Why Have A Prologue In A Fiction Novel?

Why not just start with Chapter One? Is a prologue just fluff you can skip over? Why write it at all? Like everything else in a book, a prologue has to do work, but not every book needs one.

The prologue serves purposes that are entirely different from other chapters. If it didn’t, it would just be “Chapter One.”

Image by Rowan Freeman
via Unsplash.com

Before I continue, here is a good page that defines the differences between a prologue, preface, introduction, and forward, so I’m not going to redefine them here. I admit that I’ve mistaken these before. All four are different types of “front matter.” That first link defines a prologues as follows: A prologue sets the stage by bringing the reader into the story before it begins. But in my opinion, there’s more than that.

There are differing philosophies for what a prologue is supposed to achieve. My philosophy is that the prologue in fiction should achieve three goals: 1) Introduce the setting and genre (as would Chapter One if the prologue were not there), 2) give a sneak peek for the reader at the plot or important plot points that will later become important or clear to the protagonists (and thus setting up the reader for something important), and 3) introduce important aspects of the story that might not otherwise be introduced right away in the first couple chapters.

This is the “work” that the prologue does for the novel.

In a way, the author is opening a door for the reader, revealing a world and its complexity, before launching into the first step of the journey together.

For instance, I had a prologue for my fantasy book, Dragon of the Federation. That prologue quickly introduced that the story was 1) set in a fantasy world rich with history and competing cultures, 2) introduced pivotal characters who weren't the protagonists and an inciting act that later was revealed as the start of a deep cabal that influenced the entire plot, which the protagonists would later discover, and 3) introduced in a big way some of the fantastic sorts of magic in a way that was action-packed. These things allowed me to introduce the protagonists and their struggles in the first few chapters in a slower, more thorough manner without resorting to some sort of "bang" moment or relying on big magic to do it.

Could the book have gone without it? Sure, but I think it would have seemed like it started too slow to "hook" the reader. With the prologue, the reader was already hooked and was ready for a deeper introspection of character. This prologue also serves as a sort of introduction to the whole seven book series I’m writing (it's the only book in the series that will have one. The last book will have an epilogue, too).

Do all books need a prologue? Certainly not. Most novels don’t, and arguably don’t need it. But it can be enlightening and even necessary when it is there, and I recommend you never skip them as a reader.

 

Cheers and happy reading!

I Just Took Author Event Participation To A Whole New Level

OMG. I can't believe I did this.

Looking at last year's income from writing, I realized that I made TEN TIMES more income from doing in-person table sales at events than I did from sales of my books on Amazon or through my publisher combined. 

Unfortunately, I'm limited to only as far as I can comfortably drive to and from events. That's because the moment I pay for a hotel room, I've spent at least as much as I can earn in a given day of events. Often much more than what I earn, in fact.

So... I went all in and purchased a camper van. This way I can simply camp at or near the event! Plus, a camper van would have lots of space to all the stuff I need, like boxes of books, table, chair, pop-up canopy, and decorative backdrops.

Here it is:

It's a really cute little Japanese camper van. Literally imported from Japan, with the driver's side on the right side of the vehicle and Japanese language printed inside! It's pretty old (from 1995), but is lightly used, clean, and has lots of new parts on it. It's a Toyota Hiace "Royal J." And it's super fun to drive. It has back seats that fold down into a full size bed, plus an upper loft that can be pulled out into a sleeping area (or storage), and a neat little kitchenette in back. There's even a canopy that comes out to cover the sliding door area.

I put it into action today, in fact, driving to the first of two days of the Spring Into Reading Author Fair in the little town of Canby, Oregon.

I've also begun signing up for events throughout the year, ranging as far north in Washington state as events in Seattle and Puget Sound, as far south as Sacramento, California, and as far east as Boise, Idaho. 

And if there are any weekends left after all that? I plan to go camping in the woods with it. :D

Is it worth the $15,600 I paid for it? I'm certain of it. It should pay for itself in extra book sales after only a few years, if I do this right.

Cheers and happy reading!

My Peculiar Philosophy About Effective Short Stories

Writing short stories isn't like writing long fiction. It’s a different beast entirely. But I have a particular philosophy about writing short stories that many authors don’t ascribe to, and I’m wondering what you think about it.

Photo by 愚木混株 cdd20 on Unsplash

I’ve published books and I’ve published short stories and short story collections. There’s a lot to be said about the differing strategies between them. But this post isn’t about the differences between novel writing and short story writing. Perhaps that is a post for another time.

Instead, I wanted to share a peculiar philosophy I have about short story writing.

Short stories share much in common with long fiction. They have a beginning, middle, and end. They have a story arc and character development. They have a climax and denouement. Short stories just have to be more focused. With fewer words to work with, the writer has to be more concise and constrained. Instead of building multiple plot arcs, they are limited to just one or two. Typically there is only one point of view character. Every word has to do work.

