Would it be too confusing to use fictional quotes?

[nwillmott8897]

As my story begins 10,000 years after an apocalyptic event in 2058, many of the novels and religious books that people quote will be fictitious. Probably the biggest issue would be a new book in the bible, named the book of Lilith, which isn't completely fictitious, but is a lot more speculation that truth at the minute. In 2037 the book of Lilith is added to a new bible ( Queen Elizabeth the Second bible ) after a selection of scrolls though to originate from the legendary Library of Alexandria are found that provide definitive proof that the Lilith story is biblical fact. This book is one of the most pivotal parts of my story, as it is the story of my main antagonist, just changed a little bit to make her seem more evil.

Does this seem too confusing, or should I just depict Lilith's story in a different way?
Thanks so much for any feedback,
Nathan.

 

[BWFoster78]

It doesn't sound confusing to me at all. Many fictional works create fictional documentation to back up the central story. Go with it.

 

[Steerpike]

Readers are smart. It won't confuse them, and as BWFoster notes, many authors do this sort of thing.

 

[Penpilot]

I agree with above. It won't be confusing.

 

[Zero Angel]

I agree with the rest. One specific example of authors that do this is "The Deathgate Cycle", in which there are copious footnotes and appendices for the interested reader.

 

[Rinzei]

I know it's not a book, but Skyrim uses quotes and references to game-lore literature all the time. People liked it enough that there was even a mod on the PC to add quotes from those books to the loading screens to help with immersion. I can't think of any off the top of my head, but I'm sure I've also read books that used quotes from in-world literature, either as part of the story or even just excerpts between chapters.

I think you should go for it.

 

[nwillmott8897]

Thanks so much! This thread was always just to double check, I'd asked my friends and family but I just wanted an opinion from someone who wasn't afraid to speak the truth I also like the idea of footnotes and appendices, although I always planned to put a short side story at the end of every book, so instead of that I'll just give a few pages of background information.

 

[Devor]

Writing a quote can be harder than it sounds. A quote is basically supposed to be one of the top ten best things you've ever said in your life. It's a high standard, and I think a bad quote can hurt you more than help. Just keep that in mind.

 

[shangrila]

Erikson does it in almost every single chapter, if not EVERY single chapter, so it can be done. So long as it's relevant to the story, I don't think you'll have a problem with it.

 

[kayd_mon]

Writing a quote can be harder than it sounds. A quote is basically supposed to be one of the top ten best things you've ever said in your life. It's a high standard, and I think a bad quote can hurt you more than help. Just keep that in mind.

I don't think this is true. I have heard countless quotes that couldn't possibly be ranked as the ten best anything.