Source: KELLEPICS on Pixabay, edited with GIMP
Hello friends of The Ink Well.
This installment of writing tips is about author intrusion, which is an issue that often crops up in fiction by emerging authors. Author intrusion is when the reader can sense the presence of the author while reading the story. For example, this can appear in the form of facts and information that the character shouldn’t know, or dialog that is out-of-character, or scene descriptions that do not match the sophistication level of the character.
How does this happen?
There are a few ways author intrusion appears in stories. For example:
- The author shares his or her own knowledge or research. This is jarring to read because the information may not seem like something the character would know.
Example: the story is told from the perspective of a child, and suddenly the story delivers post-graduate academic knowledge or scientific facts. - The story veers from the plot, characters and story progression into a description of morals, religious doctrine, or political beliefs.
Example: In the middle of the story there is a reference to a bible passage or a lesson the author wants the reader to take away from the story. - Details or opinions suddenly appear that don’t support the story, such as a metaphor that doesn’t make sense from the perspective of the character.
Example: The story takes place in the 1800’s and we read that a machine makes a sound like a jet plane.
In all of these instances, it may be an oversight, or it could be that the author just couldn’t help taking part in the story, forgetting that first and foremost we readers are curious about the character’s experiences and views of the world.
Avoiding Author Intrusion
To avoid author intrusion, you must get inside the head of your character and prevent unrelated thoughts, insights or interjections.
Tips:
- Think about what a character “knows.” Delivering information or opinions that do not fall into the character’s realm of knowledge is distracting. It takes us (your readers) out of the internal world of the story.
- Think like an actor. It is a little bit like the work an actor must do to “become” a character. To be convincing as that person, the actor must completely personify the character. All details, from accent to costume, hairstyle and topics of conversation must be completely aligned with that character for viewers to set aside judgement, and become captivated by the story.
The goal should always be to involve the reader as much as possible. The reader should immerse in your story. This cannot happen if the author is present within the story, providing external information.
For more information, see the resources below. Note that if done with intent, author intrusion can also be an effective literary device, as described in the third reference. So remember: The rules of fiction can be broken, if you can do it effectively.
Resources:
- Writers Write: What Is Author Intrusion?
- The Editor’s Blog: Weed Out Author Intrusions
- Literary Devices: Authorial Intrusion
Happy writing!
@jayna, writer and moderator at The Ink Well.
If you're looking to up your fiction game and reach that next level, check out my past writing tips linked below.
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