Ain't No Cure For the Summertime Blues!
Hello again, fellow writers!
It's summer in Texas again. The season for mid-day berry pickin' and back porch settin' has been relegated to the early hours or very late evening, driving the Austin populace to more comfortable environs with their feet up in a refrigerated living room, a stack of books beside the couch.
A Frustrated Reader--And Some Forthcoming Advice
When it comes to imparting and analyzing history, delivery is very important, even if you are outlining and illustrating the importance of Roosevelt's Fire Side chats to the vastly disconnected body politic of pre-World War II America. For those writing pieces of fiction, the method and vehicle for the delivery of history may either weaken the piece at key points, or strengthen a piece in an unexpected way. In our last post, we discussed using 20% of the known history of a work or actual history to drive 80% of the historical needs of the work. Today, we'll take that step further by examining the various ways authors divulge the rich history of their settings and worlds.
Traditional Methods for Delivering History
When it comes to delivering history, sometimes the best course of action is a tried-and-true method. These methods for revealing or using the history of a given place or time in fiction are perhaps the easiest for writers to grasp as they make their way through their first draft--which is what we're all about right now: getting words down on paper. Though each of them has their pitfalls, their strengths have been made apparent to us as readers since we've been able to remember the joy of reading.
Exposition
I mention exposition first because I need to get it out of the way. Exposition is an acceptable historical vehicle, especially for series in which readers are committed to the story and might be willing to overlook a few pages of backstory if it's been more than a year since the last installment. Author Gail Z. Martin has been known to mask exposition with recaps, either through journal entry chapters (see archivist Royce in the Winter Kingdoms novels) or through first-person introductions (see Cassidy Kincaid's introduction to the cast of characters in Martin's latest Deadly Curiosities novel, Tangled Web). Though exposition is not inherently weak, few authors do it correctly, and it is one of the easiest vehicles of history to go overboard on. Too much exposition--for history or not--can cause the story to lose a bit of its dynamism. This prompts the equally unhelpful "show vs tell" advice given to many writers. Every author who uses exposition for history should be striving for balance. Exposition should never drive plot and should be used sparingly to deliver history. Stephen King's The Eyes of the Dragon is one notable exception to the use of exposition to drive plot.
Here are a few places where exposition can be used effectively.
- In first-person point-of-view, history can be delivered in the form of memories related to a current conversation or circumstance in which the reader will need a little more backstory to truly understand the current crisis.
- In third-person-limited point-of-view under similar circumstances: a quick memory or fact presented to the reader to enlighten the current event or circumstance.
- In incredibly long works with massive, pre-written backstories and lore that readers may already be familiar with. Warhammer writer Gav Thorpe uses exposition to move long moments in history and current plots. Since elves are long-lived, the events of the war between Anlec and the free elves of Ulthuan would have taken five or six books instead of three had they been "shown" not "told".
Flashbacks
Flashbacks are a lot like exposition with one key strength over exposition: flashbacks can be used to "show" events that would otherwise be told in snippets. Flashbacks have the ability to strengthen a work by putting characters through the circumstances that might have led up to the current moment or crisis. Flashbacks not only impart the history, but also they affect of choices on the character and the insights gained from experiences. Author Scott Lynch employs the clever use of flashbacks in his novels The Lies of Locke Lamora and Republic of Thieves. Lynch never detracts from the current plot of the novels, though he uses flashbacks as exposition to fill in the gaps between Locke's past and the current plot.
Here are some examples where flashbacks are employed to their greatest effectiveness.
- In longer works with limited character point of view where an explanation of events leading the current crisis is needed to establish character as well as plot.
- In moments where a different or alternative perspective is given to the reader from an unexpected character, such as a villain. Two different people will remember an event very differently.
- Entire novels or novellas can be flashbacks. In The Book of Jhereg, Steven Brust opens with a novella of Vlad Taltos, Jhereg, beginning with an exposition flashback to Vlad's childhood, setting up the current events of Vlad's crisis. In the following novella, Yendi, Brust flashes even further back to tell the story of Vlad meeting his wife, Cawti, though technically that is the second novella in the series.
Dialog
Dialog is an effective way to deliver history of events or pre-determined history. It's a more dynamic and natural way to deliver history. Gail Z. Martin often reveals history through dialog, allowing her characters to use the stories they are relating to also move plot. Though too often authors use dialog as a catch all in lieu of "showing" (dialog exposition is still exposition), dialog can be used to deal with large chunks of history or fact in a piece of fiction without diverging from the main plot, especially in a series. For myself, though I have plans to be more creative with my incredibly huge backstory, my characters in The Thaumaturge of Mircea (in progress) often relate previous events in the near or distant past to add context to current events. You can read a good deal into dialog that is delivering history.
Here are a few instances in which dialog can be used to deliver history.
- For those of us writing cultures with complex magic systems or orders of magic, history becomes a matter of discourse among characters, which can create tension as each character develops his or her own understanding of the system. The most dynamic scenes between Jedi and Sith often include both parties trying to best the other in a battle of philosophies as well as lightsabers, such as James Luceno's final showdown between Darth Vader and Rone Shrine in Rise of a Dark Lord.
