1. ChaosReigns

    ChaosReigns Ov The Left Hand Path Contributor

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    World Lore

    Discussion in 'Setting Development' started by ChaosReigns, Jul 7, 2016.

    I've been sitting on an idea for a while that links to my main series that I've been working on, and coming back to it has made me come back to this idea.

    what it was, was that I have a lot of extra lore and background/history that I feel would be worthwhile reading, as well as many poems/songs from each of the races within my series. would it be wise to also do a "book of lore" kind of thing giving all these extra little pieces of information in one place, what I have sitting here isn't in the books (as it's not really needed there) but I think it might be interesting to some people.

    it would be presented in the kind of way like The World of Ice and Fire for Game of Thrones. and will be arranged in a way that makes sense.

    Thanks

    Chaos
     
  2. IlaridaArch

    IlaridaArch Active Member

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    Is it wise or not, is a pretty difficult question.

    Do you have main series published? Is it selling and having attention? Is this "book of the world" something readers ask? Do you consider it worthwhile of your time?

    Those are the questions that really matter. Obviously those are cool, and your readers will buy it (some of them). It's more about if you want to dedicate time for it.
     
  3. Sniam

    Sniam Member

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    Well, it is certainly not something that unusual to see. Famous examples are Rowling (Quidditch through the Ages, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, The Tales of Beedle the Bard etc), or Tolkien (The Silmarillion, The Book of Lost Tales).
    Though it seems to be specific to really big best sellers which most probably were milked by editors, I think it could really help you in your writing by classifying infos. You could also aim at those legends or tales or even historical events within your story so as to make it more dense :)
    However, I cannot garanty anything when it comes to publishing the thing.
     
  4. halisme

    halisme Contributor Contributor

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    Write a sucessful book or two set in the world first. Then do a book of lore.
     
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  5. ManOrAstroMan

    ManOrAstroMan Magical Space Detective Contributor

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    A book of lore would be cool, but may not be feasible unless the main books are being sold successfully and have gained a certain level of popularity.
    Alternatively, you could set up a wiki for your storyverse.
     
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  6. Parker101

    Parker101 Member

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    I'd agree with most of the above comments that writing a 'book of lore' is probably best left until you have other books in your series published, that is in a serious and publishable format. But even if you put one together for yourself initially, it could come in useful to draw from when writing future books in your series. I love world building myself, and probably spend far too much time on it, so I know where you're coming from with tonnes of material that'll probably never even get into my books.
     
  7. ChaosReigns

    ChaosReigns Ov The Left Hand Path Contributor

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    Thanks for the feedback so far guys, my manuscripts are all quite long anyway, so a lot of what I'm putting in the lore book is extra things that I think are interesting, but might not necessarily have a place in the main sections (like historical events in different countries, memories of certain characters.)

    but I think it's for the moment going to be something like what @Sniam suggested for the moment, as like an extra slice of history/lore that will help me with the series. I do intend to get this published and have interest from people who have read versions of what I've written (most with great constructive criticisms along the way)

    @IlaridaArch I cannot answer yes to all those questions yet, but I do want to dedicate the time to it, as right now getting the final book written is proving difficult without proper background/lore to finish off everything I want to, and I feel the book of Lore might help me with that.
     
  8. IHaveNoName

    IHaveNoName Senior Member Community Volunteer

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    Do a wiki. Free content is always good, and it'll help drive interest in the books.
     
  9. terobi

    terobi Senior Member

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    First off, until your books are published, there's absolutely no point. Concentrate on the books first.

    As for whether or not to release a "book of lore", have you considered simply using your existing materials to flesh out a website for the book series? Extra, free content which expands a world and its lore is a big draw for modern readers - and actually a lot of publishers seem to be wanting these kinds of added extras these days.
     
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  10. ManOrAstroMan

    ManOrAstroMan Magical Space Detective Contributor

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    @terobi is right. Even those authors who post extra goodies for free online often find a market for the same thing in book form.
     

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