How does everybody feel about prologues?
Love them? Necessary evil for some stories? Or should we just relabel them as ‘Chapter 1’ and not prologue?
I just realised I can add a form! So I will ask again:
PROLOGUES
Love them? Necessary evil for some stories? Or should we just relabel them as ‘Chapter 1’ and not prologue?
#writers #writingCommunity #prologues #writingAdvice
@Michaelvaliant Labelling the first chapter “prologue” changes reader expectations, which can be important for managing expectations correctly.
However, that change is to demand that readers wait for the main plot thread to start.
“Don’t invest in this” is a risky message to start your book with.
Hence, it should only be used when it’s critical to the structure of the whole book and doesn’t threaten to turn away a new reader. That’s going to be a judgement call, and important to get right.
@robinshipton excellent reasoning!