ryain
Junior Member
Fantasy.... Fashion....
Posts: 90
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Post by ryain on Apr 18, 2010 23:06:05 GMT -5
In one of my stories, and epic dimension travelling story that unfolds on the dirty streets of earth, I've started the story with one character but he dies in the second chapter. The main charcter doesn't enter until after the other character dies.
What I want to know is can I do this without creating more problems. Will this be too much of a jolt for my audience? Would this be breaking too many rules?
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Post by Spokane Flyboy on Apr 18, 2010 23:18:18 GMT -5
I've seen similar things done, but it's always in a "Prologue" rather than the "Chapters". I don't see it as a problem, but I have a feeling calling Chapter One your Prologue and having that section end with him dying and the main character entering in, or entering the main character in Chapter One may work better. For some reason, naming a chunk of the story Prologue seems to give an author more latitude to do things like you mention.
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Post by waldenwriter on Apr 19, 2010 0:13:44 GMT -5
Yeah having a prologue makes sense. Otherwise, the reader might get confused.
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Post by beckyminor on Apr 19, 2010 11:07:53 GMT -5
Those people who make the "rules," whoever they are, have been quoted to say that the reader had better meet your main character right away, so I think that they would cluck their tongues at you if you kill the character you introduce in chapter 1, and THEN proceed to bring out the protagonist. Of course, the people who make the rules sometimes tend to make them as a knee jerk reaction to word abuse, so I don't necessarily think we writers are wise to be rules lawyers.  There may be a very effective, innovative way to introduce and kill a character prior to meeting the protagonist. I think I would mess with it, get it on paper, then perhaps get a few trusted critiquers to give it a read. We can only speculate on how it will work until we read how it's working, eh? |
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Post by newburydave on Apr 19, 2010 18:49:14 GMT -5
If the introductory POV character dies early on and a plausible main POV character takes over the narrative "with an appropriate introduction" I don't see why anyone would fault that.
I'm assuming that there is some continuity and/or connection between the deceased introductory POV and the heir POV. It could acutally be a very powerful plot device if handled correctly. I've seen it done very well in Spy novels and crime novels.
As Jeff says in his weekly tips, you have to get to the place where you stop being teachable, ignore your teachers and start writing your own style. Maybe you can create a new genre or style.
SGD
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ryain
Junior Member
Fantasy.... Fashion....
Posts: 90
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Post by ryain on Apr 20, 2010 20:42:26 GMT -5
I'm assuming that there is some continuity and/or connection between the deceased introductory POV and the heir POV. It could acutally be a very powerful plot device if handled correctly. There is. The story involves a portal opening to earth. The first character has to die so that the portal can be opened. It's his blood that has to open the portal, a take on the power of the Blood of Christ. He has to die even though the heroine tries to prevent it. It also sets the mood of the story, dark and edgy, and keeps you in suspence. At least it's supposed to. I don't know if I can pull it off. As Jeff says in his weekly tips, you have to get to the place where you stop being teachable, ignore your teachers and start writing your own style. Maybe you can create a new genre or style. SGD I'm not a teacher but I just work on developing my own style and good writing. Thanks for all the comments. They help. I'll think about the prologue.  |
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Post by Spokane Flyboy on Apr 23, 2010 23:02:33 GMT -5
The only story coming immediately to mind that did something similar was the novelization of the game "Wing Commander 4: The Price of Freedom". William R. Forstchen wrote the book, Wing Commander: The Price of Freedom, but the game starts with fighters escorting a civilian hospital vessel that gets attacked by mysterious new fighters no one has seen. In the novel, it's from the point of Major Tom Vale and they are escorting three transports. The vessels and their escort are all taken out.
Ultimately, the plot wouldn't suffer any from the omission of the scene, but it serves to make you wonder what just happened and you keep going for the sake of finding out who these mysterious guys are that are so ruthless as to take out a hospital ship in peace time and call it "a successful test".
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There may be a very effective, innovative way to introduce and kill a character prior to meeting the protagonist. I think I would mess with it, get it on paper, then perhaps get a few trusted critiquers to give it a read. We can only speculate on how it will work until we read how it's working, eh?
