On Writing: How to deliver exposition PART ONE [ Avatar l Matrix l Game of Thrones l Harry Potter ]

[@HelloFutureMe]

Hey everyone! QotD: What is the *worst* example of exposition-delivery you've ever seen? We'll be talking about a couple of bad examples in Part 2! If you'd like to join our Discord writing community, I'd love for you to support me on Patreon: www.patreon.com/hellofutureme Honestly, this was getting so long. I wrote the whole thing, but it was going to be 30+ minutes, so I split it up into 2 parts. But *then* I wrote an additional two minutes into this part and re-uploaded. I'm a little pedantic, I know, but what kind of writer would I be without a little pedantry? ~ Tim

[@justsaiyan3274]

hi make a video on fire benders and if they real bend there element

[@SGBlack]

Asterisk war

[@dojee8993]

The worst example of exposition is of course in avatar the movie

[@MundoEcchi]

Darling in the FranXX...

[@filipstellberg8280]

Hello Future Me The worst piece(s) of exposition I have ever seen are: 1. The Last Airbender (movie). 2. Fate/Apocrypha Episode 1.

[@b.melakail]

"This is Katana. She's got my back. I would advise not getting killed by her. Her sword traps the souls of its victims"

[@Karanthaneos]

Pretty sure that's from Suicide Squad

[@HelloFutureMe]

Goodness, Suicide Squad was awful. ~ Tim

[@shadebug]

Does it count a exposition if it's entirely irrelevant to anything that will happen later on? Then it's just the author dropping fun facts

[@ImOutsideTheBox]

This and save Martha make me laugh everytime I see it memed

[@kittyandtiny9159]

That's definitely exposition. Whether the information is relevant or not, explaining it is exposition. In fact, that would be worse than relevant exposition as it has no purpose. If you can quickly and naturally drop interesting facts about the world, that's good worldbuilding, otherwise it unnecessarily bogs down the story.

[@TheAgavi]

"You can't just have your characters say how they feel! That makes me angry!"

[@Metalhammer1993]

90% of the time it is true. But there are situations in which expression of emotion is natural. For instance a girl got attacked by another student. She got saved by another guy. The guy asks "are you okay?" A natural question in the situation. She is still shaking "more or less. Still a bit scared though" that's a natural answer. It does Express emotion. However it takes other things to make it believable. Not to completely disagree with you. Most of the time you are right, but other than having proper spelling and grammar, i don't believe in absolute rules in writing. Just good guidelines you can break free of, if it makes sense and adds to your story.

[@youtubalt6978]

@@Metalhammer1993 wtf it was a joke dude chill out

[@Metalhammer1993]

@@youtubalt6978 i think i was pretty chill. Subtext is a thing. Kim made a joke based on entirely how not to convey emotions and it was a pretty funny one. I just added a bit of situational context where expression of a character's emotions is indeed a viable thing to do.

[@youtubalt6978]

@@Metalhammer1993 ok, but, like, take a joke. Or at least specify that ur comment was not relating to the joke part of this. It is a valid opinion, but the way you phrased it made it sound like a criticism of the joke, which tbf can be done. Jokes are not free from criticism. But the joke wasnt misrepresenting anything or offending anyone actively. It was harmless comedy using irony. And ur comment wasnt criticizing the joke either. So just wrong phrasing, i guess.

[@youtubalt6978]

@@Metalhammer1993 also i agree with ur point but i do think that it fits in extremely specific situations

[@shadowgiraffe7502]

Without a doubt the worst exposition ever was in the Last Airbender movie. "My brother and the princess hit it off straight away"

[@JG-qg1gz]

all expositions in that movie were bad XD I would quote Nostalgia Critics Avatar the last airbender video, but I can't remember the precise wording...

[@epfilmmusic]

The whole movie was one big pile of exposition trash.

[@sjk8495]

He said the film is just "explaining ... and explaining ... and explaining..." and that the film is just "chess-piece storytelling".

[@vampyricon7026]

What movie?

[@_stayoung_]

"My name is Katara, and I am the only waterbender left from the South Pole" - final 30min of the movie

[@thegreatandterrible4508]

I thought the Avatar example was going to be about how Aang is the ignorant character about the past hundred years, but provides all sort of other exposition (history, spirit world, bending) that Katara and Sokka don't have, making the difference in knowledge less extreme.

[@Saplingbat]

That's another good point O:

[@andoryuubushido7191]

Yeah, it's really nice to have characters who know different things as opposed to characters who know everything and characters who know nothing. *cough*AshKetchum*cough*

[@marinary1326]

@@andoryuubushido7191 You know nothing, Ash Ketchum.

[@Doralga]

Aang different knowledge feels like he's the only character to get that exposition in Media anime if Atla can be called that i could think few other characters to do this really

[@HelloFutureMe]

This is also a very good point! ~ Tim

[@caitlinbrewer4843]

Actually people suffering from amnesia usually CAN still preform physical tasks they are familiar with, like cycling, juggling, or fixing something due to muscle memory. Someone who can fight could likely still fight with amnesia. They can do it, even if they don't know they can do it.

[@caitlinbrewer4843]

@@xtensioncordtv1969 yes, I love those books. Not as much as the orginal series because Percy is my favorite.

[@lostjava]

I could see this working a few times like if they were taken by surprise but after a few seconds wouldn't your brain kick in and muck things up?

[@adamguillory2428]

+lostjava In an actual fight, no, because your primary response, especially if you have no memory would be don't die, which would open the door both to your muscle memory as well as your fight or flight response which would be honed to fight in this scenario.

[@jacobbenns6090]

Jason Bourne...

[@dtrain8530]

I'd also say it also can work because the Son Of Neptune, Percy still has some memories, like how to fight and about Annabeth. And he has been fighting for a few days against Medusa's sister, so his skills are still there, he just doesn't know how he has them. While I never understand how Jason is so skilled when he quite literally only remembers things like the Roman names of Monsters and maybe Thalia? My point is, HoO does Amnesia a bit better than others

[@yuirick]

I really like the idea that exposition isn't necessarily bad writing. I've been told to 'show not tell' so many times that the mantra ends up getting in the way of my writing rather than further it.

[@christophersavignon4191]

"Show don't tell" does not mean to to avoid exposition, it is recommending one form of exposition over another. Showing an event or situation is considered better than just talking about it, but both are exposition.