The thing is, a good novel will tidy things up by the end. All those plot arcs come together to a (hopefully) satisfying conclusion. Some books, as part of a series, might have a cliffhanger to draw you into the next book of the series, but you can’t do that will all of the story arcs or it will leave the reader unsatisfied.

A good short story, though, will focus on one plot arc, and at the end, the reader comes to a satisfying conclusion.

But here’s my peculiarity:

It’s okay, and even preferable, to create some mysteries along the way, which might never be answered. Also, if the story is well-written, it leaves the reader wanting more.

For instance, in my fantasy short story, Into the Ruined Lands, two girls buck their patriarchal society and risk the ire of their fathers to venture into the neighboring volcanic wasteland. From the story blurb:

Two teen girls, Talay and her cousin Shaali, defy their cultural norms and run away to the volcanic Ruined Lands in search of a flowering plant called sulfur wort, a necessary ingredient for a healing potion to be mixed by the mysterious Old Mother Aya in order to save the life of Shaali's younger sister. But the Ruined lands pose dangers that challenge hardened warriors. Are they up to such a quest? And are they willing to face the punishment for defying their patriarchal society? 

There they face a hostile land, filled with dangerous orcs who wish to defile them or eat them. Old Mother Aya also uses her magic from afar to help them in their quest.

But here’s the rub: I never explain the true nature of Old Mother Aya or her past. I don’t describe why the girls’ society is patriarchal or misogynistic. I don’t detail how the healing potion is made, or how the old woman casts her magic. I don’t go into the history of the Ruined Land or much into why society fears it.

And most importantly, I leave it open as to what becomes of the girls in the end. Yes, the story has a conclusion, but then what? At the end, one of the girls follows Old Mother Aya, wishing to learn her ways. But I don’t describe what those ways are, or what eventually comes of it. All I do is hint at what’s to come.

A good short story should leave the reader wanting more. A strong character, and effective worldbuilding, means that there can always be more to the story. I take it as a matter of pride when one of my readers says, “What happens next? This could be the start to a great book!”

What do you think?

My Review of The Long Way To A Small, Angry Planet, by Becky Chambers

 

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was longing for a good space opera scifi, and this story didn't let me down in that regard. The greatest strength of this book is the immersive way the reader is pulled into the characters and their interactions. This is, more than any other book I've recent in recent years, a fully character-driven novel. Chambers does an amazing job of describing the many different alien species, the interactions between crew members, and the differing ways they see the world through their respective lenses. She does so without being heavy-handed or info-dumping. It is done naturally, and you get to know the crewmembers in a very personal way despite them being very different alien species.

Do not expect a book full of action. In fact, there's almost no competition of any sort between characters, civilizations, or species. It's sort of nice, frankly. There are three or four points in story where there is tension, but it is over quickly. No one is shooting anyone else. No blaster fights or punching or anything. It's just a NICE read, which is refreshing. This is not a book for hard scifi or military scifi enthusiasts.

What the book lacks is a cohesive plot. It's basically a long series of character vignettes, with the loose thread of making a journey to a distant planet to "tunnel" a wormhole for the rest of space to travel there. [Slight spoiler] When they finally reach their destination, though, the end comes quickly and you are left realizing that the destination and the trip there were really just a macguffin. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I wasn't set up for that by anything in the description of the book or the initial "hook" (which had suggested the story was primarily around Rosemary faking her background and going on a long and dangerous journey, which turns out was only a small part of the book).

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My Review of The Lincoln Highway, by Amor Towles

 

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book wasn’t what I expected, and that’s a good thing. I like surprises. The characters are very individualized and three-dimensional. The story had twists and turns, and by the end you realize there are deeper meanings to it. I found myself relating to the characters in different ways. 18-year old Emmett has lost his father, his mother, and then his father’s farm, all while dealing with having just been released from a juvenile work farm for unintentionally killing another boy in a fight. Now he has to make a plan for himself and his 10-year old brother, Billy, to make a new life together. But Emmett’s well-laid plans to travel the Lincoln Highway from Nebraska to San Francisco to start that new life are thrown into chaos by the unexpected appearance of two other boys his age, Duchess and Wooly, both of whom had been at the work farm with him and escaped. Duchess is mercurial and chaotic, though often well-meaning, and Wooly is intellectually challenged, but kind. Along the way, the four boys come to meet some other notable characters who sometimes help them and sometimes challenge them.

There are some almost-spoilers below, so stop here if you worry about it….