- Delivering history through dialog will acquaint new characters with an unfamiliar setting or new surroundings. Depending on the person or character delivering the history, the conversation can be either reassuring or increase the anxiety of the character. The success of the dialog as a vehicle for history lays in the complexity of the characters. Flat characters cannot be expect to impart complex history that makes no sense for their personalities. Dynamic characters interpret history for themselves and their feelings on the subject will affect their delivery.
Case Study: Alternating Time Lines and The Rise of Nagash
Warhammer is a massive body of fictional content. The entire Games Workshop repertoire traditionally encompassed two separate universes: Warhammer 40K and Warhammer Fantasy Battles. In order to sell more games, Games Workshop commissioned authors of renown to write out the fictional lore of both universes under their own label, Black Library. One of those authors was fantasy writer Mike Lee, and among the major timelines leading up to the End Times in the worlds of the Mortal Realms was the Time of Legends subhistory, encompassing the stories of three of the Mortal Realms most legendary players: Sigmar, Malekith, and Nagash. Each of these key players would go on to found three of the major campaign armies available for play: the Empire of Man, the Elves of Ulthuan, and the Tomb Kings. Mike Lee wrote out the lore in a Black Library omnibus for Nagash called The Rise of Nagash, a three-novel series about the rise and fall of Nagash the Undying.
 |
| Cover art for the omnibus edition of The Rise of Nagash |
Because of the vast body of work already available for the Tomb Kings, it was Lee's job to go back in time and tell the story of Nagash's rise to power and the lengths he went to to ensure his own immortality. Lee chose alternating timelines to tell this story.
Mike begins the book en medias res, or "in the middle" of a massive campaign Nagash is waging against his own people. The chapter ends on a cliffhanger as Lee switches tracks. Instead of finding out the immediate outcome of the beginning chapter, Lee alters the timeline to include a flashback style chapter beginning with Nagash as a younger man, still breathing and ruminating on the acquisition of power. Each succeeding chapter alternated between Nagash's past and Nagash's present. The genius of the work laid in Mike's ability to alter point of views as well as the timeline, often incorporating the point of view of Arkhan the Black, the brutal voice of reason compared to Nagash. Though Arkhan was merely a supporting character in the historical chapters, he was a main character in the main plot chapters, creating a dynamic page-turner that I read cover to cover in a short period.
Though Mike Lee was not the first author to deliver history in an alternating timeline, Lee uses this method to his advantage, dealing out vast swaths of past events that builds strong connections to the famous characters...even if it is Nagash the Giant Jerk Necromancer.
Getting Creative With History
Some authors eschew the traditional methods of delivering history in favor of creating something entirely different with their history. As we're all aware, Tolkien's mythic history for Middle Earth was far and away more extensive than what made it into his Hobbit and Lord of the Rings novels, so much so that he would go on to write The Simarillion to add the details of the mythic history he imparts to his readers through his legendary characters, some of them mythic legends themselves.
Some authors employ alternative history, basing their stories in historical fact while altering the course of events through speculation. Harry Turtledove is perhaps the most well-known alternate history author, specializing in fiction that speculates what would have happened if the Germans had won World War II.
Authors like Gregory Keyes include historical references in at the beginning of each of their chapters. For example, Keyes' would reference old texts and writings from the annals of Crotheny's darkest days, everything from religious texts to pieces of music. H.P. Lovecraft was also fond of referencing historical works at the beginning of his stories, often from the famed Necronomicon, which he first coined and August Derleth made famous in Lovecraft's wake.
Then there's Susanna Clarke.
Some authors employ alternative history, basing their stories in historical fact while altering the course of events through speculation. Harry Turtledove is perhaps the most well-known alternate history author, specializing in fiction that speculates what would have happened if the Germans had won World War II.
Authors like Gregory Keyes include historical references in at the beginning of each of their chapters. For example, Keyes' would reference old texts and writings from the annals of Crotheny's darkest days, everything from religious texts to pieces of music. H.P. Lovecraft was also fond of referencing historical works at the beginning of his stories, often from the famed Necronomicon, which he first coined and August Derleth made famous in Lovecraft's wake.
Then there's Susanna Clarke.
Case Study: Susanna Clarke and Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell
Mr. Honeyfoot and Mr. Segundus--in the BBC television adaptation of Susanna Clarke's Regency-style novel of English magic--approach Mr. Norrell at his home in York. Mr. Segundus asks the penultimate question.
"We wish to know, why is there no more magic done in England?"
 |
| Mr. Segundus and Mr. Honeyfoot visiting Mr. Norrell at his home in York. |
Of course, Mr. Norrell is not inclined to answer, and he will spend the rest of the novel defending his title as the only successful practitioner of "Proper English Magic" in the country. Susanna Clarke chose to tell her novel of the death of English Magic in Regency style. It is indeed a work of historical fiction, but Clarke's novel is more than that. Readers familiar with the language and diction of the Bronte sisters (Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre) and Elizabeth Gaskill (North and South), as well as the acerbic wit of Jane Austen (Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, etc) will immediately recognize Clarke's remarkable use of cultured, cultivated, crafted language popular in English literature in the Eighteenth-Century.
