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Is that the correct term for a sort of 'unrelated' chapter - it's not actually unrelate, but the storylines don't necesarrily collide properly. Or is there another term?
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Good question. I have no idea. I had a few of those in a recent novel, and I started to call them "interlogues" since they went vaguely with my prologue as opposed to the main story. I switched that out and called them all "backflashes" later, because they all looked back in time. I suppose there's merit to finding a proper term, though.
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oooh, I like that term. I'm using an "interlogue" setup for my current novel, which follows my second main character's life parallel to the main character. I've been confused on how to set it up within the novel though. One of my favorite authors used short segments like mine in a different font at the beginning of each chapter, rather than as separate chapters. How do you set your chapters up with regards to your "interlogue"s?
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Well, here on SW, I picked a specific background for all my flashbacks, and used it for only them. They were long enough to be short chapters anyway.
I did have one that didn't fit that way, so I gave it a heading with a time stamp so it was clear that it was a flashback and separated it from the current story by my little scene separation marks. (***, ~-~-~, etc.) -
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Would you still use them as short chapters if you were to get your novel published? Mine aren't long enough to be chapters on their own, but my set up for them here is just to name them "Intro to chapter 12" and have them in separate posts.
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I'm still unsure my story will have actual chapters. I might go for scene breaks only. That would work better with the flashbacks. But I really like chapters.
If I do chapters, then yeah, they'll be their own little short chapter, with some sort of symbol or heading or whatnot, that clues the readers in that the following story isn't in the same timeline as the rest of the plot.
Chapters don't really have required length. I've read books where chapters were 4 paperback pages, and books where they're 35 paperback pages. I've occasionally seen short chapters that didn't even take up one page. It's really up to you. The chapter breaks go where you want to pause and start a new scene. I think the sense of drama in the interval is more important than how many words you use. -
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Hmmm... dead sister (not dead sister?), secretive parents, conspiracy theories, mysterious letters, mysterious encounters. I think my intervals might have too much drama, and I need to amp up my main story! It isn't so much the length of my interval as the difference in length between the main chapters and the intervals makes me think that the story would seem choppy if I used interval as a short chapter. However, I could use a nifty heading, like you said, and that might make it easier to follow.
Actually, I should probably finish the darn thing before I start worrying about the format. Stupid eleventh chapter.
Hmmm, you've given me much to ponder. Thanks! -
I saw a chapter that was 2 sentences. Seriously.
And sometimes my chapters are 3,500 words, other times only 1,500. I do try to limit them here, though. Nobody reads chapters longer than bout 3k!
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I don't know how accurate it is but another good word is 'interlude'. It basically refers to something that comes between.
It is used quite often in music, but I've seen it used in writing as well.
I know someone here who uses short interlude chapters spaced throughout a story to maintain a related thought or obscure presence that remains outside the main story until it is brought in near the end, usually during a catastrophic event that affects the outcome of the story.
It's a pretty effective way of placing a thought in the reader's head that there is something more to the story than what appears to be and keeps them wondering and second guessing. -
OOh thanks guys. Yeah, i've come across that in musical terms as well.
My 'interludes' are mainly to keep another storyline going until the characters meet at the end, although it's not OVERLY subtle at the moment!
But interludes does sound a little better. and they are MUCH shorter than my other chapters! -
ok, on a related note, what would you call "side stories?" I call them side stories, but I don't know if there's an actual term for them. They're stories I've written that are not part of my novel, but are short stories based on that universe, usually focusing on different characters than the main character.
Would these also be interludes? -
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I think of those as "stories (novella, short story, etc) set in the world of X". I think publishers refer to them that way, at least occasionally, in order to draw people's attention if they liked the world of X.
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I agree with Val- those aren't interludes, which take place within the story itself and eventually have a purpose in the main storyline. I've heard of them as "stories set in the world of X" as well.
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I have many of those planned. I'm going to link them together in a "book" of short stories, novellas and poems (or possibly not the poems) set in "my world". I wouldn't post them alongside the novel unless they worked together - although at the end of a novel, perhaps a "Link to Short story set in my world" would work?
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Isobelle Carmody used "segue" in one of her series. But they were really short, minor sections at the beginning of each Part (from memory when I read it a long time ago so don't quote me on that).
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wolfcub
Sep 1 4:24 AM
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