I have found great uses for prologues. I also believe there is an art to writing prologues. When looking for a book to read, I always read the back of the book first. If the story sounds interesting, I read the prologue, if it has one. If I like the prologue, I go on to the next chapter. If I don't like the prologue, I don't read the book. It's like watching the trailer to a movie for me. When writing a prologue, I use it both as a personal tool for me and as a teaser trailer to readers. In the personal realm, I use it to get a feel for writing the story, I guess. My short story "The Watchkeeper" is actually written like the prologue of a book, so it kind of leaves readers hanging at the end, wanting more. Which is something I believe a prologue should do: leave the reader wanting more of the world and the characters. However, my latest (and longest) novel project will not have a prologue, as there's really no need for one in that particular story. So I made sure to drop a hook in the introductory paragraph. I hope it's effective enough. XD
I take it, you have found the samples that explain exactly why you wright the epilogue. If it is fun, who in his/her right mind would ever bother skipping it. for the point, maybe skip the story and just read the Prologue instead?
prologue user and liker. I also like bonus tracks, behind the scenes, trailers, teasers, bloopers, out takes, deleted scenes and commentary, spare parts, complementary breakfast, free HBO, discounts, free Wi-Fi and.... Preludes
I'm not a fan of prologues in general. Like you say in your video, often the information shown in the prologue finds its way into the rest of the novel (usually because the protagonist isn't aware of the events of the prologue so somebody has to describe it to them). There is perhaps ONE exception in my eyes that can redeem a prologue, and for me that is- red herrings. I once read a book where the prologue was a teenage girl being chased by her step- father who is presumably trying to kill her as he is holding a knife and covered in blood, but he gets stopped by police and is arrested. Fast forward to the current story, in the end you find out that the teenage girl is actually a murderous psychopath and the guy in prison, her step- father, was going after her because she just killed his wife, her mother. Throughout the novel, the reader was under the impression that the young girl who is currently the protagonist's mother had went through something traumatic, so when it comes to light that this wasn't true, it's a great twist and a good use of a prologue in my opinion. It made me flip back to the prologue and see it within the new context and go 'Oooooohhh'.
I have written 3 novels and 2 of them of prologues. To be honest I quite enjoy books without them.... though I've never thought about it too much haha. I do read every single page of a book too! Including the acknowledgements - we're cool ;)
I love prologues. If I love a book, I want as much of it as I can get! Why anyone would skip a prologue is beyond me. I also love a good epilogue. Great video! And it was very helpful. 👍
I read all of it. I even read the fine print about the publishing: font, if it's printed on recycled paper, the copyright dates, where it was first published. That last one is important to me. I don't live in the N.America or the UK and there are different editions for different regions of the world. I've read both versions of Harry Potter and they use different terminology and grammar. Not flat vs apartment and queue vs line and colour and color! interesting if you are a geek, and a nerd about language usage
If there is a Prologue and Acknowledgement, I have been reading them at one point or the other. They tell something more of the story behind the story and can set a tone in a different manner. Oh, and if we are hear on the account of wrighting, it gives you something on that field as well.
I tend to love books as they are whether they have a prologue or not. As a hobby writer I noticed I'm prone to dump too much info into a prologue while also having what feels like half a dozen prologues stuck in my head. I enjoyed the advice given here and feel better about cutting the prologue out for the moment as i write my story. Look forward to picking up your book one day.
I actually like them as use for setting up the story. A little background information, character drive, or area history always make the story more believable to me. Thanks again for your videos, they make me feel like I'm not the only one struggling through this stuff.
Hey Vivien, Love you videos. Really helpful and does a lot to kindle that confidence (in order to slay that white dragon)! Just a thought/suggestion on some useful topics you could perhaps cover: - Simple/small grammar rules and pitfalls to avoid. It would really go a long way in helping the newer writer i.e. me (and hopefully some other future writers too); -How to build and execute good dialogue; - Tips on how to ensure sub-plots and plots align; - How to master the art of not sleeping so one actually has time to write haha :( Ps. Looking forward to the Elysian Prophecy!
I love prologues and always read them and love to write them. I've used them to explaine how a world got into the condition it is in or show the political processes that caused the enhabitants of certain cities to be forgotten when humanity fled earth. Once I used the prologue to introduce the antagonist and his plans when his discovery by the protagonist doesn't happen until the third quarter of the book so that the reader could see in their own mind how the back-plot is developing without having to write it directly or constantly switch POV's so that the reader can keep up. I find the prologue to be a very powerful tool.
In many cases (and mine, in particular), a prologue sets the scene; establishes the historical context; lays down the background to the coming conflict. I'm pro prologue.
Interesting into, Vivien. The prologue on my most recent novel (White Island) is about 1 page long. It's whole purpose is to describe how the island was formed and to let the reader know there is a volcano on the island, which plays a major part in the climax. Plus it ends with a hook that tells the reader something horrible happened on the island long ago. So, I'm big on prologue in this instance.
Thanks. And great advice. My liking of a prologue depends on if it's necessary or at least entertaining. But I never skip. I open a book to read the words within!!
A prologue I enjoyed readind is from "Black & White" by Wes Albers. I love it because the prologue has nothing to do with the story or plotline, but sets the tone and theme. It also illustrates how the personality of the main character was shaped which helps us understand his decisions in the story.
True, a prologue can be interwoven into the story, but when I write, I write the story I want to tell and all the backstories I need to completely understanding the world I have created. If I really feel a backstory I wrote is essential, I feel inclined to include it as a prologue (telling a whole story). I want to refer back to the prologue when it's relevant and have readers already know the the backstory to the event I am describing without me having to go on a long winded explanation of why its relevant. I just want to tell a story from beginning to end without having to disrupt the flow of my story.
I believe there are two times a prologue should be included. 1.) If your story's theme (ex. "ten minutes of insane courage can permanently change your life for the better") is not established until the reader has read a great many pages, then a prologue is a good place to establish the theme early. 2.) If your first act climax is world-changing (for example, your hero is at work when the story starts, but at the first act climax, the reader discovers that the hero works in the World Trade Center which has just been attacked on 9/11), then you should foreshadow what the story is really about (survival) in the prologue.
