Reflection on the introduction to Shining

With all of the focus on the Legend of Zelda because of E3, I guess now is a good time to share a little bit more about the influence it had. The reason for the prologue is because I like the intro to The Wind Waker. As I look back, it might have had more to do with the music than the actual text. Then again, the stained-glass style was also good.

I find it interesting how the prologue gets received. I tend to hear "It's so simple and not complex," and then once they finish reading that passage they say "Wow! Didn't expect that twist." I'm also surprised when I hear people saying they liked the first chapter. While my first chapter certainly does not compare to How to Train Your Dragon I guess it does do its job. An intro is supposed to introduce what the audience should expect such as the themes, major characters, and style.

So when I think about the prologue and first chapter, I guess I underestimated how well it does its job. One unintentional theme is that things seem simple at first, only to reveal there's a twist at the end. Some are really obvious while others will require some digging. Now that I reflect on it, the first chapter with the prologue really do help set the themes, despite none of them being intentional. So maybe it really is a good one, and my dissatisfaction came from seeing it so often and then comparing it with the first chapter for my next novel. However, since the books are completely different, the introductions should be different as well.

What were your thoughts about the first chapter? For those who read the story, do you see how it established the themes you could expect? How would you think it could have been made to better reflect the story? Look forward to hearing from you.

J. D. Nyle