Tag: appendix

Avoiding Information Dumps

Quan

While critiquing a fantasy novel written by a colleague of mine, I made the observation that the vast majority of her first chapter was exposition explaining the world and its backstory. Nothing actually happened until Chapter 2 when the story REALLY began. In my book, that’s a no-no. I’ve explained in a previous post that using chapter one to focus on worldbuilding was a possible way to start off a novel, but it must be done with great care and precision to be able to get pulled off successfully, and I don’t think just any writer can do it. But this also speaks to a larger point, which is having large chunks of exposition and what I call “Information dumps” in a story. The problem with an information dump is that is grinds the flow of the story to a halt (or in my colleague’s case, prevents the story from even starting) so that you can explain whatever necessary tidbit of information you think is essential for the story.

Granted, When writing Sci-fi or fantasy, or any story where there is technical information that must be explained, certain exposition scenarios are unavoidable. If you have a piece of futuretech to be used in story, you HAVE to explain how it works. But even in those instances, there are ways to make that work that will not slow down or stop the flow of your story. Here are a few options to consider:

1. Sprinkle details of your exposition throughout your story.
I think this is effective because it adds extra depth to your story and doesn’t reveal everything at once. I used this method when Setting up the world and science of Godmode. As Elijah explores his environment, the reader learns and experiences things as he does. The key is to have the information you want to deliver be relevant to whatever situation your protagonist is in at the time.

2. Break your info dump up with actions and dialogue.
This is an option when you have an active narrator, like in a first-person perspective story. While your perspective character is explaining your world’s history, or that complex technical detail that is vital to the story, also show your character actually doing something and interacting with his or her environment at the time. This serves the purpose of moving the story forward while also explaining that vital information tht the reader needs to know.

3. Make an appendix.
You also have the option of taking that technical information and backstory and placing it in the back of your book as an extra bonus. This also adds a layer of depth to your story. A story with an appendix has a different feel than a story that doesn’t. It adds an extra gravitas to the story, because if it was major enough to need its own appendix, then it must be VERY major, right? Footnotes and annotations also count. Terry Pratchett used footnotes masterfully in his Discworld series.

These are just a few options you can utilize to get all of that pertinent information into your story smoothly. Give them a try and see what works for you.

As mentioned, Pratchett was an absolute master of adding to his world via footnotes and annotations. And they were also hilarious. Here is one of my favorites from his Discworld series of books.

Appendices and Story Bibles

Quan

When crafting a story, especially a novel or series of novels, a writer will accumulate a lot of background information on his or her characters and setting. You could possibly come up with pages and pages of extensive character study and research to flesh out your characters and settings. If you’re writing fantasy or science fiction, then you’re doing heavy amounts of worldbuilding, research and ideation on how to make your fantastic worlds believable. You could be charting magic systems, or creating maps for your lands or even inventing new languages. Yet for all of the extensive work you’ve down to build the foundation of your story, there’s a good chance that only a fraction of that information will make it into your novel. So you may be asking yourself what to do with all of that extra information? You have a number of options, including the option to not make any of it publicly available.

One good place to put the extra information is in the back of your book, as an added bonus to readers. It’s not uncommon for a high fantasy story to have a map of the world in the back, or a series that has an extensive history to contain a timeline of important events. This adds extra value to your story and provides a good reference point for readers who are intrigued by certain details of your stories.

There’s also a chance you could use the material as a marketing tool. On the website for my sci-fi horror novel Godmode (www.godmode.quanwilliams.com), I have sections specifically set aside for bonus information on my characters, monsters, and setting. You will find Character bios, a sample bestiary (with sketches), some background information on BAAL Pharmaceuticals, as well as a listing of some of the more important weapons used in the story. People stumbling across this can see these items and want to know more, which will lead them to checking out the book. If you are promoting via website like I am, the added content will also boost your SEO.

Be very selective in which of your materials you make available, especially if you plan on revisiting that setting in future stories. You don’t want to give away important plot points or character development beats too early. The secret is to have just enough background information to flesh out and tantalize, while drawing your readers – both new readers and repeat readers who will reread your story armed with new information that will put the story into a new light. For instance, Donnie Darko’s special edition features include actual text from a book on time travel and alternate dimensions, which explain the meta of what is happening in the movie to people who don’t understand the significance of certain events.

You must be careful in that you don’t give away information that will lock you into an inflexible continuity. There is always a chance you might want to change certain details for future stories but if the old information is out there, you might have a hard time explaining any inconsistencies. This is a reason why many of Magic: The Gathering’s story bibles for their various worlds, as well as the universe bible for popular anime series Tenchi Muyo, are very seldom published. As those franchises grow, details may change, and keeping those bibles close to the vest helps avoid discrepancies.

Regardless of what you decide, you should consider your notes and background information a valuable resource that will help in growing the readership of your story. Used wisely, you can greatly expand your universe, bring new readers in, and create a loyal fanbase of your current readers.

Here’s a Star Trek Compendium that illustrates my point.