Reading every single little page... I mean, "I dedicate this book to" could give me the cutest insight to the author's world, I won't risk losing that ;P
I am writing a novel and a DO have a prologue. I personally always read prologues (why skip??), but my prologue is only a page and a half. nice and short right? well my idea was to include the prologue, which takes place a hundred years before the current story date, but then periodically skip back to scenes from to the time period set up in the prologue. that's why a prologue is a summary of what happened before, but if a reader decided to skip it, then they would get the gist with the full scenes. you might be wondering "then WHY are you including a prologue if everything is shown later". for me I am planning on keeping it because it helps the reader better understand why everything that is happening in the present date is happening. it will also allow them to have some insight Into what kind of events take place in the novel. plus I think it has some good hooks! what do you all think?
I read everything, but it's important to remember that many people do skip prologues - thank you for the advice. I'm actually considering an epilogue myself. I guess that some of this would be applicable to that, too. If you did a video on epilogues specifically, that would be awesome. 😃
My prologue is a sonnet that is used to express my MCs love for something in the first three chapters and its also there to foreshadow the danger to come in the latter of the novel
Sometimes I start my stories one way and then decide to switch lanes, but I feel so attached to my original first chapter that I want to keep it as a prologue. I found out later on that this is a bad reason to use a prologue. Nowadays I just tend to think of a prologue as a concise extra bit of story that might serve as an amuse-bouche. Perhaps to introduce a character that might be more prominent later on, or a bit of background to the main conflict just so that when readers get to the main conflict they feel they know a bit more than the main character. And I like it when writers use the prologue to show off their skills, it's fun to read!
I’m in the mind of having a prologue if it contains an event within your novel that is a big deal to the plot but is caused by side characters and not your main protagonist and gives the reader a good taste of what the book is about. I think that maybe your main protagonist should be what the first chapter is about because it will let the reader know that this is the person that you are following throughout the book.
I was considering if I should add a prologue into my book. There are a lot of places I can start my book and I do have an idea what I can use as a hook. However, I can't add the two together. However, I don't like the idea of showing things from years ago that early. I planned to add the information throughout the story.
I think most prologues should just be the first chapter, like your Harry Potter comparison. I think prologues are a weird thing, because if you want the reader to read it, it should just be your first chapter. Good advice though. I'm like you, I have to start at the absolute beginning and read to the absolute end. I take the author's word for it that I should probably read that first before we start things off.
Gibbie 420 I disagree. I actually think that whole first chunk of Harry Potter should have been a prologue because of 1. The 11 year time skip, and 2. The narration style is different. Chapter 1 should have been when he wakes up under the stairs.
the Prologue is Technically a first Chapter, just set in a different time, explaining whgat you need to enter the story. Maybe one could publish a Prologue as a separate entity, once you have a successfull Novel to add it onto?
Gibbie 420 I never thought about it like that I mostly read prologue books because I read a lot and don’t have time for reading a bunch of books that aren’t for me I guess it depends I usually come back from the library with five books every week or two so there’s not much space for one I don’t know
i think it can usually be called either one no harm done, but there are some that would be so removed from the main story that it's probably just practice to separate it to make that clear. like she mentioned if a fantasy story begins by showing a battle or heroic event that occurs 1000 years before our main story just to set up the existence of a magical sword, its reasonable to give it a special title then the reader comes across the swords mention through the main story and has that cool aha moment when they realize they have that knowledge. but yeah, a lot of prologues could definitely just be dropped or called chapter 1
Prologue lover here. I am working my first chapter book and am just in case writing a prologue to explain what is going on in the world that I have made up for my book series.
I read every single page too, including acknowledgements xD sometimes I might feel like skipping the prologue, but that doesn't happen often, everything is there to be read.
I read every page of every book - prologue, acknowledgements, dedication, epilogues, sources, and first pages of the author's next book when they're available. One time I handed my friend my favorite book and watched as she skipped past everything, including the message written before each chapter, and went straight to chapter one. I may have caused a bit of a scene in my frustration.
Even if I skip a prologue, I've gone back and read it when I'm done. Way more often than not I discover a nugget of gold in it that could have shone light on the entire rest of the story!
Something you didn't think about is that a lot of nonfiction works have a prologue that is not necessary to understand the information being presented in the book but rather a place where the author talks about their experience or expertise with the content they are writing about or why this book came to be. Since I read non fiction and fiction when I read a fiction book a lot of times I skip the prologue and sometimes I will only read it if I enjoyed the novel or if it's an author I already love.
Info dumps are exactly why I'm trying to see if a prologue will fit in my story. I info dumped A LOT in the first chapter trying to reference something that happened a couple hundred years before my plot that is important to the story and characters. So I'm working with writing one now so I can take out all that info dumping and the readers won't be as confused.
Hi Vivien! I would love to know what books you read to get motivated, improve your writing and learn about the industry (you mentioned these in a previous video). Maybe book hauls or reviews/favorites videos as a series? Would greatly appreciate it as it would be extremely helpful! Thanks for sharing all your tips by the way! I'm learning loads and have found that your writing lifestyle and opinions are the ones I can relate to the most
So I am planning a prologue in my book, but I think I will just give it a title instead. At least then people will read it and I don't give people the idea it might be unnecessary to read it. Because the whole thing is a setup to create tension and mystery about what is going on. It will just be an introduction now and then part one starts (and will have its own hook, because what I am using as chapter one was originally the prologue, but it just didn't fit that well. On the debate: It totally depends on a prologue. I read a prologue of 20 pages once that intruced around 5 characters in the space of two pages and half of it was all over the place (when speaking about voice and atmosphere and what kind of fantasy it actually was). On the hand you have Pat Rothfuss, who uses is 0.5-1.5 prologues and epilogues to set the atmosphere and voice as well as creating overlap in the beginning and ending of the books of his Kingkiller Chronicles. It makes in more cohesive overall. I guess: make a prologue just a chapter if you possibly can. But I will also say that if the prologue is done well it is just a nice intro to a story. But almost all of the time they don't need to be called prologue. They could be called something like: 10 years ago or are boring to read or turn out to be either partly or completely unnecessary. I read them, because they belong to the story and I want to read it all, or at least try (rarely I DNF a book). Especially in fantasy I feel like they could be done better of just be incorporated in the story (which huge parts most of the time already are). Or it feels like an incredible infodump... But I agree: write, then check if you need to keep it. If not, drop it at the beginnen and work it into the rest of the book.
