Horror Aficionados discussion

I remember I was talking with someone about a book they were going to read, and they mentioned offhandedly that they were going to skip the prologue.

I've heard of this phenomena before, and it always baffles me. The prologue is part of the book, imo.

I told them that, too. There was probably a gasp and some wide eyes on my part, as well. LOL

I'm the type of guy who reads everything in the book, from the copyright, to acknowledgements, prologues, epilogues, authors notes, introductions, and dedications.

So, do you skip the prologue?

no way, it's what usually sets up the book, it's, like you said, part of the book

Nope. I find it odd that someone would even consider skipping it!

Skipping the prologue is like skipping the first post in a thread; you'll have a general idea of what's going on but you might miss the actual point.

There are actually some publishers out there that don't like prologues because of this. They'll ask you to change it from prologue to chapter one! LOL

I actually appreciate the prologue because it gets you up to date with the story in a concise manner and sometimes even offers you a few fun details from the author. I actually go out of my way to read new intros from some authors like Stephen King and Clive Barker precisely because its so great to read anything from them and wonderful to have that little extra bit from them.

Me too, Amanda!

I can't even imagine not reading them! Gah the author wrote it for a reason!

I always read them but I can see why some people might skip them. It rare to find a well written prologue. A lot of times they do little but sew seeds of confusion and its not until you finish the book that they make sense.

No, I always read it.

I never skip a prologue, but I tend to read the intros after I read the book.

I skip the intro and/or prologue if it's been written by someone else. Case in point, I skipped the prologue to We Have Always Lived in the Castle, and read it after I finished the book. I'm so relieved I did, as it ended up being an in depth analysis of the classic. Had I read it first, the magic would have been sucked out of the reading experience. It was like getting a Coles notes version against your will!

I don't skip prologues because it's the beginning of the story and it's there for a reason.

I do skip intros, and only read them after I finish because I wouldn't know what he was talking about since I haven't read the book, and I don't want the story to be spoiled.

I only read an author's afterward if I really liked the story. If it was only mediocre, I really have zero interest in knowing how he came up with the plot, where he did his research, or who helped him with said mediocre book.

I guess it depends on the book and if it plays a big part in the story.

Actually, the only time I don't read everything in a book is if I don't like it. If I don't like a book, I have no problem dropping it. Life is too short to torture yourself with a bad book.

I can't skip a prologue. I'm afraid I'll miss something important.

I want to think that they were confusing prologue and introduction. A prologue is the start of the story; this isn't even a debate!

Laurel wrote: "I skip the intro and/or prologue if it's been written by someone else. Case in point, I skipped the prologue to We Have Always Lived in the Castle, and read it after I finished the bo..."

That's not a prologue; that's an introduction.

Tell me if anyone else thinks this way (probably just weird old me, though):

Prologues are usually terse and exciting. If it's a horror book, someone's getting eaten/slashed/bitten/chainsawed. Do you ever feel let down after reading a good prologue when you have to jump right into the slow build up of the novel on page one?

Nope, it was the prologue. Apperantly, there are actually people who do this. I didn't think I'd find any here, though. LOL

Some people don't like them because they usually don't have much to do with the main story. They are often used to set up the story.

Tressa, yes, I do feel let down a little when after reading an exciting prologue only to jump into a slow build up.

I'm wary of author intros ever since Stephen King spoiled what happens in The Running Man.

Prologues? Of course not. Even if I don't understand what is going on, I still read it and keep it in mind for later. Sometimes I do have to go back and read a prologue again later.

Now introductions, those I usually skip. I read too many of those that spoiled bits of the story! Now I'll read them after or just skip them altogether.

Scott wrote: "I'm wary of author intros ever since Stephen King spoiled what happens in The Running Man."

I just had that happen to me about a month ago but that was an introduction.

I always read the prologue.

Last week my wife started reading a book and asked me if she should read the prologue and I told her that you had to because it usually contained very important information about the book.

I always read the prologue. Tressa- I have encountered prologues that are way better than the rest of the book.

In horror books, IMO, most prologues don't mean much at all. It's just a little example of the bloodletting to come. Not even necessary. And, like I said, gets you all excited and then you have to start the learning of names, places, etc. All that boring stuff in the first few chapters before the good stuff even starts.

Erica, I've also read some prologues that were better.

I always read the prologue as many times it sets up a big part of the story to come by dropping a little clue.