[@yuirick]

Well, I still don't really like the mantra. For similar reasons to the topics gone through in the video.

[@christophersavignon4191]

@@yuirick There is one very important rule in writing: Never follow rules only to follow rules. Whatever you do, do it for a reason that you understand. For most things, It is better to show. The Mantra is popular for a reason. Showing adds substance, relatability, and memorability. However, it is not automatically better to show everything, as that can become tedious for both author and reader. In a big story, you will need to tell some things. There are also things you might be better off not showing, like historic events that have passed long before the events of the story. In that case, the characters you need to introduce for showing would not be related to the story themselves, and maybe even distract the reader from the historic events you are trying to convey, and their meaning in the big picture. Anyways, I just wanted to point out that showing is exposition too.

[@yuirick]

Yeah, I appreciate the input. I'll mull it over. :P

[@sebastiansilverfox6912]

The "show dont tell" rule has resulted in multiple chapters of fluff by authors who would have done better just to tell us. ...even if it is sitting by a campfire having a character tell us the protagonists "favorite sobering story" again before he goes to sleep to "keep him focused on his goal". (Seriously, sometimes I have been like "I know what youre doing. Just tell me rather than take three pages to beat around the bush!")

[@TheEmptyForever]

One type of exposition I really don't like is when the hero suddenly has a dream of what the villain is doing right now.

[@iaw02]

It happens all the time in Harry Potter, and gets super contrived super quick (even if the bit at the end of OotP showed that it's not accurate, it never actually stopped being used for exposition)

[@hibak8196]

But in Harry Potter it's not merely a plot device, it has reasons to happen that are essential to the plot and Harry's backstory. So tbh I'm happy with it. But just making the character have visions and dreams out of nowhere and for no other reasons is childish :\

[@theM4R4T]

@@iaw02 Isn't it that it happens because Voldemort wanted to lure Harry?

[@dragonband9749]

Marat yup.

[@telltellyn]

+Marat Voldemort realises it's happening and uses it to lure Harry. But it happens because of (one of) the big twists that was hinted at from the start of the series: a piece of Voldemort is inside Harry. Disagree that it was at all contrived. There's a reason JK Rowling has been called the queen of exposition.

[@estellevu8076]

I used to be a lord of darkness, till I took a blue arrow to the knee.

[@andoryuubushido7191]

Green Arrow was busy that day, so he sent Blue Arrow with some knee seeking arrows

[@natjoy.]

Someone told me that in the era that Skyrim emulates, "taking an arrow to the knee" was slang for getting married...

[@andoryuubushido7191]

Nate J. That would make a lot more sense, than the literal interpretation. It makes sense that having to stop adventuring due to getting married would be a rather common thing. Still someday I need to write a hilarious Skyrim Parody with a great war being waged between the god of arrows and the god of knees XD

[@estellevu8076]

+Nate J. You'd be right. It's hard commanding my shadow minions to enslave new kingdoms while trying to take care of my queen. On the bright side, my cliff side fortress of eternal storms is a lot cozier with her redecorating.

[@evecampbell3069]

@@andoryuubushido7191 I'll be waiting for that Parody.

[@InquisitorThomas]

The worst exposition I’ve ever seen was in this show called Eureka Seven, I dropped it fairly early on, but the one thing I recall is the one scene from the first episode where these kids were bullying the protagonist with exposition. It was the weirdest bullying I’ve ever seen in any fiction, they were essentially bullying the Protagonist by rattling off his life story at him and how his dad was basically this great war hero. It was so uncanny to watch, it’s like the writer had never heard a human speak once in their life.

[@riley8385]

That's a common trope in anime. It reminds me of how everyone in Black Clover kept saying "in this world magic is everything", like yeah we get it, we saw people doing mundane stuff with their magic, it was clear from the start.

[@Cityweaver]

Now compare that to the Vulcan bullies in Star Trek (2009) who just said, "Look, Spock is about to cry. What sad eyes... Human eyes... Like your mother--" cue schoolyard brawl.

[@Thierce]

@@riley8385 Pretty much the whole reason I stopped watching anime. So much terrible exposition

[@paulovinasrocha6166]

@@Thierce then you need to look for better anime. Not dismiss al of it because of a few stinkers

[@Thierce]

@@paulovinasrocha6166 Nah I almost exclusively watched what was considered like the best anime at the time (FMA, Death Note, Gurren Laggann, AoT, HxH,etc.) and even those I thought had way too much needless exposition.

[@michaelkenner3289]

The pope in the pool technique made me think of a couple of examples of a very specific way of doing it. Sometimes the method through which the information is conveyed is the interesting part of the exposition, JK Rowling uses this one a fair bit. Think of the pensieve, Riddle's diary and Harry using Legilimancy on Snape. The information itself is just plain exposition but the reader is focused on the strange and exotic means through which the information is obtained. Instead of thinking how obvious it is, the reader is distracted by thinking about the cool magical world where someone can store their memories as a liquid or be pulled inside someone's diary to view the past.

[@nico_ventolini]

Add to that the prophecy records stored in glass balls. Those are cool, and it doubles as a MacGuffin in Order of the Phoenix.

[@youtubalt6978]

Sorry but i really dont like harry potter. Still goox pointz tho

[@glanni]

Exposition pet peeve: *meets evil sibling* "Eric Mattheus Smith, my brother, you felon, you foe! I will have you know that i will never join your villainy, no matter how much you try to pressure me to hand you the secret books we found many years ago in the cave of Amun when we were ten!" "We just met yesterday... do you have another fit?"

[@Thierce]

what is this from?

[@glanni]

@@Thierce my ImAgINaTiOn ^^

[@Thierce]

@@glanni Well it's brilliant

[@glanni]

@@Thierce Thank you!

[@AnonYmous-mc5zx]

The fact that this still sounded like something from a Shakespearean play is a tad alarming...like is that a thing? Was Shakespeare bad at expositing?

[@happymemories_videography]

"Delivery exposition is kinda like actually expressing that you love your sibling at their wedding. It's difficult but necessary." That line kills me. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@tibot4228]

I can never be happy enough that you cite Artemis Fowl, a series I grew up being the only kid I knew reading, as an example of good writing.