My prologue is currently in the form of a voice over monologue cold open, so it's pretty short. But I'm thinking of either incorporating it into a later chapter in some other form or cutting it altogether.
I think prologue's are great, sometimes, and can give you clues to what the main story will be about by giving a brief backstory first. Even though it's a game, The Last of Us is a great example. You don't really have to write a prologue, but I think it's great for some stories.
I always think of a prologue as a good place for the villain to kick off the story, like Darth Vader's capture of Princess Leia in SW: A New Hope, or when the monster attacks somebody at the beginning of every episode of Kolchack: The Night Stalker, before Luke or Carl ever show up.
I wrote my prologue in a way that the reader has no choice but to read it. It gives a small background into the main character who is not a people person and it contains information that gives clues to the end of the story
At first I was a 100% positive that I needed a prologbut then I realized that a lot of people skip over the prologue and my prologue is crucial for the story so now it's chapter 1
I actually am PRO prologue. I try for it to truly exist as a prologue and not a short chapter 1 with another name. It’s not vital to the story but for me it’s to set the tone. I would never think a prologue is being lazy though. I see people minded and if it fits, it’ll go in ;) My prologues are either 1 or 2 pages long (rarely gets to 2).
I feel that the prologue should be short if it's going to exist at all. That's not to say that it isn't valid if it's long, but it's more effective when it's a quick snippet of a past event. In fact, these quick prologues often work quite well to build suspense.
The prologue is a part of the style in which the story of your novel was written. If the prologue works in your story, it is because it was right for the story you wrote in the first place.
Hi Vivien. Thank you for the good tips. Personally I'm with you on the "read every single page in the book"-perspective, and love prologues myself. I'm currently busy with a dark fantasy novel and it includes a prologue that fits squarely into the "punch the reader in the face"-category, and I also believe that my first chapter has enough of a hook to pull the reader into the story even if they skip the prologue. However, I've just imported it into Scrivener (for windows), which I just bought today, and am using the Novel (without parts) template, but am stumped on how to include the Prologue? What happens is scrivener titles my prologue with "Chapter..." (without a number), and then titles chapter one correctly as "chapter one". My question is how do I get it to not include the word "chapter" on the prologue section? I can't seem to find a particular tutorial video or help topic for this particular hiccup, so if you or anyone else in the comments know how I should do this, I'd be super grateful! Thank you again! (apologies for the long post)
In the book I'm currently writing I wrote a prologue. However, I wrote it in a way so it's important to understand some of the things about the protagonist but if you were to skip it your reading experience won't be greatly effected.
A good book that has a strong prologue is the Revenge of the Sith novel. Its prologue has a major hook, although it's easy to fly right into chapter 1.
Hey Vivien. I'm a new subscriber to your channel. You tips are helping me learn so much how to a book writer. thank you so much for your of your tips. But I do have a question. what if you want to put prologues in your other books to tell a story? like if prologues are the flash back of the story?
I did a prologue but it is more like I just laid the protagonist's past in order for her personality to be understandable for the readers. Like why she talks and acts the way she do. Is that fine?
For my own story, the prologue is a brief summary of the history of the last few decades, only the few major events that have significance now. The earlier of which was heralded by the main character's grandfather, while the more recent events being brought about by his father. Would said prologue be needed/necessary? Because it's not vital to understanding the story, and the first chapter has its own hook, would that prologue be fine? Also, would a short intro be fine as well, or not both a prologue and intro?
Idk I'm the kind of person who usually doesn't notice there's a prologue at first but a few pages into the first chapter I realize there is one and then I read it. But anyways in writing a story right now and it has a very short prologue that just explains the world/time period a bit but I'm afraid that I put too much/too little/it's not necessary. The reason I put it there was because I felt like if it weren't there i would have too much explaining to do in the first chapter...idk
I very sorry to say so, since I usually love your videos, but I think this one sort of misses the point. "Write the prologue, if you feel like it," is not a very helpful advice. Also, I wouldn't say that a prologue has to necessarily benefit a story. Take Umberto Eco's Name of the Rose. The prologue is a joke, basically, since he describes in it how he found the whole story somewhere in the archives and that he didn't actually write it, but that it was, in fact, written by somebody else a long time ago. And if you didn't know who Umberto Eco was, you might believe it, because he was a great historian and made the writing style extremely believable. So, the prologue doesn't affect the story in the slightest, but makes you wonder the whole time, if the story really happened or not. Prologues can be very interesting if your story consists of more timelines. Sometimes it might be a good idea to not tell your story chronologically and shuffle it's parts a bit, so that the catharsis is all the more impactful. Good examples of this are movies like Memento or Ethernal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Your prologue can even be just "extra content". Some great writers of the past, Victor Hugo for instance, were masters of writing pointless descriptions, like that of the system of sewers in Paris, yet it made for a great read. It's all about telling the reader something they don't know, yet. If you tell them what a character did on day 1 and they are mostly banal everyday thing, of course there is no point in writing it. A prologue doesn't necessarily have to benefit the story, but it should be mentally enriching for the reader. And by the way, people who skip over parts of books are idiots.
honestly my character, 'Gray' would seem really angry and dull without the prolague which sets up his issue which puts him through the five stages of grief and is why he's distant.
i just read the prologue of your book on your homepage. i could not find where to post.... anything really.... I was just wondering, mary asks herself where she would be WITH "the other" or whithout? she says with and it confuses me. but english is only my second language. and i could not even find where to post this on your homepage. oh well. thank you for your advice in any case. i just found your chanel. it is nice getting advice from someone, who writes prose i like. (makes some books with writing advice hard to read, if neithed the genre nor the authors prose is anywhere near what i imagine)
I don't enjoy reading prologues, but what I enjoy less is a book that takes forever to get going. I would much rather plod through the prologue and then jump right in to the action. Prologues that follow a character who has an impactful death, though, are awesome.
