Irrational hatred of prologues?

TrixieLox · Feb 28, 2012

This has probably been discussed before but in almost every agent's blog I read, prologues are slammed. Some even say they stop reading as soon as they see the word 'prologue'. And yet I am not kidding you, of the 10 debut novels I've read the past year that garnered fab publishing deals, 7 of them start with a prologue (yup, I did a 'survey', don't judge me ;-)

I know the reasons agents don't like them - means novel doesn't start in action, can have too much back story, etc etc. But a good writer isn't gonna make those mistakes. I feel sorry for the poor prologue. It's getting wiped out through misuse. Is the hatred justified? Do we need to start campaigning for prologue rights?

Buffysquirrel · Feb 28, 2012

You say 7/10 debut novels you've read had prologues, then say it's getting wiped out? Do you think your statistics really back up that assertion?

IceCreamEmpress · Feb 28, 2012

The number of unpublished novels that have prologues that don't work and are totally unnecessary is high. By the time novels get to the publication stage, the unnecessary prologues have generally been jettisoned by editors, and the prologues that remain are the ones that work.

Edward M. Grant · Feb 28, 2012

I didn't understand the hatred of prologues until I critiqued an unpublished novel some time back. The prologue set up an interesting main character, set up a bunch of interesting conflicts that I wanted to see them explore... and then another character who had barely been mentioned before killed them and turned out to be the real main character in the rest of the story.

I didn't exactly throw the Word file across the room, but I did metaphorically.

TrixieLox · Feb 28, 2012

Buffysquirrel said:
You say 7/10 debut novels you've read had prologues, then say it's getting wiped out? Do you think your statistics really back up that assertion?

You just go and take the drama away from my post with your hawkish eyes*, why doncha?

*You're right, damn you.

willietheshakes · Feb 28, 2012

A discussion about prologues?

Why has no one here thought to do that before?!?!?!

(And before it goes too far: shoot me. For the love of all that is holy, someone shoot me.)

quicklime · Feb 28, 2012

TrixieLox said:
This has probably been discussed before but in almost every agent's blog I read, prologues are slammed. Some even say they stop reading as soon as they see the word 'prologue'. And yet I am not kidding you, of the 10 debut novels I've read the past year that garnered fab publishing deals, 7 of them start with a prologue (yup, I did a 'survey', don't judge me ;-)

I know the reasons agents don't like them - means novel doesn't start in action, can have too much back story, etc etc. But a good writer isn't gonna make those mistakes. I feel sorry for the poor prologue. It's getting wiped out through misuse. Is the hatred justified? Do we need to start campaigning for prologue rights?

7/10, it seems it isn't getting wiped out at all from your sampling...

Katrina S. Forest · Feb 28, 2012

Edward M. Grant said:
I didn't understand the hatred of prologues until I critiqued an unpublished novel some time back. The prologue set up an interesting main character, set up a bunch of interesting conflicts that I wanted to see them explore... and then another character who had barely been mentioned before killed them and turned out to be the real main character in the rest of the story.

Wait, that sounds like a well-known fantasy novel I read recently...

The thing with prologues is that even when they're interesting and exciting, they're not going to carry five chapters of boring info-dump, if that's what comes next. Chapter 1 has to be just as interesting as the prologue or the audience will feel cheated. (Luckily, Well-known Fantasy Novel did do this and I enjoyed it very much once I got into it.)

DeleyanLee · Feb 28, 2012

willietheshakes said:
A discussion about prologues?

Why has no one here thought to do that before?!?!?!

(And before it goes too far: shoot me. For the love of all that is holy, someone shoot me.)

Mandiloo322 · Feb 29, 2012

Maybe it depends on the length. I only enjoy prologues if they are less than ten pages. I just want to be in it long enough to find out something interesting, then jump to the action.

scottprotege · Feb 29, 2012

I skip right over them.

blacbird · Feb 29, 2012

My dislike of (some, perhaps to be interpreted as many) prologues is based on three factors:

1. Infodump. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too many things I've seen called "Prologue" have been nothing but liner notes for the story, as though the writer couldn't remember what it was about if they weren't there.

2. Pretension. Things that simple should have been called Chapter 1, but for some reason the writer just couldn't resist the temptation to call it a Prologue.

3. Non-story stuff, things that are completely superfluous to the story.

4. Story stuff, things that should be presented during normal narrative exposition, not right up front to hammer the reader.

caw

blacbird · Feb 29, 2012

willietheshakes said:
A discussion about prologues?

Why has no one here thought to do that before?!?!?!

(And before it goes too far: shoot me. For the love of all that is holy, someone shoot me.)

BANG!

But, yeah, this is like the threads about adverbs, or dialogue tags. AW is crawling with them, and a little sleuthing will reveal some useful information.

caw

artemis31386 · Feb 29, 2012

If a prologue is well written, I tend to enjoy it if its only one or two pages. Otherwise, I skip over it and get to the meat of the book.

Nick Rolynd · Feb 29, 2012

As with all things in writing, some prologues are good, and some are not. Some prologues are very useful and interesting; others detract from the story. For every prologue you read in a published book, ten more were probably discarded along the publication route.

But then, the same can be said for works in general, epilogues, regular chapters, etc. I don't see what makes prologues so different, other than this hyped up irrational hatred that some people seem to have for them. Prologues are just another story element to me. Sometimes, I find them appropriate for my works. Other times I don't.