[@melikewafflesgg6167]

And then Disney came...

[@ladytalksalot4097]

@@melikewafflesgg6167 mention not that abomination!

[@AkuTenshiiZero]

The three most horrible words in writing are "as you know." That might as well be a neon sign saying "I'm talking to the audience now." It pisses me off because it's so easy to avoid. Instead of "as you know," have them instead ask "what do you know about x?" and have the second character answer with either the full or partial exposition, and if more is needed then the first character can continue with something like "but that's not the whole story." It is possible to deliver exposition between two characters who should already know it, if you're not a lazy asshole.

[@AlwaysSomeone]

I’m honestly not all that opposed to this form, so long as it flows naturally. Mainly because I see it happen naturally in real life on occasion, particularly in scholastic settings. When teaching a class, a professor might recap a previous lesson in a couple sentences in order to refresh students’ memories. When giving a speech, a political or military leader might dedicate a few sentences to reminding the audience about a significant event in the past, in order to get their mind on the topic and set up the rest of the speech. I think the important part is that the information “known” is not all the information being conveyed. It should make up, like, 3% of the entire expository dialogue or speech.

[@aceatlasska4343]

*cough cough* Zhao in the last airbender film *cough cough*

[@edenmckinley3472]

Yeah, exposition like this is tons more interesting when you put it in a specific context and add subtext.

[@Lonaticus]

Samurai Jack is a good example of short exposition. At the start of every episode, you are offered a short 30 second exposition showing the hero, the villain, the reason for their conflict and the current environment. There's also a form of characterization with Aku being flamboyant in his presentation and Jack silent.

[@americanpidgeot6486]

And that exposition actually became iconic in a good way. Many of us can quote it word for word from memory.

[@camerongrow6426]

The first episode showing Jack's training montage also provides a fantastic example of how you can exposit without a single line of dialogue.

[@merrittanimation7721]

Long ago in a distant land...

[@Soumein]

"A foolish samurai warrior wielding a magic sword stepped forth to oppose me"

[@futbolluva]

*Slash, slash, slash*

[@lilowhitney8614]

Tl;dr Exposition can't just be told for the sake of exposition, it has to pull double duty by either revealing character, influencing the plot or being a payoff on it's own.

[@ovencake523]

thank you

[@bubbathesomewhatreal]

Really helpful synopsis, thanks!

[@DoomDwarf_347]

"Nobody has a sister!" "That's Octavia Blake, the girl they found hidden under the floor!" -my favorite example of bad exposition, but maybe not the worst I've seen

[@lukeskywalkerthe2nd773]

Same! :)

[@glanni]

One of worst written exposition examples to me is whenever somebody talks to their sibling who they see regularly and starts with "Brother, ..." 😂

[@TheMimo2001]

One if my favorite shows started off BAD hahahhahaha

[@TomFranklinX]

DoomDwarf_347 I didn't notice this while watching, so I guess this error manage a pass.

[@marinary1326]

So in case Tim would like to know where this is from or even just needs a reminder (I know I mentally blocked it from my brain!), it is from the tv show "The 100". A terrible line in a show otherwise fine about exposition later on.

[@jeremymunene5304]

Its funny how well exposition was delivered in Avatar - The Last Airbender, as it was so interesting, but in its movie adaptation, the last airbender, it was so bland boring and noticeable that the overall movie suffered from it.

[@kudamutamba9598]

That movie sucks hands down

[@patrick_dy3r]

To play devils advocate, they’re in different mediums. ATLA the TV show has the benefit of being told over entire seasons, so they can spread out their exposition episode to episode giving the audience a chance to absorb a lot of information. The movie’s problem was that it tried to condense all of that information and worldbuilding into just 90 minutes. There was no way the movie could’ve pulled that off without making some serious cuts to the overall storyline. The movie was doomed from the very start. (Also, the terrible direction, cinematography, dialogue, acting, and VFX didn’t help either, but what can ya do? 🤷‍♂️)

[@TheDecWhale]

Yeah, 12 years old... because I... no longer... try to... pull... the remote to me using... the Force... yeah

[@gulano8258]

Yeah... I never try to waterbend... never...

[@marinary1326]

Still waiting for my Hogwarts letter...

[@marinary1326]

@@jainparish1596 I'd say that actually, using ellipses to denote a pause is a valid use! The repeated breaks convey hesitation and (joking) embarassment, and so enhances the meaning of the statement! Because the actual purpose of language is conveying meaning, not following the strictest grammatical style.

[@soccerandtrack10]

science plus logic plus energy.

[@dragoninthewest1]

Clearly, he's never been to a convention.

[@trillionbones89]

did you ever hear about the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the wise? I thought not. it's not a story the Jedi would tell you

[@GeorgeThoughts]

Interesting choice tbh; is that really exposition? Since it's not trying to teach us relevant information about the world so much as it's simply Palpatine manipulating Anakin. The whole "become immortal" thing he tells us about never actually happens and isn't ever used. It's just a ploy by one character to another.

[@robbieking4070]

And that's why it works. Not all stories are exposition, some can be for other motives besides enlightening another character of a situation. A good example by hiding manipulation beneath a tale.

[@Sorain1]

The best part of this is we the audience have no way of knowing if Palatine is making this up wholesale. But it seems believable right? That's part of what makes it well written. (not to mention really good delivery.)

[@Cityweaver]

@@GeorgeThoughts Not teaching information about the world? It taught us that there was a Sith Lord who learned how to create life itself and the scene implies that Plagueis created Anakin. That is literally the "Luke, I am your father" scene of the prequels. "The information doesn't get used later, though." Yes, and that would be called "bad writing." The prequels had LOTS of great content for the overall understanding of the Skywalkers, that just never got used because Lucas didn't have the same community of writers as he did when he and they wrote the original trilogy.

[@Duchess_Van_Hoof]

My single most favourite scene in the whole prequel trilogy. It was calm, eerie, and for the first time Palpatine felt like a sith lord. This was the only scene where we really got to see him corrupt Anakin, and the worst part of it is that it most likely was all true. And it is excellent world building as it gave us background on Palpatine and who his mentor was, as well as showcasing how ruthless the future emperor was since the start.