Prologues work only in certain genres. If I were writing thrillers, crime, mysteries, etc I would never write a prologue. However, it is almost expected by the readers of fantasy. I would primarily use a prologue to set the mood for the story. But really, the story starts in chapter 1. I recommend a prologue of 1k to 1,500 words. Generally, the reader wants to get on with the story so beware of writing long droning prologues. Do not use prologues to info dump.
I had my first chapter written for ages before taking the first few pages out and labeling it the prologue. Basically, ch.1 was a little long, and the first few pages had important info needed for the rest of the book, but was a quick bit about how magic got to the world, the relationships between the gods and how the local species originated. Was it a good idea to put it into a prologue, or leave it in ch.1 and basically jump eons for a few pages, then skip a century or two before the rest of ch.1?
Plenty of the greatest stories in history do things that modern editors insist people never do, but are still classics which even most non-readers would recognize the name of. So yeah, feel free to dump any editors that are too rigid about things that amount to oppinions on style...or just split the difference write a prologue and just call it chapter 1 (or better yet, chapter 0, like I'm planning to do on a work to be started soon, but then my prologue doesn't have much of a time jump, but is seperated from the story in a different way).
I have 800 years from the introduction of the protagonist to the present day and rather than give 800 years of what she's been up to all of that time, I introduce who/what she starts out as and we skip ahead to where we meet her again, living her life in the present. To understand what she is and why she is where she is, that brief prologue is necessary because as you may have guessed, she's not human. The prologue is therefore very necessary.
3:13 My manuscript is the opposite of this. Most of the excitement is in the first few chapters, prologue included. 😅 I’m worried about attracting the wrong audience…
Hi Viven, I was wondering, do you have any videos on Dialect? Like, if you have a character who speaks with an accent? Like I know there are some writers who like to just establish the character speaks with an accent: For example French, but then there are writers who like to write out an accent: Fleur Delacour. But i know there are pro and cons to that idea also. I need help XD
I am a prolog skipped, I have had bad experiences with them for some reason they are usually 7 pages long and dull. I have stopped reading a book at the prologue to one day flip to chapter 1 and actually really enjoy the book. So if I like a book I will finish and read the epilogue then the prologue at the way end. It's strange but I developed this habit at 12.
Personally I try to include a prologue in each book I write but even if it's skipped I keep some of the information in a few chapters and have a hook at the beginning of each chapter.
I think prologues are good to use for a point of view you aren't going to use again. In my book, the prologue is third person focusing on the creation of the world the bulk of the story takes place in, while all the chapters are first person from the protagonist Jewelia's perspective.
Because mine is a novel based on historical events, I believe my prologue makes sense as a set-up for the female who grows up to become the protagonist of my story. By the way, I LOVE prologues!
I read this one book with a prologue and an epilogue which featured the antagonists (?). But it didn't add anything to the story. I suppose it created a question or mystery that should have made me want to find out more but it didn't work. she should have used that space to focus on her MC. Finished the book but didn't continue the series.
I have a fanfiction account and honestly I don't think my prologue serves me, it's unnecessary and I stare at the people who hop into the story and then not read the rest because the prologue turns them off. But I leave it up because I still have a decent following. Now for my novel, on the other hand, I'm debating if it will benefit my story. My main character wakes up with her own inner conflicts and goes to school, and ominous things are sprinkled throughout my chapter 1, and something happens at the end of the chapter so it doesn't take too long to get to the point while still building up to the action a bit. However, I'm wondering if I should add a prologue because something happened hundreds of years ago, and I'm wondering if I should take a snippet from a certain chaotic even and "show" it, therefore foreshadowing the event in history. To put things quickly, the queen of a mythical kingdom was assassinated, and her bodyguard has to lead her people to a newly created world in her stead. My main antagonist is from this time (he does not age), so I wonder if it will elude to his identity because he is not going to show himself in person for a good number of books. (He's a shapeshifter who prefers discretion and stealth, so few have seen his true face.) Meanwhile his lieutenants are those who combat the protagonists while everything builds up to the reveal of main antag.
I have a prologue planned for my Novel. It's a scene 8 years before the rest of my book and features the meeting of my main characters. It is shorter than the other chapters. Tecnically it could simply be Chapter 1 (In a Harry Potter kinda style). But I don't know because the chapter is shorter than the others. Wouldn't that be kind of weird? I am really uncertain about it^^
What could you recommend for me? My prologue is 1200 words about my girl's horse accident, and chapter one is three months later (after the hospital and the months of rehab) when we see her adjust to being in a wheelchair.
I'm more a fan of prologues, but if it doesn't fit the story it probably is not needed. The novel I'm writing has a prologue although it needs to be shorter. Off topic but how do you feel about novels with more than one protagonist?
I have found great uses for prologues. I also believe there is an art to writing prologues.
When looking for a book to read, I always read the back of the book first. If the story sounds interesting, I read the prologue, if it has one. If I like the prologue, I go on to the next chapter. If I don't like the prologue, I don't read the book. It's like watching the trailer to a movie for me.
When writing a prologue, I use it both as a personal tool for me and as a teaser trailer to readers. In the personal realm, I use it to get a feel for writing the story, I guess. My short story "The Watchkeeper" is actually written like the prologue of a book, so it kind of leaves readers hanging at the end, wanting more. Which is something I believe a prologue should do: leave the reader wanting more of the world and the characters.
However, my latest (and longest) novel project will not have a prologue, as there's really no need for one in that particular story. So I made sure to drop a hook in the introductory paragraph. I hope it's effective enough. XD
Who da eff skips prologues? They're so fun to read!
Anal OCD wannabe knowitalls.
I take it, you have found the samples that explain exactly why you wright the epilogue.
If it is fun, who in his/her right mind would ever bother skipping it.
for the point, maybe skip the story and just read the Prologue instead?
I skip em all the time.
@@infinitycorps7316 when I write I book I'mma put important information in the prologue just to annoy people who don't read it
Why the hell would anyone skip a prologue?? It's part of the book just man up and read it
Yeah it blows my mind that people skip prologues.
I used too... Until I started writing
I blame people who can't write good prologues
prologue user and liker. I also like bonus tracks, behind the scenes, trailers, teasers, bloopers, out takes, deleted scenes and commentary, spare parts, complementary breakfast, free HBO, discounts, free Wi-Fi and.... Preludes
You forgot porn parodies.
