As the writer, our job, which is sometimes difficult (or always difficult if you're me) is choosing when and how to reveal this information.
Of course, there is information that the reader needs to know right away, like who the characters are, the setting, and what is even going on. When I am reading a book I typically go into it thinking "who are you and why do I care?" And the reader needs the answers to those questions as soon as possible. You don't want to be in the third chapter of a story and still not have a basic concept of the plot.
Remember, your reader knows absolutely nothing when they are starting the book and you know everything and it's your job to make sure they get all the information they need in a way that's interesting and not confusing.
Besides the basic information, eventually, your reader will need to know the answers to all those questions you've been asking throughout the novel. You'll need to reveal twists, turns, and motives. Much of this is typically revealed at the end of the story, when everyone finally gets all the answers. Want to know why the villain did what he/she did? It will probably be revealed at the end, which is okay. You don't want to give something like that away in the middle of the story because it takes away from the tension and suspense.
Don't wait until the end, though, to reveal all the information you've been building up to or your reader is going to feel overwhelmed and have a hard time keeping up with it. Give information little by little throughout the story so your reader gets hints and save the big reveal for the end.That way, your reader isn't totally clueless and they still get the climax they've been waiting for.
Just be aware that you can't reveal everything at once because that is throwing too much information out there. Your reader will get an information overload. I know this because it's happened to me before. More than once. Some authors just pile information on you. They either tell you nothing or everything at once and it's not good for the reader. Keep your reader engaged by giving them hints every now and then.
That is a good strategy for the information your reader has to know by the end of the story. Like, if your villain is your protagonist's father but they don't know, that would be the thing you want to reveal at the end, but that is not the time to reveal the family history. When you share the relationship of the villain and protagonist, the reader should already have a good idea of the protagonist's family history. You don't want to spoil a moment like that with a history lesson so get it out of the way beforehand.
So, what about the information the reader needs to know at the beginning, like figuring out what exactly is going on? Well, there's not one right way to do it, but there are wrong ways. One way that gets boring really fast is the question and answer session where one character is asking questions and the other one is answering them all which happens in way too many books.
Like, say there is a magic tree that your main character needs to know about, and you have a secondary character that has all the information that the protagonist needs so you have a dialogue that goes something like this:
MC: Where do I get this magic?
SC: From the Magic Tree, of course!
MC: Magic Tree?
SC: Yes. Long ago, a magician planted a tree where he would be able to keep all his magic and when he passed on, he left his magic in the tree.
MC: How am I supposed to get the magic?
SC: Using the magician's retrieval spell.
MC: But where am I supposed to find this spell?
SC: In his spell book, I think. Or somewhere in his abandoned house. Everyone was scared of him and they figure he's still haunting his home so no one's been up there since he died. Everything he owned should still be there. Including his spells.
MC: So, I just go to his house, find this spell, find the tree, recite the spell and I have the magic I need? And then what? Will I be in danger? Will anyone be able to take it from me?
SC: After you recite the spell, you should have the magic, and yes, you will not be safe. There are many that are after his magic. And if someone kills you, they will inherit the magic from you.
But, anyway, hopefully through that less than brilliant dialogue I just wrote out of nowhere, you get an idea of what I mean. Any question the main character asks, the supporting character has an answer. And sometimes it's okay for another character to be able to answer the questions of the MC, but if they have a series of questions and they all get an answer, that's a boring way to find out what the main plot idea is.
It's just a method the author uses to quickly give the reader the information so they can get into the story and, sometimes, it's unrealistic that a secondary character knows so much. It's telling the reader, not showing the reader.
There are much better ways to give this information. For example, perhaps the MC, instead of asking all those questions about the Magic Tree just goes to the magician's house and happens upon the retrieval spell without really knowing what they're looking for. That way, they get what they need, the reader is in the know and they discovered the information on their own, nobody told them.
Hopefully, you get an idea about what I mean. Choosing when and how to give information is important to the story because the right sort of lack of information is what keeps the reader reading. They finish a story because they want the answers and if you throw everything at them once, it's confusing and chaotic. You have to do it carefully and sparingly and make it interesting. It's really not fun for the reader when the MC gets all their questions answered without having to do anything.
No comments:
Post a Comment