Is prologue necessary?

[kavaj]

So the real question is ... it depends on the skill of the author? Let me ask you guys this then. What is considered a good/bad prologue then? How long is too long? I know a bad prologue when i read one, but if i have to create a prologue myself is totally a different beast. Means i have no clue.

[kavaj]

Yeah, i already have initial conflict for prologue without explaining rules etc, but readers just go along with the characters on their journey. But this only works if the characters aren’t really privy to the rule of the world as well, isn’t it? Thanks for the recommendation, i’ll read it later <3

[cherrystark]

My work is a novel but I do think often prologues are unnecessary. Unless you are are following a certain formula like the classic fairytale "Once Upon a Time" motif or setting up the mystery like in the classic mystery format, a lot of the exposition can be woven in at other points of the story.

I think the key to a good prologue is knowing what information readers HAVE to know before starting the series and what can wait until later. Cryptic/vague poetry is often not helpful or intriguing (LOTR is an exception). I've often read prologues where they drop us into a scene, introduce new characters, etc but then dramatically shift the view because the first part was just the "prologue". Stories like that, I'd rather the prologue just be called "chapter 1" and move on with the story.

[cherrystark]

The quality of the prologue definitely depends on the skill of the author. If the prologue sets the stage for future events awesome, I'll read it. If the prologue is just used to infodump about the world because you didn't want to include it later on, nope. I'll skip it and probably won't finish the book.

[darthmongoose]

Ah I feel very flattered to be used as an example!

But yes, to repeat what most people have said, prologues aren't the right fit for every story. I felt like it was the approach that worked best for Errant specifically so used one, but normally I'm not a big prologue person and especially don't like ones that are like... narration over a tapestry or something talking about the great dragon war etc. etc. If it doesn't have a really compelling and immediately relevant plot hook or character drama I usually tune out.

[kavaj]

So without prologue, as the story goes characters throwing bits information here and there something that should be common knowledge is forgivable then?

[cherrystark]

In my opinion, yes. With how my brain works, if an author spends too much time at the beginning of the story explaining the magic system and other world building, I can and will probably forget it by the point in the story where that information would actually be useful. I would much rather read about characters being drastically wrong about dwarves or something because of misinformation they'd heard in passing rather than presenting all that information in one post.

[darthmongoose]

So without prologue, as the story goes characters throwing bits information here and there something that should be common knowledge is forgivable then?

So this is the main reason a creator might need a prologue. The alternative is having characters telling the audience about stuff that happened or that they know rather than having a scene or sequence that shows it. This was why I felt Errant needed a prologue, because the alternative was either the audience being told rather than shown this pivotal event that happened in the past, OR setting up the story, then interrupting it for an extended flashback.
As much as some people hate prologues, it's also annoying when all the characters are like "AS YOU KNOW, our village was invaded by the empire five years ago." Which also feels really silly, but would be hard to avoid if the comic was written in a cinematic style like mine without narration or internal monologue.

[kavaj]

XD right either way is not fun, but maybe can be fun with the right hand(author) which i seem to not posses.

[pilot-obvious]

I don't think prologues are absolutely necessary but it can certainly be a tool that helps many artists and authors. I like it when authors use short prologues almost as a teaser to set up the mood for their series. If it's shorter and visually interesting, then I'm all for it. If it's a boring, text laden info dump, then it might deter me from continuing the series.

[kavaj]

How much short is short? Do you think combining short prologue into the first chapter would be good? Like maybe 10 panels and then right into the story so it doesn’t feel laggy?

[pilot-obvious]

That's actually exactly what I'm planning on doing! I created a short prologue that I'm going to add to my first episode later this month. It's about 10 panels (some are longer drawings!) with a short poem throughout.

[Tanako]

Nope. just extra work for yourself lol. ok let me be serious. at some point in time it was getting popular and I felt like I needed it. now that I think about it, only have one if you believe your comic needs it. if you can tell a story without it then that's even better because having one is just adding more work for yourself. so personally I won't bother however, I do have one in my recent comic but I cheated. how? well I took clips and images from what I already had an put them together to create one instead of actually creating one from scratch LOL.

[thedude3445]

Not only are prologues not necessary, but they're usually completely unnecessary. In novels especially, a huge portion of readers just outright skip anything labeled "prologue" because they feel they can pick up on all the information they missed via context clues. And they're usually right.

You definitely want to avoid the "characters talk in exposition mode in chapter 1" trap that a lot of bad stories start with, but a prologue that shows that very exposition may not be the right solution (though it sometimes is!). Figuring out how to deliver the backstory/lore information in the most narratively satisfying way is important, but I personally anti-recommend the prologue unless the prologue still features the protagonist (and usually they don't).

[Kura]

Damn the prologues are usually one of my fav parts of the book to read x.x why are so hated?

[cherrystark]

Because they usually aren't done very well, in my opinion. Sometimes, the writer gives no explanation as to why the chapter is a prologue but are quick to slap "prologue" on it. Other times, the work in the prologue is WILDLY different than the first chapter so it can make the rest of the story hard to follow.

[Rhonder]

In short, no they're not necessary. As others have already said, I think how a prologue is done and the purpose it serves is important in determining if you need one or not.

The type that I absolutely do not like and think almost every story would be as good without (or better, even) are types that just throw like... pure unedited world building in the reader's face. If you're just including a prologue to tell us about something that happened millions of years ago and has no direct tie to where the story actually starts... skip it, I say. Sure that conflict or world building lore may be directly relevant to where the plot is going, but that doesn't mean you need to lead with it. Often that sort of information can be woven into the story later on closer to when it becomes relevant, and after we've already connected with the character and their actual current day situation. Same goes for random blurbs of information. "this world is magical, and it works like this!" is just not a very effective way to convey that information, especially if that's the first thing you throw at a reader. Often there are more nuanced and enjoyable ways to show that early on than blatant explanations (this is something I partially sinned in in my first comic lol. I waited for a few pages before info dumping how magic worked but it was still not great. At least I contained it to a single page tho )

The type of prologue that I do like are those that are somehow separated from the main narrative, but directly do something to set up said narrative. Whether it be something that happened to the main character in the past that they don't remember well, or maybe we see some random characters discovering the mcguffin that our protagonist will later come into contact with early in the story, or maybe we see something from an unusual Point of View that's important to getting the ball rolling, or what have you. Basically so long as the prologue feels like its own actual mini chapter of sorts, y'know? It should still have stuff actually happening in the present that the prologue takes place in, and still be interesting enough to hook the reader, and all that.

[rajillustration]

Prologues are where I generally nope out, so I'd much prefer to either be tossed into the fray, or to have that prologue disguised as something else, otherwise--get it outta there. Save it for later. Especially in a webcomic, pacing is so fast that I can't justify using a prologue anymore. Not unless I had a very particular type of story that needed to have that feel.

[WinterFall]

I wouldn't call it necessary... it's more like a thought than a necessity in stories. Some stories are better off without prologues, and some are just... not done right. In my opinion, they're also unnecessary and unimportant. Most of the prologues are simply just like sequels to a latter that will happen later on in the story.

[Leverance]

In my story Incarnation I chose a prolog for the reason it's vital to understand the world and characters later on. I always make sure my Fanfics are written in a way an outsider can jump straight in and read it like any other book.

Though in a series like His Obsession I found a prolog unnecessary simply because the story didn't require it. And because it will be a series of two seasons only the end will have an epilog and prolog. Though the first season will have an epilog only.