Can you do a similar video on epilogues? this was really helpful!
I'm not a fan of prologues in general. Like you say in your video, often the information shown in the prologue finds its way into the rest of the novel (usually because the protagonist isn't aware of the events of the prologue so somebody has to describe it to them). There is perhaps ONE exception in my eyes that can redeem a prologue, and for me that is- red herrings. I once read a book where the prologue was a teenage girl being chased by her step- father who is presumably trying to kill her as he is holding a knife and covered in blood, but he gets stopped by police and is arrested. Fast forward to the current story, in the end you find out that the teenage girl is actually a murderous psychopath and the guy in prison, her step- father, was going after her because she just killed his wife, her mother. Throughout the novel, the reader was under the impression that the young girl who is currently the protagonist's mother had went through something traumatic, so when it comes to light that this wasn't true, it's a great twist and a good use of a prologue in my opinion. It made me flip back to the prologue and see it within the new context and go 'Oooooohhh'.
I have written 3 novels and 2 of them of prologues. To be honest I quite enjoy books without them.... though I've never thought about it too much haha. I do read every single page of a book too! Including the acknowledgements - we're cool ;)
I love prologues. If I love a book, I want as much of it as I can get! Why anyone would skip a prologue is beyond me. I also love a good epilogue. Great video! And it was very helpful. 👍
I read the acknowledgements too! I read literally every word. XD even sometimes the small print
Lianna Grace I have never done that. I always go straight to the story including the prologue
I read all of it. I even read the fine print about the publishing: font, if it's printed on recycled paper, the copyright dates, where it was first published. That last one is important to me. I don't live in the N.America or the UK and there are different editions for different regions of the world. I've read both versions of Harry Potter and they use different terminology and grammar. Not flat vs apartment and queue vs line and colour and color! interesting if you are a geek, and a nerd about language usage
Same!
If there is a Prologue and Acknowledgement, I have been reading them at one point or the other.
They tell something more of the story behind the story and can set a tone in a different manner.
Oh, and if we are hear on the account of wrighting, it gives you something on that field as well.
I tend to love books as they are whether they have a prologue or not. As a hobby writer I noticed I'm prone to dump too much info into a prologue while also having what feels like half a dozen prologues stuck in my head. I enjoyed the advice given here and feel better about cutting the prologue out for the moment as i write my story. Look forward to picking up your book one day.
Girl, I read the acknowledgements section too! And the author's note if they have it.
I actually like them as use for setting up the story. A little background information, character drive, or area history always make the story more believable to me. Thanks again for your videos, they make me feel like I'm not the only one struggling through this stuff.
Hey Vivien, Love you videos. Really helpful and does a lot to kindle that confidence (in order to slay that white dragon)! Just a thought/suggestion on some useful topics you could perhaps cover:
- Simple/small grammar rules and pitfalls to avoid. It would really go a long way in helping the newer writer i.e. me (and hopefully some other future writers too);
-How to build and execute good dialogue;
- Tips on how to ensure sub-plots and plots align;
- How to master the art of not sleeping so one actually has time to write haha :(
Ps. Looking forward to the Elysian Prophecy!
I love prologues and always read them and love to write them. I've used them to explaine how a world got into the condition it is in or show the political processes that caused the enhabitants of certain cities to be forgotten when humanity fled earth. Once I used the prologue to introduce the antagonist and his plans when his discovery by the protagonist doesn't happen until the third quarter of the book so that the reader could see in their own mind how the back-plot is developing without having to write it directly or constantly switch POV's so that the reader can keep up. I find the prologue to be a very powerful tool.
In many cases (and mine, in particular), a prologue sets the scene; establishes the historical context; lays down the background to the coming conflict. I'm pro prologue.
Interesting into, Vivien. The prologue on my most recent novel (White Island) is about 1 page long. It's whole purpose is to describe how the island was formed and to let the reader know there is a volcano on the island, which plays a major part in the climax. Plus it ends with a hook that tells the reader something horrible happened on the island long ago. So, I'm big on prologue in this instance.
Thank you to answering my question! :) It was helpful, but i'm definitely a prologue lover in the sense that I always read the prologue.
Thanks. And great advice.
My liking of a prologue depends on if it's necessary or at least entertaining. But I never skip. I open a book to read the words within!!
A prologue I enjoyed readind is from "Black & White" by Wes Albers. I love it because the prologue has nothing to do with the story or plotline, but sets the tone and theme. It also illustrates how the personality of the main character was shaped which helps us understand his decisions in the story.
I love prologues and epilogues and I use them all the time.
True, a prologue can be interwoven into the story, but when I write, I write the story I want to tell and all the backstories I need to completely understanding the world I have created. If I really feel a backstory I wrote is essential, I feel inclined to include it as a prologue (telling a whole story). I want to refer back to the prologue when it's relevant and have readers already know the the backstory to the event I am describing without me having to go on a long winded explanation of why its relevant. I just want to tell a story from beginning to end without having to disrupt the flow of my story.
I believe there are two times a prologue should be included. 1.) If your story's theme (ex. "ten minutes of insane courage can permanently change your life for the better") is not established until the reader has read a great many pages, then a prologue is a good place to establish the theme early. 2.) If your first act climax is world-changing (for example, your hero is at work when the story starts, but at the first act climax, the reader discovers that the hero works in the World Trade Center which has just been attacked on 9/11), then you should foreshadow what the story is really about (survival) in the prologue.
The Harry Potter example was really helpful, it makes total sense. Subscribed!
Reading every single little page... I mean, "I dedicate this book to" could give me the cutest insight to the author's world, I won't risk losing that ;P
Loving your channel Vivien. I'm about to release my novel early next year.. Thanks for the fabulous tips!
i read the acknowledgements too. i even read the the publishing info on the first page
I am writing a novel and a DO have a prologue. I personally always read prologues (why skip??), but my prologue is only a page and a half. nice and short right? well my idea was to include the prologue, which takes place a hundred years before the current story date, but then periodically skip back to scenes from to the time period set up in the prologue. that's why a prologue is a summary of what happened before, but if a reader decided to skip it, then they would get the gist with the full scenes.
you might be wondering "then WHY are you including a prologue if everything is shown later". for me I am planning on keeping it because it helps the reader better understand why everything that is happening in the present date is happening. it will also allow them to have some insight Into what kind of events take place in the novel. plus I think it has some good hooks!
what do you all think?