For example, I have a prologue for one of my dystopian stories that depicts an event that happens several months before the real plot begins to unfold. Not only does it introduce a few key concepts that are vital to understanding the story as a whole, but it also (unbeknownst to the reader the first time through) contains 1) the event that triggers the entire plot and 2) foreshadows the entire story to come via a careful layout of subtle clues, both of which are very important to know when the big reveal and climax roll around.

Without the prologue, I'd have to stick a lengthy flashback in there somewhere or have my character "remember" and describe the event some point, which I hate doing unless it's absolutely necessary. In this case, it's not. In my opinion, the prologue flows very well into the whole story and gives a decent and well-paced introduction to the setting and protagonist without info-dumping. Not to mention stuff actually happens in it. (I, too, have a strong dislike of the prologue where nothing really "happens.")

On the other hand, I would never begin my 1920's historical fantasy with a prologue. It doesn't need one. I pick up...well, not exactly in medias res, but after the real "beginning" has happened. In this story, I do flash back to what happened in the beginning in bits and pieces, because it works well with the way this particular story is told. In the former story, such a technique would really disrupt the flow.

Basically, whether or not to include a prologue depends on the particular story, in terms of both plot and writing style.

eyeblink · Mar 1, 2012

I've read quite a few novels lately which have prologues and/or epilogues, but they aren't actually called that. For example, Kirsten Hubbard's Like Mandarin, which I've just read, calls them "before" and "after". They are separated in time from the main part of the narrative, by six years in the case of "before", but are both necessary to the novel.

Before I joined AW, I'd never heard of anyone automatically skipping prologues. I always give the author the benefit of the doubt and think that they are there for a reason. But then I'm old school like that.

Buffysquirrel · Mar 1, 2012

I think the prologue in Sabriel killed my desire ever to read another prologue. Hey, characters. Hey, interesting stuff. Hey, possible storylines.

Hey, huge 17-year jump

.

fredXgeorge · Mar 1, 2012

What really bugs me about quite a few prologues I've read is that they are basically just a really exciting scene from the climax at the end of the book, and then just before you find out what happens, BAM, the prologue ends and we have to start at the beginning and have 300 pages to read before we get there again.

Chapter 1 should have enough of a hook to keep someone reading without cheating by putting an exciting scene first. And worse, in one book in particular I'm thinking of, Chapter 1 is definitely good enough to hook readers so the prologue was really just a waste of my time.

ohthatmomagain · Mar 1, 2012

I like prologues... but I cut mine in my book. It took 4 edits to make me do it, but in the end, I realized that it gave too much away (it was one of those that start 5 days after chapter 1). To be honest, I thought I needed it because my beginning chapter was a bit (boring) lacking. I finally fixed that problem and found I didn't need the prologue.

I don't like the poems at the beginning of chapters. I don't read those--- give me some story.

RobJ · Mar 1, 2012

I've started skipping Mondays. Mondays are fine if they're interesting. Most of them aren't.

TrixieLox said:
This has probably been discussed before but in almost every agent's blog I read, prologues are slammed. Some even say they stop reading as soon as they see the word 'prologue'.

Just curious. When you say 'Almost every agent's blog', how many blogs are we talking about, and how many 'slammed' prologues? Are we talking two out of three, 75 out of 100?

Buffysquirrel · Mar 1, 2012

Eh, every time I see 'prologue' I flash on Frankie Howerd. And whenever I catch sight of this thread, I read 'Traditional Fear of Prologues'.

Maybe I didn't get enough sleep.

catian · Mar 1, 2012

For me prologues get in the way of things.
If I am going to write a story I will start once not twice.
I'll get straight to the core of the story.
I aim for the one start only meaning there is only the one entrance to the one exit for me.
One can have two/three/four entrances and one exit I consider that a slow process.
I do it the other way around, I have one entrance and multiple exits.
It is quicker.

Erin Kelly · Mar 1, 2012

I don't like prologues either. I find that most writers who utilize prologues are doing so because they haven't mastered the art of revealing information throughout the story. Also, I wonder how many of the 7/10 prologues were written AFTER the book was picked up? It's very likely that an editor asked the prologues to be written.

Great question/discussion!

Erin Kelly
www.erinentradakelly.com
Visit me online to get free feedback!

ChaosTitan · Mar 1, 2012

Agents and editors often slam badly written prologues, because they are difficult to get right.

Agents and editors also slam badly written [fill in the story element] when they come across poor [fill in the story element].

Result? Write it well, whatever element you're writing.

EnitaMeadows · Mar 1, 2012

I know a lot of readers who will see the word "prologue" and just skip that chapter. So I can see the logic behind it. If I decide to write a prologue, I make sure it's "disposable" but good enough to keep. Something not totally needed to understand the rest of the story, but...something that might help a little bit. Maybe I'm rambling. Uh...

On another note, I don't mind prologues myself, and personally will read it if there is one in a book.

Irrational hatred of prologues?

TrixieLox

Benefactor Member

Buffysquirrel

IceCreamEmpress

Hapless Virago

Edward M. Grant

TrixieLox

Benefactor Member

willietheshakes

Gentleman. Scholar. Bastard.

quicklime

all out of fucks to give

Katrina S. Forest

DeleyanLee

Writing Anarchist

Mandiloo322

[Shhhh....I'm writing.]

scottprotege

blacbird

blacbird

artemis31386

All around miscreant

Nick Rolynd

50% Dark, 50% Snark

eyeblink

Barbara says hi

Buffysquirrel

fredXgeorge

I heart sexy elves and wizards.

ohthatmomagain

writing, working, weeping, winning

RobJ

Buffysquirrel

catian

Erin Kelly

Writer

ChaosTitan

Around

EnitaMeadows