[@Xylos144]

My Functional definition for exposition is: "Backstory nobody cares about [yet]." If you're dumping information about a person or a world that the audience has no particular interest in, you're expositing. Which is sometimes necessary, but it's not good to do. If you make characters that are interesting in a world that is interesting, the audience is going to be interested in both and WANT to know more. If you deliver the information after you'v piqued their interest, you're no longer being terrible.

[@Cityweaver]

Okay, then, what's your word for information delivered when your audience wants it, since you've completely invested a negative connotation on "exposition"? XD

[@CMWolfMagic]

First off, great video. Second, this has actually helped me figure out how to explain how magic works for something I am making. Third, I have encountered many expositions that are bad, thanks to mmorpgs, one of my favorites is when they say that a God made the world, then gives 0 reasons why. Guess Gods love randomly making worlds.... And Forth, of course, All hail Mishka!

[@HelloFutureMe]

Thank you and I totally agree! MMOs so often have awful exposition. ~ Tim

[@TheOmegaXicor]

Not to disagree but does Christianity say why god made our world? Curiosity? Boredom? it is the only reason Christians could think of us appearing? I don't know

[@QuirksDaBomb]

@@TheOmegaXicor God made earth because the devil betrayed him

[@TheOmegaXicor]

wasn't that why he made Hell?

[@Sorain1]

To be fair to MMO writers? (And it's always a staff effort) They're dealing with a pretty apathetic audience (so they believe) and have a ludicrous amount to convey. But good lord I'm with you on MMO's often having really badly delivered exposition.

[@ShaunRF]

Tarantino is well known for being really good at hiding his exposition in seemingly normal conversation between characters. This is shown quite well in the excellent Lessons from the Screenplay video about Inglorious Basterds.

[@PrimeofPerfection]

There's a piece of advice with exposition that I got from Robert McKee's Story that has always stayed strong with me is this: dramatize the exposition. Turn exposition into ammunition. Dramatized exposition serves the primary purpose of immediately furthering conflict while the secondary purpose of teaching information. Anxious novices get this backwards, placing its duty to teach facts before dramatic necessity.

[@cossaizy6309]

Other than dramatization, i would suggest if you were to tell it, at least have one character ignorant of the exposition at the recieving end... or another way of writing exposition i found interesting were the ones presented in attack on titan where in intersections they would show tiny bits of exposition about the world relevant or not, i found it useful especially if you want to detail a map, talk about certain creatures or about any trivia in the world.

[@nilestraz]

Big Hero 6 has some horrible exposition. “Unbelievable. Oh what would mom and day say?” “I don’t know. They’re gone. They died when I was three, remember?”

[@cringy12yearold17]

Nile Straznickas I'm so glad someone finally said it

[@matt0044]

Would've left out the last sentance only?

[@SergioPerez-vm8zw]

Oof

[@matt0044]

Eh, I've heard worst. If Hiro recounted the tragedy as if he were there, that would've been worse.

[@HoleDweller]

Having not seen it, there's a lot of information about the relationship there, not just the obvious. An older sibling who remembers their parents not grasping that their younger sibling never got a chance to know them. The younger sibling sounds both jealous and angry at the older sibling for rubbing it in their face. I could see a problem if the delivery was flat, but I'm assuming there was yelling involved.

[@notthemusewere]

Also called "The Watson." Having emotional stakes is good. A more general way of putting it; add conflict. Exposition isn't always in giant info-dumps, it occurs throughout a story. Sometimes it is just a sentence on the fly. But every time there's a sentence, there's a chance to add character, add humor, add conflict. In short; give the reader something that isn't just, "you need to know how this works so we can move on with the plot." Make stakes at play in the conversation. The explainer is trying to assert their superiority. The explainee is trying to evade responsibility. Anything. Make the exposition, itself, plot.

[@dojee8993]

What do you mean when we were 12 years old? I'd love to leave my life to live in the atla universe

[@tobiaswinters3815]

Where in it, and are you a bender?

[@dojee8993]

Ba Sing Se, Outer Wall/Lower Ring during the 100 year war, water bender

[@tobiaswinters3815]

Being a Water bender in a crowded, stinky, urban environment. Interesting idea.

[@dojee8993]

well, being able to control water in that setting surely would give you some advantages in living standard and social standing while you could make good money helping to water those fields. you´d also be able to enjoy great cultural diversity coming from all over the continent while being save from the fire nation.

[@tobiaswinters3815]

To be fair, the culturally diverse environment of the lower ring looked to be awful for the poor populace living in it. And then there's the issue of the Dai Li, who might not like a Water bender running around in their city. That said, I think the best place to be safe from the Fire Nation would be a citizen living inside the Fire Nation. :)

[@xistentialanime282]

AHHHHHHHHH YOUR VIDEOS ARE LIKE TAKING THE RED PILL OF EVERYTHING I'M WRITING WRONG!

[@crazyweirdgirl115]

loved the subtle "I used to be an adventurer, but then I took an arrow to the knee" joke in the beginning

[@firesparkling9370]

Some video games have sections dedicated to extra information, most of which is optional but it’s fun to read through. In Mass Effect, there’s the primary codex which explains stuff such as the reapers, asari, turians, and quarians (where a man reads everything to you in a sweet buttery voice). There’s also a secondary codex page where you can read more about the various aspects in more detail (although the narrator isn’t going to read it there). In Assassins Creed 2, there’s also a page with extra information. It primarily talks about men like Leonardo and Machiavelli (which is especially handy if you don’t know much about the Italian Renaissance and asking “Who is this Machiavelli person and did he write a book about Ezio?”). In Syndicate, they add a few jokes or sad bits in there (Desmond the dog is an example, the whole page is Shaun missing Desmond (for AC spoiler reasons)).

[@marinary1326]

Just yesterday I was talking about how many games put exposition in an epistolary format! Like how in Dragon Age, the codex entries are in-universe documents, you'll find notes and books all over the place in The Elder Scrolls, etc. Video game players are prone to skipping dialogue and cutscenes, so putting worldbuilding in a place they can look at whenever they feel like it, as well as worldbuilding just with the format of the information itself ("ah, so there is a scholarly group in this world, this is how they get information, these are their biases") helps build a world without intruding on the player's experience.