Sounds good. In my own WIP, my prologue takes place a good long time before the story proper, but it gives hints as to how my main baddie came to be.
This was a question I had. Thanks Vivien, this helped so much.
I read everything, but it's important to remember that many people do skip prologues - thank you for the advice. I'm actually considering an epilogue myself. I guess that some of this would be applicable to that, too. If you did a video on epilogues specifically, that would be awesome. 😃
My prologue is a sonnet that is used to express my MCs love for something in the first three chapters and its also there to foreshadow the danger to come in the latter of the novel
thanks for the advice - used it and glad I did - really works well! appreciate it and thanks again
Just read the prologue, people. IT'S A PART OF THE FRIGGIN STORY. Put there for you to read.
Sometimes I start my stories one way and then decide to switch lanes, but I feel so attached to my original first chapter that I want to keep it as a prologue. I found out later on that this is a bad reason to use a prologue. Nowadays I just tend to think of a prologue as a concise extra bit of story that might serve as an amuse-bouche. Perhaps to introduce a character that might be more prominent later on, or a bit of background to the main conflict just so that when readers get to the main conflict they feel they know a bit more than the main character. And I like it when writers use the prologue to show off their skills, it's fun to read!
I’m in the mind of having a prologue if it contains an event within your novel that is a big deal to the plot but is caused by side characters and not your main protagonist and gives the reader a good taste of what the book is about. I think that maybe your main protagonist should be what the first chapter is about because it will let the reader know that this is the person that you are following throughout the book.
I was considering if I should add a prologue into my book. There are a lot of places I can start my book and I do have an idea what I can use as a hook. However, I can't add the two together.
However, I don't like the idea of showing things from years ago that early. I planned to add the information throughout the story.
I don't understand how people skip anything in a book omg. Also so far my novel does have a prologue and I love it so much. I hope it stays.
I think most prologues should just be the first chapter, like your Harry Potter comparison. I think prologues are a weird thing, because if you want the reader to read it, it should just be your first chapter. Good advice though. I'm like you, I have to start at the absolute beginning and read to the absolute end. I take the author's word for it that I should probably read that first before we start things off.
Gibbie 420 I disagree. I actually think that whole first chunk of Harry Potter should have been a prologue because of 1. The 11 year time skip, and 2. The narration style is different. Chapter 1 should have been when he wakes up under the stairs.
the Prologue is Technically a first Chapter, just set in a different time, explaining whgat you need to enter the story.
Maybe one could publish a Prologue as a separate entity, once you have a successfull Novel to add it onto?
Gibbie 420 I never thought about it like that I mostly read prologue books because I read a lot and don’t have time for reading a bunch of books that aren’t for me I guess it depends I usually come back from the library with five books every week or two so there’s not much space for one I don’t know
i think it can usually be called either one no harm done, but there are some that would be so removed from the main story that it's probably just practice to separate it to make that clear. like she mentioned if a fantasy story begins by showing a battle or heroic event that occurs 1000 years before our main story just to set up the existence of a magical sword, its reasonable to give it a special title then the reader comes across the swords mention through the main story and has that cool aha moment when they realize they have that knowledge. but yeah, a lot of prologues could definitely just be dropped or called chapter 1
Prologue lover here. I am working my first chapter book and am just in case writing a prologue to explain what is going on in the world that I have made up for my book series.
I read every single page too, including acknowledgements xD sometimes I might feel like skipping the prologue, but that doesn't happen often, everything is there to be read.
you enunciate very clearly, m'lady.
I read every page of every book - prologue, acknowledgements, dedication, epilogues, sources, and first pages of the author's next book when they're available. One time I handed my friend my favorite book and watched as she skipped past everything, including the message written before each chapter, and went straight to chapter one. I may have caused a bit of a scene in my frustration.
Even if I skip a prologue, I've gone back and read it when I'm done. Way more often than not I discover a nugget of gold in it that could have shone light on the entire rest of the story!
Something you didn't think about is that a lot of nonfiction works have a prologue that is not necessary to understand the information being presented in the book but rather a place where the author talks about their experience or expertise with the content they are writing about or why this book came to be. Since I read non fiction and fiction when I read a fiction book a lot of times I skip the prologue and sometimes I will only read it if I enjoyed the novel or if it's an author I already love.
Info dumps are exactly why I'm trying to see if a prologue will fit in my story. I info dumped A LOT in the first chapter trying to reference something that happened a couple hundred years before my plot that is important to the story and characters. So I'm working with writing one now so I can take out all that info dumping and the readers won't be as confused.
I commented before you started talking about just making it chapter 1, and I really like that idea!
Hi Vivien!
I would love to know what books you read to get motivated, improve your writing and learn about the industry (you mentioned these in a previous video). Maybe book hauls or reviews/favorites videos as a series? Would greatly appreciate it as it would be extremely helpful!
Thanks for sharing all your tips by the way! I'm learning loads and have found that your writing lifestyle and opinions are the ones I can relate to the most
Came here for the writing advice; stayed because I couldn't look away from those eyes!
So I am planning a prologue in my book, but I think I will just give it a title instead. At least then people will read it and I don't give people the idea it might be unnecessary to read it. Because the whole thing is a setup to create tension and mystery about what is going on.
It will just be an introduction now and then part one starts (and will have its own hook, because what I am using as chapter one was originally the prologue, but it just didn't fit that well.
On the debate: It totally depends on a prologue. I read a prologue of 20 pages once that intruced around 5 characters in the space of two pages and half of it was all over the place (when speaking about voice and atmosphere and what kind of fantasy it actually was).
On the hand you have Pat Rothfuss, who uses is 0.5-1.5 prologues and epilogues to set the atmosphere and voice as well as creating overlap in the beginning and ending of the books of his Kingkiller Chronicles. It makes in more cohesive overall.
I guess: make a prologue just a chapter if you possibly can. But I will also say that if the prologue is done well it is just a nice intro to a story. But almost all of the time they don't need to be called prologue. They could be called something like: 10 years ago or are boring to read or turn out to be either partly or completely unnecessary. I read them, because they belong to the story and I want to read it all, or at least try (rarely I DNF a book).
