Troy's Prologue Rules

[@kemberleeshortland3471]

Awesome advise, Troy. I used a prologue for the first time in my next Jack book and realize now I need to go back over it, using your advice. Thanks!

[@PlotGeekAcademy]

Glad it was helpful!

[@rolanddenzel-authorcoach]

I think I agree with all of those! I hate it when a prologue introduces a character that I really like, then never see again 😢

[@PlotGeekAcademy]

@@rolanddenzel-authorcoach so true

[@rampantcoyote3136]

I have read good prologues before. But whenever I think, "Prologue", what always comes are the bad ones... and they violate several of these rules at once. Especially with Epic Fantasy. It feels like they are trying to front-load The Simarillion (or at least "Concerning Hobbits") into their book. The best ones I can think of were short, sweet, maybe from a different POV than usual, but act as a drumroll for Chapter 1. You see the herd go crazy and stampede down into the valley, and Chapter 1 starts with the protag having a picnic down in the valley.

[@juliegallagher4824]

Sometimes an author will write a prologue in which we see something like a murder being committed, from the POV of the perpetrator, who often is not named, but later turns out to be the antagonist. Then Chapter 1 opens with the protagonist investigating the crime. Is that a good use of a prologue? That is, does it draw the reader in by opening with a dramatic scene that sets the tone and hints at the stakes? Or is it better to just show the aftermath from the POV of the protagonist? I agree with everything you said; I'm just curious about whether or not you think a prologue is ever a good idea for certain stories.

[@PlotGeekAcademy]

Jana here, Troy may have his own thoughts, so I'll poke him too. But I see that in murder mysteries and for me it's really off-putting, though I know other readers who think it's dramatic. I generally don't want to see the pov of the perp, and I want to be with the detective as they're figuring out the clues without having that extra information.

[@TroyLambertAuthor]

So the real answer is, it depends. This is why readers sometimes skip prologues - they don't want this information. The key is that if you do this, be sure there are no vital clues in the prologue that the reader needs in order to understand the story. This is a "bonus" for those who might want to know more, but be sure all prologues are "skipable"