[@heikesiegl2640]

I enjoy the way if environmental storytelling in bioshock. Openworld games tend to hide secrets and information in a clever way

[@Kindrick]

In the 2nd chapter of my story, it cuts from the main character to show a few friends, each using a different type of magic, arguing with each other over how enchantments work. The argument is lighthearted, with a number of insults thrown in clear jest, showing these to be long-time friends. Each one has a completely different understanding of how magic works, showing that each type of magic is a different magic system, and that magic users generally don't understand how magic works outside of their own system. The necromancer laments how sacrificial his magic is, but says it's the coolest because skull motifs are often *required* for it to work, while showing off his skull tattoos, showing his interest in it is superficial, but also informing the audience on how to identify Death cultists and Death cult weapons. In the very next chapter, the main character is shown using a new massive sword with a skull integrated in its design.

[@NotABot-px7ky]

That's a really cool way of writing that exposition. I myself have trouble including dialogue in my writing, as I'm so used to essays. My story so far is about a fire magic wielding girl who runs away from her home and ends up on the island of another type of magic user. My idea is that there are these different cultures all focused on one group of magic, (fire, water, light, healing, ect) and they've become so removed from each other that none of them realize that all their different magic disciplines are parts of one whole, and eventually they discover that the separation was intentionally orchestrated by an outside group. I'm not very far into writing it though, so things are liable to change.

[@WayneAnonymous]

6:52 Your point on how they don't forget to fight isn't fully valid. Amnesia usually wipes your memory of all or major parts of declarative knowledge meaning facts, memories, basically everything that can be expressed verbally. Usually so called procedural knowledge remains intact. This is "body knowlegde" like how to swing a sword, how to walk, how to speak, how to groom your hair. So actually not forgetting how to fight while loosing your memory of who you are depending on the type of amnesia is realistic, especially if that is what the character has done all his life.

[@Ed_man_talking9]

it still would affect their ability to fight if they don't remember certain sword moves and how to counter it, though that muscle memory does help, I guess it depends on how much you've trained in your fighting style and how accustomed you ate to fighting, like how much fighting is buried in your subconscious. bottom line is that fighting and memory loss is complicated.

[@WayneAnonymous]

That's what I intended when I said "especially when he did it all his life". Surely, a fresh recruit who does still learn might have a lot of theoretical knowledge on the different movements but as he completes his training and gain experience during his service more and more of it will become atheoretical and a conditioned response. He will do it automatically without thinking, almost like an instinct. That's what training is for. Same is true for things like driving or sports. I, for example, play badminton for several years now. I explicitly practiced all the techniques several times a week during training following steps and verbal instructions. When I'm in a game, I don't think about how I need to move on the field to get back in a favorable position or where I need to deliver the ball so my opponent gets in an unfavourable position. If you asked me after a game why I did what I did, most of the time I wouldn't even be able to tell you something else than: "I just knew that's what I needed to do.". Even after amnesia it's highly unlikely that people don't know anymore how to walk. So, bottom line: If you have someone with extensive training and experience it's highly unlikely amnesia would impair his ability to fight.

[@americanpidgeot6486]

An example of this is actually NBC's Blindspot, wherein the first episode introduces a character with no contextual memory but, when forced into a combative situation, instinctively displays Navy SEAL-like fighting tactics. Hence there's different kinds of memory actually given designated terms in medical science.

[@nicapp984]

It is possible, though, that a person may forget *that* they know how to fight. They might be surprisingly badass if they actually picked up a sword and tried to fight, but if they have amnesia, they wouldn't necessarily know that, and they probably wouldn't test it out if the risks were life and death. So it could still be an interesting theme to explore.

[@marinary1326]

Having the "muscle memory" doesn't necessarily mean that you can remember, say, the application of those skills, like tactics. You may remember how to throw a punch, but not to take notice of your surroundings, or when to retreat, etc. Though I think Tim was more talking about how amnesia in stories always seems to be, "you've forgotten everything plot relevant" and then it's fixed 100% without any lasting problems whatsoever.

[@thekingofcardboard]

my favorite case of exposition dumps is probably Mr Data, from the next generation. Him blatantly saying things everyone knows because he's oblivious to sarcasm if very clever of the writers.

[@rockbandny]

I love the memory loss in doctor who's human nature and the family of blood, really really good

[@helenarosno]

I was having problem writing exposition for a certain part of my story so I just had a character deliver it and the other thanking them for the exposition. Don’t worry, I’m going to fix it when I get an actual idea😂

[@ClaireYunFarronXIII]

Yep. Very difficult. 😂 Hopefully you got around it, because it will be better that way. Good luck! 💖🤗

[@Metalhammer1993]

If your character delivers important information, make obvious WHY that character delivers that exposition now. Take a look at Harry Potter and the exposition prince. Sorry halfblood prince. The entire plot of the book except the death of Dumbledore is exposition. But it has a reason and becomes the story goal. We need to understand Voldemorts immortality to break it. The information is at times hard to acquire making slughorn's memory less exposition but a "completed mission". It's all about the reason a character has, gives or seeks a certain information. And the reader has to know these reasons for the conversation to make sense

[@zachcarpenter3903]

Thank you so much sir for this video. I've had my beta readers tell me I'm horrible for info dumps, and this has helped give me something to think about my approach for exposition. Thanks a bunch!

[@motorcitymangababe]

In my current story im taking the trope of "foolish main character needs their world explained to them" and twisting it- my main character has a lot of knowledge but little experience. Her fellow characters expect her to not know anything because she is sheltered and she has to prove her knowledge "by explaining and by actually doing things"

[@Hekateras]

Dishonored as an example of videogame environmental exposition done *beautifully*. you know there's a plague and the city is crumbling. but then you actually get to see what it means from objects and props you come across in your game exploration... and you're rewarded by gameplay (secrets and safe locations) for exploring and reading every scrap of writing you come across.

[@rishipendyala4821]

Tim, you’re one of my favourite youtubers. I hope you do more writing videos like this. I would really like it if you could make a video essay about creating a sport for a novel.

[@LeBingeDoctor]

Taking frantic notes because all you say is pure gold.

[@jeremymunene5304]

Black Panther also delivered exposition very well, like when Shuri explains to T'Challa how his new suit works, it was very funny, interesting and cool looking. It also told us more about the character of Shuri about how smart she is as well as T'Challa, when he picked the necklace that was going to make him less flashy.

[@theM4R4T]

Nah, it felt like she's showing off.