Especially in fantasy I feel like they could be done better of just be incorporated in the story (which huge parts most of the time already are). Or it feels like an incredible infodump...
But I agree: write, then check if you need to keep it. If not, drop it at the beginnen and work it into the rest of the book.
My prologue is currently in the form of a voice over monologue cold open, so it's pretty short. But I'm thinking of either incorporating it into a later chapter in some other form or cutting it altogether.
I think prologue's are great, sometimes, and can give you clues to what the main story will be about by giving a brief backstory first. Even though it's a game, The Last of Us is a great example. You don't really have to write a prologue, but I think it's great for some stories.
I always think of a prologue as a good place for the villain to kick off the story, like Darth Vader's capture of Princess Leia in SW: A New Hope, or when the monster attacks somebody at the beginning of every episode of Kolchack: The Night Stalker, before Luke or Carl ever show up.
Glad I'm not alone with that idea.
I wrote my prologue in a way that the reader has no choice but to read it. It gives a small background into the main character who is not a people person and it contains information that gives clues to the end of the story
At first I was a 100% positive that I needed a prologbut then I realized that a lot of people skip over the prologue and my prologue is crucial for the story so now it's chapter 1
I actually am PRO prologue. I try for it to truly exist as a prologue and not a short chapter 1 with another name. It’s not vital to the story but for me it’s to set the tone. I would never think a prologue is being lazy though. I see people minded and if it fits, it’ll go in ;) My prologues are either 1 or 2 pages long (rarely gets to 2).
Prologues are cool, extra content is always good content in my opinion
You always have such great advice!:)
I feel that the prologue should be short if it's going to exist at all. That's not to say that it isn't valid if it's long, but it's more effective when it's a quick snippet of a past event. In fact, these quick prologues often work quite well to build suspense.
The prologue is a part of the style in which the story of your novel was written.
If the prologue works in your story, it is because it was right for the story you wrote in the first place.
Hi Vivien. Thank you for the good tips. Personally I'm with you on the "read every single page in the book"-perspective, and love prologues myself. I'm currently busy with a dark fantasy novel and it includes a prologue that fits squarely into the "punch the reader in the face"-category, and I also believe that my first chapter has enough of a hook to pull the reader into the story even if they skip the prologue. However, I've just imported it into Scrivener (for windows), which I just bought today, and am using the Novel (without parts) template, but am stumped on how to include the Prologue?
What happens is scrivener titles my prologue with "Chapter..." (without a number), and then titles chapter one correctly as "chapter one". My question is how do I get it to not include the word "chapter" on the prologue section? I can't seem to find a particular tutorial video or help topic for this particular hiccup, so if you or anyone else in the comments know how I should do this, I'd be super grateful! Thank you again! (apologies for the long post)
im writeing my first novel today for a fantasy book and i am sure it needs a prolauge any tips?
In the book I'm currently writing I wrote a prologue. However, I wrote it in a way so it's important to understand some of the things about the protagonist but if you were to skip it your reading experience won't be greatly effected.
A good book that has a strong prologue is the Revenge of the Sith novel. Its prologue has a major hook, although it's easy to fly right into chapter 1.
Hey Vivien. I'm a new subscriber to your channel. You tips are helping me learn so much how to a book writer. thank you so much for your of your tips. But I do have a question. what if you want to put prologues in your other books to tell a story? like if prologues are the flash back of the story?
Awesome vid, btw! Thumbs up!
I did a prologue but it is more like I just laid the protagonist's past in order for her personality to be understandable for the readers. Like why she talks and acts the way she do. Is that fine?
For my own story, the prologue is a brief summary of the history of the last few decades, only the few major events that have significance now. The earlier of which was heralded by the main character's grandfather, while the more recent events being brought about by his father. Would said prologue be needed/necessary?
Because it's not vital to understanding the story, and the first chapter has its own hook, would that prologue be fine? Also, would a short intro be fine as well, or not both a prologue and intro?
Idk I'm the kind of person who usually doesn't notice there's a prologue at first but a few pages into the first chapter I realize there is one and then I read it. But anyways in writing a story right now and it has a very short prologue that just explains the world/time period a bit but I'm afraid that I put too much/too little/it's not necessary. The reason I put it there was because I felt like if it weren't there i would have too much explaining to do in the first chapter...idk
I very sorry to say so, since I usually love your videos, but I think this one sort of misses the point. "Write the prologue, if you feel like it," is not a very helpful advice. Also, I wouldn't say that a prologue has to necessarily benefit a story. Take Umberto Eco's Name of the Rose. The prologue is a joke, basically, since he describes in it how he found the whole story somewhere in the archives and that he didn't actually write it, but that it was, in fact, written by somebody else a long time ago. And if you didn't know who Umberto Eco was, you might believe it, because he was a great historian and made the writing style extremely believable. So, the prologue doesn't affect the story in the slightest, but makes you wonder the whole time, if the story really happened or not.
Prologues can be very interesting if your story consists of more timelines. Sometimes it might be a good idea to not tell your story chronologically and shuffle it's parts a bit, so that the catharsis is all the more impactful. Good examples of this are movies like Memento or Ethernal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Your prologue can even be just "extra content". Some great writers of the past, Victor Hugo for instance, were masters of writing pointless descriptions, like that of the system of sewers in Paris, yet it made for a great read. It's all about telling the reader something they don't know, yet. If you tell them what a character did on day 1 and they are mostly banal everyday thing, of course there is no point in writing it. A prologue doesn't necessarily have to benefit the story, but it should be mentally enriching for the reader.
And by the way, people who skip over parts of books are idiots.
honestly my character, 'Gray' would seem really angry and dull without the prolague which sets up his issue which puts him through the five stages of grief and is why he's distant.
can you please talk more about self-publishing? my main confusion is about marketing and such...