In addition to Clarke's clear understanding and flawless use of the language, Clarke's design for the novel is also unique. Instead of using introspection and exposition--constructs of contemporary fiction--Clarke uses footnotes to fill in the gaps of her novel, provide backstory, and offer introspection. For those of us used to Regency literature, we will recall that introspection began in the Eighteenth Century, but was not so widely used as it is today. Many authors still relied on the tried-and-true method of referencing a source for their fiction, as extended works of fiction were not taken seriously as a medium. Though authors like Dafoe, Walpole, Austen, Gaskill, Radcliff, and Swift wrote novels, the literary genre style of writing fiction was popularized, mostly by the likes of Dickens, in the Nineteenth Century, when the use of introspection and third-person exposition became literary devices that we see in contemporary fiction.
Writers in the Eighteenth Century wrote for their audiences in crafted language that also had a directed style of speaking, which relied on the reader's understanding of cultural artifacts and cultural references that we no longer have access to. Tapping into this knowledge, Susanna Clarke wrote to an Eighteenth Century audience, filling in the cultural reference and artifacts in footnotes, mostly in the Historical style of documentation we find in Barnes and Noble editions of great literary works. However, instead of filling in historically accurate cultural artifacts, Clarke made up her own texts, historical figures, and quotes, referencing "historical works" made up for her fiction, but that could easily have been found in Mr. Norrell's library in York.
Though Susanna Clarke is not the first author to invent a fictional body of texts and works of art and history for her fiction, she is so far one of the only authors of historical fiction that has successfully mimicked the Regency style with such accuracy that casual readers complained that the work was "too literary". I have to admit to being taken by surprised at how challenging the novel was. However, I now look back on it as one of my favorite books and I encourage everyone to give it a try.
Last week we delved into writing a scene or piece in which we used just a little bit of history to tell a story, ground the reader in the plot or setting, and do it all within about 2,000 words or so. This week we're switching it up! Whatever method you used to tell your scene or story, this week's writing prompt is to use a different method! If you told your story in exposition last week, split your scene out into two chapters this week and use alternating timelines. If you wrote your story from the prospective of the protagonist last week, try writing that same story or event from the prospective of a villain!
In this experiment, we're looking at ways to add dimension, depth, and dynamism to your plot, characters, or setting, but hopefully we're doing that work for all of the above! Remember that history, religion, politics, art, and people are interconnected, with one having influence over the other on at least some level.
Remember to make sure you're putting words down on paper by using 20% of your world's or setting's history to tell 80% of the story. Focus on "the here and now" of the plot as you use history--and your method of delivery--to create a rich world for your reader to dive into.
Writers in the Eighteenth Century wrote for their audiences in crafted language that also had a directed style of speaking, which relied on the reader's understanding of cultural artifacts and cultural references that we no longer have access to. Tapping into this knowledge, Susanna Clarke wrote to an Eighteenth Century audience, filling in the cultural reference and artifacts in footnotes, mostly in the Historical style of documentation we find in Barnes and Noble editions of great literary works. However, instead of filling in historically accurate cultural artifacts, Clarke made up her own texts, historical figures, and quotes, referencing "historical works" made up for her fiction, but that could easily have been found in Mr. Norrell's library in York.
Though Susanna Clarke is not the first author to invent a fictional body of texts and works of art and history for her fiction, she is so far one of the only authors of historical fiction that has successfully mimicked the Regency style with such accuracy that casual readers complained that the work was "too literary". I have to admit to being taken by surprised at how challenging the novel was. However, I now look back on it as one of my favorite books and I encourage everyone to give it a try.
Writing Prompt!
Last week we delved into writing a scene or piece in which we used just a little bit of history to tell a story, ground the reader in the plot or setting, and do it all within about 2,000 words or so. This week we're switching it up! Whatever method you used to tell your scene or story, this week's writing prompt is to use a different method! If you told your story in exposition last week, split your scene out into two chapters this week and use alternating timelines. If you wrote your story from the prospective of the protagonist last week, try writing that same story or event from the prospective of a villain!
In this experiment, we're looking at ways to add dimension, depth, and dynamism to your plot, characters, or setting, but hopefully we're doing that work for all of the above! Remember that history, religion, politics, art, and people are interconnected, with one having influence over the other on at least some level.
Remember to make sure you're putting words down on paper by using 20% of your world's or setting's history to tell 80% of the story. Focus on "the here and now" of the plot as you use history--and your method of delivery--to create a rich world for your reader to dive into.
Features
As always, mention that you are interested in
having your piece featured in the comments section below or on this
week's Writing Prompt Facebook post. An admin will respond to you within
one day, and we'll send you a message via DM or email so you can submit
your piece for feature.
