You can thank the "Prologue..." thread, cause now I have a question...

I dunno, I think the author's notes I remember are the ones that tell you "this is a true story" or "the facts in this novel are well researched and awesome". That sort of thing informs what you are reading, especially when it is fiction. It can make you appreciate the story even more knowing the inside scoop behind the facts.

But other than that, I really prefer just launching into the story itself.

I reckon author's notes are just as toothpaste described. A prologue is part of the story, and seems to be usually used to set the scene. So, in some cases, is necessary. I think it's often in place to obviate the need for later flashbacks.

Author's notes are just that; notes form the author. The prologe is like the first chapter, just because of timing it isn't called chapter 1.

But, what is the importance of the authors note, and is one always needed?

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They are not always needed.

Such notes may explain a bit about the book's premise, inspiration, or maybe the writer just wants to wave hello and say thank you.

They're not always important. I find the longer they go on the less important they are. Unless it's a REALLY good writer anything longer than a half page is positively trivial. I've seen them run on to 20 pages, skipped them, and enjoyed the book just fine.

Sometimes I've asked for an Author's Note in front of a story to explain its context to a new reader in 100 words or less.

It would be something like this:

The Adventure of the Flying Pig is a Holmes and Watson novel set in A.C. Doyle's universe. This book was discovered under a brick in the fireplace of a bed and breakfast by the char lady, who promptly took it to Ebay and made a fortune. The author is dead, but were he alive he'd likely be very annoyed about the whole business.

Too often these days prologues contain the info dump a writer couldn't figure out how to incorporate into the main body of the story.

Unless (again) it's by a REALLY good writer who knows what she's doing, most prologues can be skipped or deleted altogether. That's my opinion, I'm fond of it, so don't bother convincing me otherwise, and I will return the favor to the pro-prologuers.

I will accept an Author's Note over a prologue any time!

I often find Author's Notes interesting. They give me insight into the writing, the background of the work or whatever the author wants to share. It's a direct dialogue between the reader and the author herself/himself. I find it really cool.

A brief author's note often adds that little piece of context that makes the story feel just a bit more real. One useful note I can remember is from Donna Jo Napoli's Breath, where she explains the pronunciation of one character's name which uses a letter foreign to English. At the end of the novel, there was a two page note on the text that explained some of the historical context of the story.

What stage are author's notes typically added? Pre-agent? I can't imagine an agent being terribly excited over a note on the text...