Two modern horror classics, Salem's Lot and Ghost Story, have prologues/epilogues that are essential to the story... but perhaps not at first. They lull you with mystery and enigmatic characters whose identities you're not yet sure of, and hints of the dangers to come. As Shakespeare put it, "What's past is prologue."

Honestly, I can't even get my head around this "debate." Not reading a prologue would be like starting to read a book on page, I don't know, 22; or stopping 13 pages before the end of the book. In other words, at random. It makes no sense. The prologue is part of the novel/story/play, end of discussion! ;-)

In my opinion, if you skip the prologue, I feel you skip vital information that is needed for the rest of the story.

Yes, I agree with you Will and Sharon. But it seems that the prologues I read really don't add much to the story, just sets up more of what's to come in the book. A lot of times none of the main characters are even in the prologue, just some faceless victim. (Speaking mainly of horror book prologues.)

I usually read the prologue.
But when it's an introduction writen by another author and it goes on telling how good is the book and such I don't pay as much atention as a good old "story set up" prologue.

Kumekei wrote: "I usually read the prologue.
But when it's writen by another author and it goes on telling how good is the book and such I don't pay as much atention as a "story set up" prologue."

If it's written by another author it's not a prologue, it's an introduction. An introduction is not part of the fictional story.

Will wrote: "Kumekei wrote: "I usually read the prologue.
But when it's writen by another author and it goes on telling how good is the book and such I don't pay as much atention as a "story set up" prologue."..."

I stand corrected. :)

I think that a lot of people who do skip the prologue are people who are not avid readers, as we are. They pick up a book because it's popular, or a friend is hounding them to read it. The person I had this argument about this with was sort of like that.

I don't know, I just don't get it either. lol Makes me want to grab them and shake them.

I am one of those who reads the entire book including introductions, prologues, dedications, copyright information and so on and so on and so on......

Me too, Kilgallen

I always read the prologue. Author/editor intros or dedications I sometimes read. I usually skim read it first then read in detail if it catches my attention or is a favorite author.

Kilgallen wrote: "I am one of those who reads the entire book including introductions, prologues, dedications, copyright information and so on and so on and so on......"

I am the exact same way! I find I have to read every last word on every single page to be completely satisfied, all the way down to the copyright information haha. Although, I must admit that with the Mammoth Book of Best New Horror series, seeing as the introdutions are almost 100 pages long, I tend to skip over it to read the stories and then I go back later and skim through to find some good horror reads! (:

Oh yeah, my whole point was since the definition of prologue is "an opening to a story that establishes the setting and gives background details, often some earlier story that ties into the main one, and other information", I would never ever skip over it!

I always read the prologues. But I read somewhere that prologues (and epilogues) are often "forced" on the author by editors to resolve plot holes. I don't necessarily see this, but I think it can be very subtle too.

(I may have read that in On Writing by King)

I never skip the prologue. I read everything in a book, from the copyright page, the dedications, everything.

Nope. I don't feel as if I've completed a book unless I've read the prologue, the epilogue, and pretty much everything else in it.

Christina wrote: "Nope. I don't feel as if I've completed a book unless I've read the prologue, the epilogue, and pretty much everything else in it."

same here; you get tidbits of information about the authors thought processes and ideas.

I've never heard of someone actually skipping the prologues. It sounds so...unnatural >__>'

N E V E R ! ! ! ! ! !

One of my best examples is with Alice in wonderland. If I hadn't read the prologue, I wouldn't have known about the author being a lefty and doing everything in an unusual way, including his style in which everything is backwards and that's how a part of the story was born, or that Alice's adventures were actually for a little girl that Carroll used to tell stories to.

I almost always read the Prologue :)

Prologue is the start of the story. I may skip to read the end but I never skip the start.

No, no, no...I must read the prologue!

I must read the prologue.
Most of the time they are setting up for the rest of the story.

Someone mentioned that sometimes they're not, I agree. Sometimes it's like the beginning of a Law and Order episode...some poor saps find the dead body. Commercial. Chapter one.

I read the prologue, epilogue, foot notes, author's foreword, author's afterword, and the publishing info.
Blurbs, review excerpts and the author's bio.
And I study the cover to memorize it.

Charlene wrote: "Someone mentioned that sometimes they're not, I agree. Sometimes it's like the beginning of a Law and Order episode...some poor saps find the dead body. Commercial. Chapter one. ..."

LOL. So true. I sometimes roll my eyes at these set ups whetting our appetite for the carnage to come.