[@moanguspickard249]

@@theM4R4T exactly. Character building

[@theM4R4T]

@@moanguspickard249 Not really.

[@Impulsive_egg]

I'm rereading the mortal instruments for the third time now and I've only just realized that Jace was basically just the tutorial guide in City of Bones lmfao

[@vakeesanvaikuntharajah1541]

Avatar is the best😍😍🔥

[@Fractorification]

One neat trick for quick exposition that I learned from a group of authors in their Podcast Writing Excuses is when information needs to be relayed to an unknowledgeable character in a fast and efficient way that feels natural to the situation. If the expositionee already knows what they’re talking about and don’t have time to explain a piece of worldbuilding, a race of monsters or McGuffin, they give brief descriptors of what it is and let the protagonist put the rest together when they eventually encounter said topic of discussion. An example they gave was this spaceship and the crew being under attack by some space pirates. The Unknowledgeable protagonist then asks what the hell are these things and what do they want, to which one of the crew members simply says “They’re big, scaly, have sharp claws, and they can see by smelling your breath. Also, they’re most likely hungry”. That’s it; the rest of the scenes is them dealing with these aliens based on what little we know, but it’s just enough information to create tension. Mini info dumps like these feel natural to the scene when everyone’s under pressure and there’s no time to delve into the history of said creatures. And it helps sell the fact that these crew members probably already have explained what these aliens are millions of times before, so they’ll give you the basics. This can also be a fun little comedic way to drop info on the world in small tidbits by comedic relief characters who are too laid back to go into details.

[@MsBloodyHime]

one of my fave bits of exposition: "you ever wonder why we're here?" -episode 1 Red Vs Blue

[@noplesnono9656]

One of life's greatest mysteries.

[@ImusakHctividar]

First off, this video (And series overall) has been super helpful, because I'm a great lover of world lore but I know most people won't care until the lore is contextualized in one way or another, and I'm super interested in what you have to say about when it's appropriate. Second, probably the worst example of exposition that is both terrible and clunky is the RWBY series. Super important information is rarely given to the main cast, even if it's relevant to current events, and the main cast rarely asks about these things (Such as realizing you have a super power and then pretending it doesn't exist). They also have world lore videos which, while interesting, always seem to build towards something that barely comes up in the main show, and since most of this lore is stuff the main cast doesn't know, it creates this huge disparity between character knowledge and audience knowledge. It's frustrating as all hell when you (the audience) know what's going on but you just see characters flailing because they don't have a clue. Also, the show sometimes lays out entire backstories of characters in song then slaps it on an action scene with the character in it. Not the best presentation, unique as it is.

[@IxAMxSamurai]

This was very helpful! I am an aspiring fiction writer who just realized that writing was my passion. Exposition is a new concept, and this video really helped me understand it! You are very very good at explaining. Thank you very much for the help!

[@glanni]

Great work!!!! On writing = my favourite series on KZbin/the internet. I look forward to the future :)

[@Budkalon]

My most favourite "amnesia" is Attack on Titan on Eren's memories. It doesn't just tell a basic "he forgot thing", but it also explains the core of titan power (founder titan (past) and attack titan (future)). And maaaan, the payoff was great, all of them

[@habitablefiction7090]

This was one of those videos I wasn't expecting to learn so much in. There's so much to giving exposition than what I had thought previously, and it's only part one!

[@Enuelle]

You know the phrase "turning your brain off"? Your vids are the opposite of that and I love every second of it.

[@thatnerdygaywerewolf9559]

On the amnesia thing, I feel like the show Dark Matter did it quite well. At the beginning, every member of the main cast had it, and thus there wasn't anyone around to give any kind of exposition. Much of the first season was spent trying to piece together who they were (they find out their past identities rather quickly, but the details still escape them), why they lost their memories, and what the current state of affairs is, all the while trying to hide the fact that they don't remember a thing.

[@olgagerman9216]

Yes! I'm so glad people still remember this show! It's so unfair it was cancelled

[@thatnerdygaywerewolf9559]

Seriously, especially the way they had to end it :( I was really excited to see where they took the invasion and the like.

[@Mattorite]

This is the most important video on writing I've ever watched. Stories are exposition. How you deliver it is the difference between a good one and a not-so-pleasant one.

[@peppermintmiso4341]

I remember the story of The baby shoes: For sale: baby shoes; never worn That's it. And although that's not an exposition, it really tells a lot

[@NotABot-px7ky]

Wow that's actually really sad

[@clairdeloona]

duel of the fates in the first 10 seconds… this is gonna be a good one. speaking of which, the exposition in ANH is really good. only like 2 minutes of it, tells you what you need to know, and gets ppl hyped and speculating for the next 20+ years abt what happened.

[@soupgirl1864]

"Exposition is bad writing." Never heard that. "Bad exposition is bad writing."

[@TheKrou]

The Witcher did amnesia pretty well. They pulled it off by making the amnesia central to the plot and creating a mystery around uncovering the source of Geralt's amnesia. There's consequences to the mistakes he makes because he doesn't remember things, etc.

[@boomeryang9635]

I can't tell how this video has actually taught me

[@judymcclenny9549]

Yangdib Hazarika That's why the Exposition Writing lesson is at least a 2-parter. Exposition is complicated, so the 1st video was all about explaining what it is & giving examples of it. He hasn't really gotten around to explaining how to do exposition well w/ examples vs not ... yet. That's probably part 2.

[@mckayleepugmire9947]

My favorite exposition delivery is No Evil by Betsy Lee. She doesn't tell you anything, just leaves the clues around for you to figure out on your own through visual cues and casual lines and only gets explicit with information when there is literally no other way. It's realistic while also being informative, and it makes lore something you earn by watching the series over and over.

[@Jza_Dragon]

Worst exposition that comes to mind is The Amazing Spider-Man 2, where two random bros get on the news to explain that Spidey's suit must be rubberized, partially protecting him from Electro

[@Isla-eq9qh]

I love how Lockwood and co uses the intro to give exposition through newspaper snippets

[@griffinwalker3889]

The Rook by Daniel O'Mallery uses the amnisia for exposition thing really well. The main character knew in advance she was going to loose her memory so she left her future self letters explaining things she would need to know but forgot. It literally makes the ignorant character and the explainer character the same person. Her past self is helping to guide her future self.

