Comments on: Why You Don’t Need a Prologue

By: John D

John D — Sat, 21 May 2011 06:13:30 +0000

My opening chapter is in my antagonist's ( a murderous child) pov, and references my protagonist, who is a child also. Following chapters take my protagonist to adulthood where he comes full-circle to run head-on into the antagonist. Does this make my opening chapter a prologue, or simply chapter one?

By: Cheryl Corbin

Cheryl Corbin — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 16:01:18 +0000

Rachael, given your scenario, a prologue makes sense. The story is essentially one large flashback, so you need the prologue to provide context. Nicholas Sparks did something similar with The Notebook.

By: Rachael

Rachael — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 18:00:56 +0000

What if you're beginning the story in the present, but the majority of the story is in the past, i.e. grandma telling her grandkids the story of how she became an actress. Wouldn't we meet the grandma at old age in the prologue, then move into her past in Chapter 1? Then wouldn't you need an Epilogue to bring the reader back to the present, where the grandkids ask her questions? Just curious…

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 21:37:06 +0000

I'm using a prologue for my YA novel because an event in distant history affects the present. Now if I can only figure out how to format it in Word…it will not be page 1!

By: Cheryl

Cheryl — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:11:20 +0000

You’re right, Jason, there has to be a compelling hook in the prologue for it to work. I think that’s where new writers stumble… they don’t know how to make the prologue compelling. The examples you gave from your clients’ work sound very appropriate for the type of book. Those are the prologues I like.

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By: Jason Black

Jason Black — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:45:58 +0000

IMHO, prologues work well so long as one critical condition is met:

They contain a compelling hook that propels the reader into chapter 1.

Most of the categories of prologue you list, don’t, and as such you’re right that they shouldn’t make the final manuscript.

But when writers give me a prologue that is, itself, a dramatic and engaging scene? I love that. Why not include it? If it got my attention (and even more so, if it also helped me learn something interesting about the characters), then there’s nothing wrong with this at all.

I have a client who is writing a memoir of her experiences going through paramedic training. She opens with a prologue from when she was seventeen and was involved in a horrible auto accident. Very compelling!

Another client, writing a spy thriller, opens with a prologue that dramatically shows the inciting incident that propels the main characters (who must clean up after this incident) into action.

Those both worked great. Of course, the counter argument is just that in those cases, the author shoud consider renaming the prologue to “Chapter 1″.
.-= Jason Black´s last blog ..How to pick the right point of view for your novel =-.

By: Cheryl

Cheryl — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 23:34:13 +0000

Good question. I would say no. An epilogue is usually a short scene that takes place some time after the end of the book. In the case of a romance, the story ends with the hero and heroine deciding to commit to each other and live happily ever after. I’ve seen epilogues in romance books that depict a short scene a year or two in the future, say at the birth of the first child.

An epilogue seems to work best if there is a story thread that wasn’t firmly finished in the story. The writer jumps to the future and shows the resolution of that thread in the epilogue. On the ones I’ve read, I’ve found them very satisfying, probably because they are answering that final open question.

By: Todd Thiner

Todd Thiner — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:31:50 +0000

do these same rules apply to an epilogue

By: Cheryl

Cheryl — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:11:41 +0000

I completely agree. A prologue can be a great way to warm up to writing your story. Just as long as you critically evaluate it after your story is finished to see if you still need it.