When to Write a Prologue… and When to Avoid It.

By Tierre-Lee Curtis

Just as common as a shirtless man with long hair holding a dainty damsel on the cover of a romance paperback, prologues have become an expected element of manuscripts in the modern writing-reading world. But what exactly is a prologue? Does every story need one? Well, whether you choose to opt in or not, let’s unpack exactly what a prologue is, and whether you should include it with your story.

The purpose of a prologue is to offer the reader preliminary information to help contextualise the world you’ve created and its character within the story. Whether it is as simple as outlining the political landscape of trolls in another world or sharing some important lore that pertains to the hero’s battle, the prologue is here to help ease the reader in. By definition, a prologue is the introduction of an event that leads to another – also known as your story!

Pretty straightforward, right? The real question is, do you even need one? Well, a good rule of thumb is if there is some sort of prerequisite understanding of characters, background history, or any other key factor within your story, then you need it. Rather than disrupt the flow of your story and potentially compromise the integrity of your character’s voice, spend a little time setting up your tale through it.

The key to writing a great prologue is easy enough if you keep a few things in mind. Firstly, keep in mind that this introductory portion will set the tone of what’s to come. Whether it’s foreshadowing or forewarning, the prologue needs to set the foundation for everything that is to come. Secondly, whether it introduces your character from a first or third-person perspective, this introductory text is best used to contextualise the focal point of view in which the reader will be experiencing your story. Finally, and most importantly, is that the prologue’s main goal and measure of quality is how it prepares the reader for what they’re about to read. This is where you want to introduce the key concept elements that will provide the reader with a basic understanding of everything this world of yours has to offer.