+hmmm idk Thanks for the suggestion! Adding it to the list!
thank you for consideration o/
Thanks for this video:)
i just read the prologue of your book on your homepage. i could not find where to post.... anything really.... I was just wondering, mary asks herself where she would be WITH "the other" or whithout? she says with and it confuses me. but english is only my second language. and i could not even find where to post this on your homepage. oh well.
thank you for your advice in any case. i just found your chanel. it is nice getting advice from someone, who writes prose i like. (makes some books with writing advice hard to read, if neithed the genre nor the authors prose is anywhere near what i imagine)
I don't enjoy reading prologues, but what I enjoy less is a book that takes forever to get going. I would much rather plod through the prologue and then jump right in to the action. Prologues that follow a character who has an impactful death, though, are awesome.
The fabric of space time is torn apart in my prologue. Not sure I can skip it.
My god, that "Oops" 5:58 made me burst into laughter.
Prologues work only in certain genres. If I were writing thrillers, crime, mysteries, etc I would never write a prologue. However, it is almost expected by the readers of fantasy. I would primarily use a prologue to set the mood for the story. But really, the story starts in chapter 1. I recommend a prologue of 1k to 1,500 words. Generally, the reader wants to get on with the story so beware of writing long droning prologues. Do not use prologues to info dump.
I had my first chapter written for ages before taking the first few pages out and labeling it the prologue. Basically, ch.1 was a little long, and the first few pages had important info needed for the rest of the book, but was a quick bit about how magic got to the world, the relationships between the gods and how the local species originated. Was it a good idea to put it into a prologue, or leave it in ch.1 and basically jump eons for a few pages, then skip a century or two before the rest of ch.1?
I remember reading again Eragon, only to discover there was a prologue I completely missed the first time!
My agent and editors insist one must never prologue.
If their opinion is in conflict weith yours, consider to pick another.
This is your story, not theirs.
Plenty of the greatest stories in history do things that modern editors insist people never do, but are still classics which even most non-readers would recognize the name of.
So yeah, feel free to dump any editors that are too rigid about things that amount to oppinions on style...or just split the difference write a prologue and just call it chapter 1 (or better yet, chapter 0, like I'm planning to do on a work to be started soon, but then my prologue doesn't have much of a time jump, but is seperated from the story in a different way).
I have 800 years from the introduction of the protagonist to the present day and rather than give 800 years of what she's been up to all of that time, I introduce who/what she starts out as and we skip ahead to where we meet her again, living her life in the present. To understand what she is and why she is where she is, that brief prologue is necessary because as you may have guessed, she's not human. The prologue is therefore very necessary.
This was very helpful! I know prologues are usually what happened before, but what if it's what's happening at the same time as the first chapter?
3:13 My manuscript is the opposite of this. Most of the excitement is in the first few chapters, prologue included. 😅 I’m worried about attracting the wrong audience…
Hi Viven, I was wondering, do you have any videos on Dialect? Like, if you have a character who speaks with an accent? Like I know there are some writers who like to just establish the character speaks with an accent: For example French, but then there are writers who like to write out an accent: Fleur Delacour. But i know there are pro and cons to that idea also. I need help XD
I am a prolog skipped, I have had bad experiences with them for some reason they are usually 7 pages long and dull. I have stopped reading a book at the prologue to one day flip to chapter 1 and actually really enjoy the book. So if I like a book I will finish and read the epilogue then the prologue at the way end. It's strange but I developed this habit at 12.
Personally I try to include a prologue in each book I write but even if it's skipped I keep some of the information in a few chapters and have a hook at the beginning of each chapter.
I'll read a prologue if it's there. It feels right to me.
Any tips on writing graphic novels?
Well great video... I'm subbing.
I think prologues are good to use for a point of view you aren't going to use again. In my book, the prologue is third person focusing on the creation of the world the bulk of the story takes place in, while all the chapters are first person from the protagonist Jewelia's perspective.
Because mine is a novel based on historical events, I believe my prologue makes sense as a set-up for the female who grows up to become the protagonist of my story. By the way, I LOVE prologues!
I read this one book with a prologue and an epilogue which featured the antagonists (?). But it didn't add anything to the story. I suppose it created a question or mystery that should have made me want to find out more but it didn't work. she should have used that space to focus on her MC. Finished the book but didn't continue the series.
I LOVE CLIVE CUSSLER!!!
:D
I have a fanfiction account and honestly I don't think my prologue serves me, it's unnecessary and I stare at the people who hop into the story and then not read the rest because the prologue turns them off. But I leave it up because I still have a decent following.
Now for my novel, on the other hand, I'm debating if it will benefit my story. My main character wakes up with her own inner conflicts and goes to school, and ominous things are sprinkled throughout my chapter 1, and something happens at the end of the chapter so it doesn't take too long to get to the point while still building up to the action a bit. However, I'm wondering if I should add a prologue because something happened hundreds of years ago, and I'm wondering if I should take a snippet from a certain chaotic even and "show" it, therefore foreshadowing the event in history.
To put things quickly, the queen of a mythical kingdom was assassinated, and her bodyguard has to lead her people to a newly created world in her stead. My main antagonist is from this time (he does not age), so I wonder if it will elude to his identity because he is not going to show himself in person for a good number of books. (He's a shapeshifter who prefers discretion and stealth, so few have seen his true face.) Meanwhile his lieutenants are those who combat the protagonists while everything builds up to the reveal of main antag.
I love prologues
I have a prologue planned for my Novel. It's a scene 8 years before the rest of my book and features the meeting of my main characters. It is shorter than the other chapters. Tecnically it could simply be Chapter 1 (In a Harry Potter kinda style). But I don't know because the chapter is shorter than the others. Wouldn't that be kind of weird? I am really uncertain about it^^
Read Confess by Colleen Hoover! Great book, but it's got a good example of another way to do this that I *really* liked.
what do youthink about "in medias res" as a prologue?
I like Tom Clancy prologues, mainly because there quick and very well paced, I do agree on that first chapter of Harry Potter though.
I also read the acknowledgements of many books; I can't say what percent!
I saw the clive cussler reference coming a lightyear away.
What could you recommend for me? My prologue is 1200 words about my girl's horse accident, and chapter one is three months later (after the hospital and the months of rehab) when we see her adjust to being in a wheelchair.
I love prologues. If I write a prologue and somebody doesn't read it, well then they aren't my target audience and no skin off my nose.
I'm more a fan of prologues, but if it doesn't fit the story it probably is not needed. The novel I'm writing has a prologue although it needs to be shorter. Off topic but how do you feel about novels with more than one protagonist?