Almost all fictional blogs need some way to convey non-story elements. Things like a short introduction, a short summary of the story so far, a note from the author are all examples of this. The problem is, where to put that information. Some people put it all in their sidebars. Others put the info in header links. Still others put the info in "Author's notes" posts, and still others maintain a separate non fiction blog. Some of course, might do a combination of all of these.
Of all the methods, the one I like least is what In My Daydreams does. It has entire meta posts here and there, and then some of the story posts have author notes embedded in them. Having all that non story text is a huge distraction. It prevents me from immersing myself in the blog. It also serves as a constant reminder that it's fiction. For me, reading is the most entertaining when I can almost forget that what I'm reading is a work of fiction. Looking at Fleet Commander, I must say that even one "author's note" can be jolting. If I'm reading to catch up, I don't need to read an author's note from 3 months ago. Especially since it probably no longer contains relevant information.
I'm not trying to pick on In My Daydreams or Fleet Commander, lots of fictional blogs do this. Transplanted Life does it, I did it, Anonymous Lawyer did it, etc... I think as a writer it just made sense to once in a while slip in a meta post the same way as a fictional post. However, now that I'm evaluating this practice as a reader, and in spite of the fact that everyone seems to do it, It's a practice I now discourage.
Instead of doing Meta posts, consider these other ways to convey meta information:
- Put an announcement at the title level
- Maintain a separate "meta" blog.
- Consider if you really need a meta post
If you're going to be posting a lot of meta information like Entia did, you should definitely consider having a separate blog for the non-fiction posts. It makes for a clean separation.
Do you really need that author's note? If your post is a little late, your readers will get it, you don't have to tell us in a post. Also, instead of responding to comments as a post, You can respond to your readers in the comments as well. There's no law against leaving a comment on your own blog.
Of all the ways to convey what I call "meta" information. That is, information that isn't part of the story, I have to say my favorite method is what was done by (the now defunct) Entia and Big Melly. They use a separate blog. That way the story posts are completely separate from the author's notes.
I like the idea of using a separate blog because it really lets the story blog sit out, uninterrupted. A reader can really immerse themselves in the reading. If I'm catching up on a story, I won't be jolted out of my reading by an "author's note" from 3 months ago that's no longer relevant.
While I don't expect everyone to start maintaining 2 blogs, I hope everyone will consider getting rid of meta posts using the strategies above. If you really really have to have one, consider eventually deleting it when it's no longer relevant. That way it won't distract readers when looking through your archives.
7 comments:
I think that your main point is a good one--that extraneous stuff knocks the reader out of the story. That's especially true when they're reading through the archives as opposed to checking out every post on the day it shows up.
There's one other thing worth considering though--that the reader might not ever look at anything but the story. That's the main reason that I'm prone to putting things into the posts themselves.
The funny thing is, I've been trying to do less of that sort of thing. That's why I try to put all the "when the story is next updating" stuff into Twitter these days.
I don't know if anybody sees it, but I've put it in a prominent spot on the sidebar.
As for the commentary before the posts... That I liked seeing in a story blog that I followed at one point. It's probably worth reconsidering doing that if it knocks people out of the story though.
It's a bit easier to deal with when you're blog is serial. As long as you can avoid info-dumps, you can get away with stuff other writers can't.
To make mine even smoother, I started a second blog like you suggested, to explain stuff that's only mentioned in passing.
It can get a little... confusing at times, remembering which colors go with what and which fonts belong where, but I think it's working.
All I need now are people to actually read them...
Jim,
I understand putting things into posts to make sure that people read them. That's why I suggested that if you're going to do that, you could eventually delete the meta posts.
I do have to say that the Twitter in the sidebar is a great idea. It is very hard to miss.
As for putting the meta info in the posts, I really don't like that. Unless other people say they like it for some reason, I really have to suggest leaving it out of your future posts.
tahjir,
Do you have a link to your writing? Did you put it in the forums? I have an online fiction links section for just such a thing.
I agree with you about deleting the "meta" posts. Oddly enough, I do it. I just don't do it when people have commented on the post. At that point it seems kind of rude to delete their comments in addition--which is a good reason not to make meta posts to begin with, I suppose.
Does your blogging software allow you to disable comments on an individual post? That could be a long term solution to keeping meta posts and deleting them later.
I've just stumbled upon this term. I love this website! I've got you listed under my Best Of on the sidebar, but will probably move you to a resource. Thanks!
Sammantha.
http://fordsparamours.blogspot.com/
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