[@griffinwalker3889]

EDIT: O'Malley.

[@hajime5486]

Tim you are my hero. I've been working on a novel and your videos have helped me so much

[@queenlunacrystal5343]

Yes! Another Artemis Fowl reference!

[@princessthyemis]

This is so awesome! My favorite one is ATLA, tying the exposition to something emotional!! I LOOVE that!

[@AegixDrakan]

You seriously opened with an arrow to the knee joke? ..... **nods in respect** Alright, you earned that one.

[@LezCharming]

I really love the amnesia element in Nine Princes in Amber. The reveal is incredible and it pays off later because it's the first time Corwin has looked at life apart from his lineage.

[@asesinodes]

I plan to write a story that start with a prologue (many do not recommend that) that narrate a legend inside the story that everyone in the story knows. I could expose that legend with it been told to a kid or to someone very ignorant but don't feel I win too much doing that. Instead I plan to be as short as posible with the prologue and when the main character realize the legend is very important with his situation he is going to hear different interpretations of the legend, each with its own consequences to him. I think if I can do that well it would be good exposition.

[@theM4R4T]

Just make it short. I was trying to read Malazan and was quickly turned off by the opening, one that also uses a lot of weird words.

[@MaxWelton]

A decent perspective character is Link in Breath of the Wild. He has lost his memory after a hundred year nap. Part of the story involves going to places photographed by the Sheikah Slate to restore his memories of what happened 100 years ago.

[@xLeroi]

All hail MISHKA!!!

[@dragoninthewest1]

One of the stories I am writing has portion of the world-building exposition is being done through one of the main characters reading a history book in his off time. History was his favorite subject when he was young and book was a graduation present from his uncle.

[@Ed_man_talking9]

my advice is "show, not tell.(if possible)" and "only use the necessary amount of exposition to push the plot forward." unless you're making a story driven game filled with side quests.

[@frogb00ts]

I wanted to talk about one of my favorite examples of exposition that isnt really well known! a lot of video games use characters traveling to different worlds or region as a way to do exposition, but I feel like Atelier Iris 2 pulls it off really well. The story has an alchemist traveling to a foreign land where alchemy no longer exists, but there's still small traces of it left behind. Having characters from this land teach him about it's politics and technology feels just as natural as him teaching them about alchemy whenever they encounter traces of it. I like this because it doesn't make the main character seem stupid or like the game is talking at you. It unfolds really naturally and the mystery surrounding the two works is so interesting that it's exciting whenever you find out new pieces of lore.

[@realitysmasher6192]

Has anyone watched baccano here? I think it takes a very unique and interesting look on how u can present a story and I wholeheartedly recommend watching it (tho the first few eps might be a bit confusing).

[@Graestra]

Yeah it would be cool to see a break down of the show.

[@realitysmasher6192]

@@Graestra not only the show... But also the way they decided to portrait the story which I think the show demonstrate the best in the first scene.

[@danielmuller6724]

The first episode of baccano was one of the most interesting exposition i ever saw. It was more a confusing riddle, then an info box.

[@Leto85]

I find this so very well explained. I recognized what you've said in what K.M. Weiland already called in her writing lessons as the 'as you already know Bob' type of writing. You've given clear explanations on not how to do it, but more importantly on how it was done well. The Matrix is indeed a very good example of this. I was very thrilled when Neo finally had gotten his answers instead of being it delivered to him in act 1 scene 1 on a silver platter and that is exactly the feeling the storyteller want his readers to feel. Long story short; it's better if the character has to work for it, and if by doing so the reader is forced to be patience.

[@christophersavignon4191]

"a blue arrow to the knee" So the villain was defeated by marrying him to smurfette?

[@theemissary1313]

Probably my favourite exposition explaining is Dave Angel in the film Hot fuzz and the big reveal at the end.

[@maddie9303]

I've got to call out my 14 year-old self for the worst exposition delivery ever, with the line: "Oh, did I forget to mention that my family is all vampires?" I really, really hope my writing skills have improved in the past 7 years........

[@TechnoArpan]

Depends on whether it's a comedic scene. It'd work in that context, I think

[@00HoODBoy]

This is one of my biggest pet pieves in media, glad you do a series on this. I always give the godfather 1 as a good example, probably the only movie id consider flawless. I feel like this is especially obvious in anime

[@nirast2561]

Kinda disappointed you didn't elaborate on the amnesia in heroes of Olympus, since there it's actually quite relevant to the plot.

[@HelloFutureMe]

Unfortunately, I only added in the point on amnesia as a side point at the end! And the video was already 17 minutes long. So, no room to elaborate. ~ Tim

[@nirast2561]

+Hello Future Me maybe one day you can do a video on how to do amnesia right (I know it's a cliché writing technique, but I feel there are some ways it could work; I just don't remember them)

[@JokersVsZombies]

The watchmen has incredible examples of fleshing the world of the story out without needless exposition

[@srirampingali6819]

In Heroes of Olympus Jason and Percy getting amnesia IS the plot. It only creates questions, rather than give answers (exposition gives answers in case you forgot :P)

[@marinary1326]

The amnesia gives an excuse to explain things to the main character that they would otherwise know. It has plot importance as well, but in terms of exposition it puts the character in essentially the same place as the reader. They are given answers, just not plot answers. Exposition and plot are different, in case you forgot :P

[@srirampingali6819]

Yes, but they are given answers that the characters wouldn't have known even if they had their memories.

[@marinary1326]

Yeah, in addition to the stuff that they would have remembered.

[@avatariroh0543]

I actually like how Joseph Staten wrote the exposition in Halo: Contact Harvest. He just laid it all out, giving backstory to the universe. In the first chapter even it tells you that the navigational computer is cheap in comparison to a slip-space drive and then goes into telling you what the drive is, how it works, who made it, and how it was used. Straight exposition and I actually really liked it. It made me feel connected to the inner working of the Halo universe and as the fourth Halo book I read (I've read them all now) it really introduced me to many new concepts that weren't in Fall of Reach, The Flood, and First Strike (the first three I read) such as how things were in the rest of human space and more information on the insurrection. i personally love the book and recommend that it be the first Halo book someone new to the series should read followed by, Fall of Reach, the Flood and First Strike in that order.

