation.
2. With this option I have a hook of some kind to come back to, something the MC can keep wondering about and searching for an answer for. The unfortunate fact is that as the incident isn't all that important it will probably make the reader feel cheated when they finally learned about what happened and about how it has no impact on the story.
3. This is straightforward and easy, but it doesn't fit with my planning. It's annoying but it's something I'll just have to deal with.
4. This would require fairly little work and would still have the benefit of adding a little depth to the world.
5. Very easy, but a bit boring.
After writing up the advantages and disadvantages it seems to me that option 4 would be the best one. Explain what happens as it does. I'm adding the little flair of the event to the world, letting the reader in on the secret while keeping the MC in the dark about what happened and I can still have him wonder about it later if I feel like it.
Does this seem like sound, logical reasoning to you or am I missing something? With the information you have of the scene above, would you have made the same decision or would you do something else?
What's your take on leaving the reader with unanswered questions? When is it okay and when isn't it?
If you do leave a question unanswered, how long is it okay to go on without answering it? I'm assuming this depends heavily on the question, especially if your story is something like a murder mystery when the entire story is based around the unanswered question of "who did it?"
Other thoughts?
I, as a writer, know what happened and there's an opportunity to explain it to the MC and the reader further on in the book. The issue is it's quite a lot further on. I should also mention that what happens isn't of any kind of relevance to the overall plot or story. It can add some depth to the world and the setting and it can give the characters something to talk about, but it really isn't important.
The way I see it I have a couple of different options.
1. Do nothing and explain the incident later on when it fits into how I originally planned the story.
2. Same as above, but drop reminders about the incident now and then so that it stays in the mind of the reader.
3. Explain what happened right away or in the very next scene.
4. Explain what happens as it does, removing the unknown from the equation completely.
5. Unmake the incident.
All of these seem to have their own pros and cons.
1. The advantage here is that I can put the incident out of my head for now and get back to it later, which gives me time to make up my mind about whether to keep it or not. The drawback would be that I'm leaving the reader wondering about something irrelevant to the story without giving them an explanation.
2. With this option I have a hook of some kind to come back to, something the MC can keep wondering about and searching for an answer for. The unfortunate fact is that as the incident isn't all that important it will probably make the reader feel cheated when they finally learned about what happened and about how it has no impact on the story.
3. This is straightforward and easy, but it doesn't fit with my planning. It's annoying but it's something I'll just have to deal with.
4. This would require fairly little work and would still have the benefit of adding a little depth to the world.
5. Very easy, but a bit boring.
After writing up the advantages and disadvantages it seems to me that option 4 would be the best one. Explain what happens as it does. I'm adding the little flair of the event to the world, letting the reader in on the secret while keeping the MC in the dark about what happened and I can still have him wonder about it later if I feel like it.
Does this seem like sound, logical reasoning to you or am I missing something? With the information you have of the scene above, would you have made the same decision or would you do something else?
What's your take on leaving the reader with unanswered questions? When is it okay and when isn't it?
If you do leave a question unanswered, how long is it okay to go on without answering it? I'm assuming this depends heavily on the question, especially if your story is something like a murder mystery when the entire story is based around the unanswered question of "who did it?"
Other thoughts?
Auror
Archmage
Minstrel
