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Don’t mess with my Prologue(s)!

 

The amazing conclusions of literary professionals never cease to amaze me. What so many seem to deem unacceptable, undesirable, and somehow equivocate into “bad writing” raises not only my attention but often my ire.

 

Prologues have managed to gain the negative attention stigma by supposedly savvy editors with disdainful exclamations or sarcastic questions such as “Does anyone really read prologues?” Well, yes, many people read them when they appear in the first few pages of a novel. And don’t find one single objection to them.

 

If I had to invent a complaint about a prologue, my only one would be to please not make it too long. That’s it. And even that one only applies if it’s filled with too much history prior to the story.

 

What could possibly be “wrong” with a prologue? Some insist the story must begin with Chapter One and to just put the prologue information there, but I can tell you when that’s done without noting the degree of separation from Chapter Two, it can be very confusing.

 

As readers, do you seriously have objections to prologues?

 

 

Lord, I’m so grateful your grace is sufficient for me. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

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8 responses to “Don’t mess with my Prologue(s)!”

  1. Brenda Avatar
    Brenda

    This is among the great list of rules to be aware of but not bound to and obsessed over. Just as prologues, when well done are perfectly fine, so is using more than one POV in a scene, having lots of characters in your book and even using omniscient voice.
    Yes, if those things are done badly, a book will be a mess. But you can write a book with no prologue, one POV, and only three characters in the entire book, and still write badly.
    RE: Prologues–I especially don’t understand the notion that “people don’t read prologues.” Then um…why buy the book if you’re not going to read it? Maybe this comes from my background of being raised in a family with very little money. I can’t afford to waste my dollars like that.

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  2. Brenda Anderson Avatar
    Brenda Anderson

    Nicole, as a reader, that’s another one of those “rules” that completely baffle me.
    Why would someone not read a prologue? Isn’t that an integral part of the story? Don’t the same rules apply to a prologue that apply to the first chapter? The important thing is to hook the reader then keep them interested.

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  3. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    You said it all so well, Brenda. Common sense.
    What’s the deal with setting prologues up as a negative? And most of the POV issues are trends, not steadfast rules. If some of the “classics” attended to all these rules, they wouldn’t be classics. Mostly the rules have become a double-standard issue. It depends on who follows them whether or not they’re “acceptable”.

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  4. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    Brenda A., I totally agree. Right on.

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  5. dayle Avatar
    dayle

    I love prologues except when they’re called prologues. It should be noted that I have a “get to the point” personality.
    The X-files prologues were great and I like to do the same with my novels.
    I think the problem for many is that they’ve been bit too many times by bad prologues. Prologues that delay the actual story and don’t lend to the atmosphere or power of the story.
    Then its kinda like putting out a nice steak for someone and then pulling it back and telling them they have to eat this rice cake first

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  6. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    “I think the problem for many is that they’ve been bit too many times by bad prologues. Prologues that delay the actual story and don’t lend to the atmosphere or power of the story.”
    You make a good point, Dayle.
    “Then its kinda like putting out a nice steak for someone and then pulling it back and telling them they have to eat this rice cake first.”
    Love this!

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  7. ShinyAeon Avatar
    ShinyAeon

    I’m a prologue skipper. I admit it. Actually, I’ll glance at the first sentence or two…if it reads like fiction, or if it catches my interest in some other way, I’ll give it a go. If it reads like a history lesson written in pseudo-archaic-vaguely-Biblical language, or it it seems too unlike the synopsis, then it’s off to Chapter One. When I read fiction, I’m looking for a story…and too often it’s not until Chapter One that the story actually starts.
    This is not just because of bad prologues; good ones have put me off, too. You know, the ones who introduce an interesting character who I’m immediately drawn to who’s caught up in an interesting situation…who then drops out of the story, never to be seen again? Or sometimes they get horribly killed or tortured to show you how bad the villain is, but the main character isn’t half so interesting as they were, so I just never get into the story enough to care about what’s happening to anyone else.
    You know what the very existence of a prologue says to me? It says, “Don’t get too involved yet, because when this little bit is over, everything’s going to change again and a whole different story begins.” So, fine – I won’t get involved. I’ll just skip forward and read the stuff I CAN get involved with.
    And you know what? In years of skipping prologues, I’ve only regretted the practice once or twice. Most of the time there really wasn’t anything crucial to the story in there after all.
    My best advice for those who want to prologue is: Make it as interesting as any first chapter, and then make sure your first chapter is just as interesting as the prologue. In essence, you’re asking someone to begin your novel twice; so either make it effortless, or make sure what follows is worth the effort.

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  8. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    Ooh, you’re tough company. 😉 I think some prologues should be chapter ones. They’re too long, they eliminate characters as you said, or they seem to be unrelated to the main story. But I don’t think blanket condemnations of them work either because it’s a stylistic device that can serve a good purpose when done well.

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