Pace or description - Writers Forum

pdwalke4 · 12-12-2006, 04:53 AM

Am writing a fantasy story, along lines of planet of the apes but trying to put a believable spin on their origins (evolution from animal to hybrid) and how my characters get inolved. I am spending a lot of time on background (as eventually time travel involved) and would like oppinions on if readers would prefer to have this insight to character motivations and origins or just pref them dropped in it and running from there. I havereached point in book where time travel happens and its a novelle up to there (just shy of 80,000).

Should i have it as the novelle and start a fresh with the story?

Badger

Mike C · 12-12-2006, 04:58 AM

Unless you can make a lesson in genetics interesting and gripping, drop and run.

woodcut.evolution · 12-12-2006, 11:38 AM

Drop 'em in and go with it. Much more interesting by far. However that doesn't mean you can't write background on why everything works out in your novel, just use it for personal reference. You might find that at some point you want to include a bit of back story, and having notes will help you more easily weave it into the story.

Cynic · 12-12-2006, 12:47 PM

It's very difficult to make technical stuff interesting. I consider people like Michael Crichton and Greg Bear fairly good examples success in that attempt, but even they stumble IMO. I struggle with this in my own works, because it's easy to fall in love with all the effort it takes to make one's ideas work out. But in the end, I think it's best to be loyal to the ruthless rule: if it doesn't advance the story or contribute to something that does, toss it out.

Naturally that can vary quite a bit. Sometimes all that backstory is the story. But it doesn't sound like it might be the case here, so drop and run might be your best bet.

If you are hoping to make this a series of some sort, you might consider that by withholding your backstory, you'll be not only making your present story more econmomical, but also providing fodder for future works.

Cynic · 12-12-2006, 12:52 PM

Also... (and sorry for making this two posts)

If you've read him, consider how Neal Stephenson handles this sort of thing in books like The Diamond Age. If you've got a strong urge to explain the ramifications of a particular aspect of science or technology, but don't want to bore people to death with it, try to find an angle that illustrates why those things are facinating. Stephenson excels at that like no other.

In my conceit as a mostly untested author, I like to think when I read most things that "I can do better than that!" But I never get that impression when I read Stephenson. I usually slink away thinking that I'd like to become important enough some day that he'll autograph my copy of Snow Crash...