[@wangtoriojackson4315]

Worst example of exposition I've ever seen: all of the sexposition scenes in GoT season 1. When you talk about Pope in the Pool possibly feeling too contrived if not done well, I'm pretty sure stuff like that is exactly what you are talking about.

[@marinary1326]

It's like someone thought, "people are only watching our political pseudo-medieval fantasy series for boobs, right? Gotta put some boobs in there or they might not watch!" It ends up distracting from the information being given rather than giving it context or importance or interest.

[@lampad4549]

@@marinary1326 that's actually one of the good examples of exposition and utilizing nudity

[@totallynameless8861]

Particularly because sexualizing women who were trapped in rape slavery is despicable.

[@ClaireYunFarronXIII]

@@totallynameless8861 Very true.

[@Outlaw92ful]

Hi there! I'm an aspiring author working on my first fantasy novel. Your videos are a great help to me and I use you as my primary source of research. You inspire me to write every day and I thank you for it.

[@GrimmDelightsDice]

As a person with diagnosed DID (dissociative identity disorder- a real world dissociative disorder with a component of regular & recurrent amnesia) I heckin love when people tear amnesia plots apart. Just talk to someone who suffers amnesia before you write. It's not that hard lol.

[@JG-qg1gz]

I like how exposition is handled in Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood :) never a bucket load at once, and the right character to do the talking every time.

[@winnyloef]

All Hail mishka

[@StarBoundFables]

Brilliant! Thanks so much, your 'On Writing & Worldbuilding' volume 1's awesome. I highlighted plenty, & am looking forward to reading books 2 & 3

[@Mefous2]

3:38 how dare you bring THAT movie up

[@PurpleRhymesWithOrange]

I share your interest in reading exposition dumps, guessing for me that's because I'm a student of history. I do realize how unpopular these are with the majority of readers so appreciate your help with ways to avoid doing that while still explaining for the reader that this world is far weirder than 99% of the population is aware.

[@Boopadoop348]

**Naruto Shippuden flashbacks intensify**

[@KC_Charles-1]

I can't tell you how helpful this is. Can't wait for the rest

[@shineinouzen7412]

Just have Roku or Iroh say it!

[@hbeachley]

Exposition is my Achilles. I’m bad at it. I think it’s so boring to write, so I usually try to skip it. My husband (and usually my first reader) has to ask me, “why the hell are you keeping everything a secret.” I usually use naive protagonist, (unknowledgeable perspective character), but some of these other methods, I’ve never thought of, or never remember. Great video! Concise, easy to remember, and packed with info. Subscribed! I hope you have more like this!

[@UCUCUC27]

worst example of exposition?O_o mediclorians...

[@hopefulmonster]

One version of the unknowledgeable person that can work well by disabusing misconceptions. By using a person's personal knowledge, that may not be correct, and then having them be told the another person's knowledge you can learn a lot about both characters and have them give a lot of info in character.

[@Koolerkid2006]

I'm probably going to get skewered for this, but I've always felt that the exposition in the Lord of the Rings books is just terrible. Not only is it clumisly dumped on the readers for no reason, not only is it incrediably long and written like a textbook from a hundred years ago, but more often than not it has no relevance to the story! I love worldbuilding, but lore for lore's sake is boring.

[@epfilmmusic]

If have to differ from your oppinion. Although I agree, that the beginning is really an unoriginal dump of information, I think it is very much needed. To summarize: It is actually quite efficient, despite its length. There is a ton of information in those first fifteen minutes, that are referenced throughout the whole movie. First, it works as a introduction of tone. LotR is actually some sort of chronic of middleearth (actually that would be the silmarillion). It is about big places, great places, the fate of the universe. Having this epic introduction allows for the viewer to see, what is going to happen for the next couple of hours, whereas (if we'd started in the Shire right away) otherwise the tonal shift after the departure of the hobbits would be a rip in the viewer experience. Second, important, but dead characters. Of course I talk about Isildur and Sauron. Both of which we never see in the whole movie ever again (yes, I know, Sauron is a fucking yellow eye). Isildur is very much important, since Aragorn whole character arc is tied to him. The whole fate of Gondor only makes sense, when the reader knows about Isildurs death. And the introduction of Sauron helps to bring in the fear, that all of the characters have about him. And there is a ton more. I could write pages, but to be honest. Why waste to much time writing on the internet. The introduction to LotR, while certainly not pretty, is needed, because it's just the most efficient way to get a lot of information to the viewer.

[@ColorOfTheSky_]

Book is almost 60 years old. That was the style of books back then. But now we have more books coming out every day and much little time to read them so authors use "hooks" to catch us.

[@Koolerkid2006]

I wasn't talking about the film, which I actually quite enjoy. I was specifically talking about the books, which I do not.

[@timothyhawkins6157]

Honestly, I have to agree to an extent. I adore the books, but there's a reason every LotR adaptation basically skips over a good 80 or so pages from the first book; the first few chapters of Fellowship of the Ring are *slow* and it's mostly due to exposition dumps and somewhat lazy worldbuilding (anyone remember Tom Bombadil?) I found that it gets much better once the plot picks up though, probably around the time they get to Bree. There's a few later parts that fall into similar trappings, but none so bad as the beginning of Fellowship.

[@michaelkenner3289]

Well Tolkien was a professor for his day job so it's not entirely surprising that some of his writing comes off a bit 'Text-book' like. Personally I enjoy that element of it, possibly why I'm an academic historian, but it's not to everyone's taste. For Tolkien building his world (most particularly the languages, because he was a linguist) was the entire purpose of the series more than the actual story he was telling. It was also written quite some time ago now and stylistic trends have changed a lot since then. Even aside from Tolkien's personal style, fiction itself was handled a little differently back then and tended towards a bit more direct in its narration and exposition.

[@JonathanChanMT]

Can I just say thanks, I used to hate just about anything related to writting, but after watching so many of your videos, I feel completely different towards it, and I'm even trying (keyword being "trying") to write my own book, something I'd never thought I would want to do, and you've probably inspired a lot of other people too. I appreciate all the hard work you put into your videos, and I'm super glad that you're transitioning to doing this full time. I wish I could contribute to you, but I don't have the necessary credit/visa/etc cards because I'm too young to get them :( But once I do, I hope to change that.