Including a prologue in your story is a high-risk, high-reward scenario. Some readers absolutely love them and will buy up your book more quickly for having one, but many readers won’t read them at all and may lose out on a resonant moment that leads to negative reviews. With so much on the line, it makes sense to take a little extra time to consider and decide if a prologue is the right strategic decision for your novel. Here are a few questions we’d consider before publishing:
Is a Prologue Necessary to Your Story?
A lot of writers choose to add a prologue to their story because it’s a quick and easy way to give some background, history, or do some world building. They’re right. It really is easy, but that doesn’t mean it’s necessary. Instead, consider weaving in snippets of those important aspects of your story into the rest of it. Oftentimes, it’s much more effective to let the world or a character’s backstory slowly unfold the same way it does when you’re meeting a new person for the first time. There are some times that this isn’t possible, but is yours one of them?
Does a Prologue Skew Your Story Structure Checkpoints?
Possibly the most important consideration to make with your prologue is if it helps or hinders your ability to keep readers on board as measured by lit agents with the checkpoints of story structure. As the first thing many readers will read, especially before purchase, it must have a convincing hook. But since many readers skip them, you must also have a second hook that is just as compelling within your first chapter while also getting you inciting incident in at pace. It can be a lot to balance. Adding a prologue will give your first checkpoint a little leeway, but all of the others must arrive on time.
How Long is the Prologue?
More and more readers are wanting shorter chapters to fit in time for reading during their busy lives. That goes double for prologues. As they aren’t truly a piece in the main story, readers can quickly get impatient and grow likely to skip ahead. Many readers won’t touch them at all, which can be detrimental to their understanding of your story if you really do fall into the category where your prologue is necessary. The best way to keep readers engaged is by keeping the prologue short. The overall length they’re willing to bear varies a little depending upon your authorial voice. A good rule of thumb is to keep it under 1,250 words but one session with a book coach could help you find your personalized optimal length.
Are You Being Creative or Info Dumping?
Prologues are a great place to take creative risks like exploring a new POV or give a new perspective on time. They’re also a breeding ground of easily-forgotten information that doesn’t serve the story or fails to engage the reader. How does your prologue add to your story? It should be more than just giving information to readers. Every part of your book is about creating an experience for your readers. The prologue is no different. Should it make the cut?
Can it Help with Pacing Later?
One of the most useful things that a prologue can do is prevent info dumping or flashbacks later in the story. It isn’t uncommon for notes of this nature to come from a good developmental or copy editor while you’re still reworking the content of a story because a section of your story has slowed considerably and the pacing needs reworked. Then, the prologue gets added later. But you can also get this feeling earlier as you read it yourself or when your beta reads come back. Though it isn’t a perfect solution every time, it’s worth considering when you’re trying to fix a flat scene.
Does the Prologue Distract Readers from the Story?
If it isn’t quickly clear how your prologue ties into the rest of your story, it’s likely that readers will be spending time with a divided focus. One half of them is paying attention and feeling immersed in the story, but the other half is always looking for clues about the prologue. In fact, many prologues end up spoiling readers for future plot points in your character’s journey. We suggest that all prologue writers include questions about it in their beta reading questionnaire to get insight into this early on in your editing process. But if it’s something that you’re particularly concerned about, it may be worth it to spring for a professional beta reader.
Whether or not to include a prologue in your story will greatly affect your reader’s experience, your eventual reviews, your ability to market and sell your novel, and how an agent will interact with your story. The very first pages of a book are absolutely critical, and they are often worth some extra attention. If you’re wanting to work on the opening of your novel, we would suggest a book coaching session targeted specifically for it, or you can work with a professional beta reader to get an opinion on the piece as a whole with specific considerations of your opening chapters and prologue.
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