The name of the book is a bit misleading. The Lincoln Highway is really a “McGuffin” in that it triggers the plot but isn’t actually the planned route they ultimately follow. I didn’t mind that, but it did break the “contract with the reader” if you will, from the initial plan that was laid out early in the book. Really, the plot is driven by Duchess, a troubled boy who has his own motivations, which he justifies in different ways, that throws everyone else’s plans asunder. Frankly, all of the characters have tragic histories, which makes them very interesting. Another oddity about this book is that it starts sort of in the middle of the story (which is actually a plot point stated by Billy, who is obsessed with a book about heroes and their journeys), and at the end of the book you realize that the story hasn’t really ended for some of the characters yet. None of these things really take away from the quality of the story, it’s just something to note that sets this book apart from others and makes it unique. I will say, though, that Duchess was so much the driver of the story that all the other characters were a little weaker for it, where they were mostly reacting to Duchess in one way or another.

One thing I definitely did not like, though, was that the dialogue is written without quotation marks. Rather, Towles uses a dash to signify when a speaker has started dialogue, but nothing to signify when they stop the dialogue. Thus, it was occasionally confusing when they stopped and the prose began. Towles also needed more dialogue tags, as sometimes I was confused who was speaking which sentences.

Be prepared that this has a bit of a tragic ending that left me concerned for the motives of some of the characters I’d come to like. But overall, it was a worthy read.

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My Review of Anathema, by Keri Lake

 

Anathema by Keri Lake
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The good part about Anathema is that Lake has done a great job of worldbuilding. The magic system is reasonably unique, the land and civilizations are interesting, and there are unique and interesting monsters and supernatural creatures.

The story is told from the POV of two characters: Zevander, who is an assassin, and Maevyth, who is a waifish and innocent young woman. Zevander is a complex character with an interesting background, powerful in magic, and very dark and brooding, haunted by his past and his curse. Definitely an anti-hero. I enjoyed his part of the story. Zevander's part, and the worldbuilding, are the only reasons I bumped up to 3 stars.

Maevyth, on the other hand, is a very two-dimensional character and very weak. She (and to a slightly lesser degree, her sister) is constantly victimized. In fact, her entire community victimizes her, including her (stereotypical) evil stepmother and her lascivious uncles. So much so that nearly every page of her part of the story involves some sort of in-you-face disrespect or outright torment. Everyone is out to get her, and every man is lustful and rapey. It's so heavy-handed that it is nearly unreadable. It isn't entertaining. And just when you think she's finally escaped her repressive situation by fleeing to the other world through a portal, she is immediately captured, threatened with rape, and thrown in a cell. And then she is rescued... only to be thrown in a cell again. She doesn't drive her story, she just reacts to the constant victimization, pulled along by the winds of torment. Not fun. And then, in the midst of this victimization, somehow we are supposed to buy that she is getting attracted to and aroused by the other protagonist? It's the worst sort of forced romance.

The book then ends on a cliffhanger which is not satisfying in any way. I also didn't like the editing of this book, as there are frequent sentence fragments and modern allusions that bump me out of the story and setting. I don't recommend.

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My Review of "The Maid's Diary" by Loreth Anne White

 

The Maid's Diary by Loreth Anne White
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This story definitely has some twists in it. No spoilers, but it was getting to be near the end when a gigantic twist is revealed. Normally I see things coming, but this twist caught me by surprise. There is someone pulling all the strings, and they did it with panache. Another thing I liked about this book is that all of the characters in it are very three-dimensional, with complex backgrounds and skeletons in their closets. It leads the reader to wonder just who the bad guy is, and maybe the worst aren't actually the murderer.

White tells the tale from five points of view, which actually worked out okay. Stories with too many POVs can sometimes get a bit lost, but she held it together. But one thing that I found less than ideal was that there were two chronological storylines going at once: the "before the murder" storyline, told from the points of view of the three main protagonists involved in the crime, and the "after the murder" storyline, which is told from the POV of one of the detectives. I don't much care for jumping back and forth between chronologies like this, but I can see why the author did it: to put the reader into the mindsets of those involved in the crime, and the the other to piece the crime together afterward. Then it all comes together in the end. But not really my thing. The other thing that I didn't exactly love was how White uses "third person present tense" for everything other than the maid's (Kit's) diary entries. Again, I can see why she did it -- to put the reader in the moment -- but it doesn't lend itself to emotional storytelling, and sometimes the text read more like a police report and less like something I could get emotionally attached to.

Another thing that REALLY bothered me was that the author threw the reader a red herring at the end, which is typical for mystery stories (where there are many), but the one at the end was WAY too convenient to have me believe it. I can't say more without spoiling, but it involved the snooping old lady next door to the murder scene, and it had me rolling my eyes in annoyance. For this reason I wish I could drop from a rating of 4 to a 3.5, but half-stars aren't something I can put here.

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