Thread: Starting a book with an extract from a book?

Hi everyone,

So I have started writing again and, though I like the novel I was working on years and years ago, it feels a little...childishly written lol.

I want to spend some time working on the prologue. It was originally just an overview of what had happened the 25 years prceeding the actual story, to fill in the history, but I really don't like that anymore. I would rather be briefer, much briefer, and fill the history in as I write.

I toyed with the idea of putting in a brief extract from one of the holy books mentioned in the novel, but I have scrapped that idea. Instead, I would like to put in an extract from a book one of the major, but not main, characters has written (she is a pivotal character but only features in the last half of Book 1, and probably not much in Book 2 when I come to write her).

Her book is going to be about the history of the Earth (as they know it) over several thousand years since a major event changed everything. The book will also have an air of prophecy to it as she writes about their 'saviour' who will set things right again.

I wanted to put in a brief extract, just something short, about this figure who will put things right again and what they are prophecised to do (just a paragraph or two about her coming and how she will release them from their bonds). Do you reckon this sounds an acceptable way to start a book? I have also toyed with the idea of adding these extracts later in the book, to give an idea of the history of the world, though I am uncertain how or where, or even if I will do this. Proceeding every chapter perhaps....

Anyway, just a thought

Grab a copy of DUNE by Frank Herbert or FOUNDATION by Isaac Asimov and flip through them. Both begin chapters/sections with quotations from various books.

If used, I feel it works best in small portions.

So would it be a fictional holy book for an actually holy book? Because if it's a fictional holy book it'd work great. Many readers (and I'm speaking because I'm one of them) LOVE a good prologue. It sets the tone and stage for the book. It's a great plan, honestly.

If you're going to have passages from another book weaved into the narrative of your story, just remember that those passages have to be interesting in their own right. In other words, those passages have to keep the reader turning pages, too, just as the main story does. Otherwise, you'll lose the reader, or they'll skip over it. And as Ace mentioned above, you'll want to keep it in small doses.

A new novel by Justin Cronin, The Passage, is about a modern world where a vampire virus has threatened to wipe out humanity. In that novel, he has pages every now and again devoted to someone's e-mail or to a newspaper article, what have you, but those passages are interesting to read in their own right.

Good luck with your story. It must mean a lot to you if you've ressurrected it all these years later and still want to write it.

If you're going to have passages from another book weaved into the narrative of your story, just remember that those passages have to be interesting in their own right.

This.

I'll also add that those passages must be pertinent to the chapter or section they precede. Don't quote them just to quote them.

Alternatively, you could put a picture at the start of a man emerging out of darkness and bringing light, (or whatever represents it best.) Might even end up as the front cover.

Thanks so much for the suggestions and the encouragement everyone. I hadn't considered thoroughly enough (as I have only just got home from work) that the small segments before each chapter should be relevant to the chapter following it. I think if this is the case I wouldn't be able to put one into the beginning of every chapter. Just a select relevant few? If I go ahead with it, I might just do a regular prologue, as I think it would be best to have pages from a Holy book at beginning of chapters rather than extracts from a Priestess' own work. I'll be able to make things more relevent through a holy book lol.

Or could I use part of her writing as a prologue then a bit of the holy book at chapter beginnings? Argh its so confusing lol. I need time off work to figure out what I want to do lol!

Dude, I urge you to grab a copy of Dune and check out how Herbert uses excerpts from books and other material as chapter headers. It might give you some ideas on how to do it with your story.

Thanks writerguy. Strangely enough my piano teacher said I HAVE to read the Dune books and he'd try and find his copy for me. That was last week lol