Being a Better Writer: Leaving Unanswered Questions · 9:24pm Jun 27th, 2022
Hello readers! We’re back with another Monday installment of Being a Better Writer! And we’ve got an interesting topic to cover today. One that can be a little contentious depending on your audience.
But first, a little bit of news. Or rather, a bit making sure you didn’t miss the news. Last week had a decent amount of it. A summation on Wednesday, and then a post of its own on Friday concerning book pricing that’s definitely worth a look.
But I do have two more newsworthy items for all of you readers before we dive into today’s topic. One a question which I hope to receive responses to. A two-parter. How happy are you with Patreon being available, and would any of you relish having a Ko-Fi available to donate to instead?
I ask because it has been brought to my attention that some people prefer Ko-Fi donations rather than Patreon’s monthly service, and it’s been one of those things that occasionally I’ve been asked to think about. So now I am. What I’m asking in turn is do any of you wish to use it? There’s little point in me having a Ko-Fi to donate to if no one wishes to donate to it.
Last, but not least, the Starforge Alpha 2 Call will go up Wednesday. That’s right, the time has come! It is expected that this draft will be shorter than the Alpha 1, so under 500,000 words rather than over. If you’ve been excitedly waiting for the Alpha 2, then hit up the post on Wednesday, because it’s about to arrive!
And that’s it. Please leave responses about Ko-Fi (or any comments on the Patreon) in the comments below. With that, let’s talk about today’s topic.
As I said above, this topic can be a bit of a contentious one, and that’s something that in my time I’ve noticed seems largely dependent on audience. Some audiences do not like having lingering, unanswered questions left in any narrative. Some readers are fine not getting every puzzle or every single thing answered concretely, or are willing to extrapolate (in the positive).
So let’s talk about this topic for a bit and how it might change what you decide to write. Hit the jump.
When I suggested this as a topic, I didn't expect it to result in a blog quite so large!
My interest has always been closely related to that second type of unanswered question. The subgenre that brought it to my attention is Weird Fiction, a term I first heard coined by China Miéville in the appropriately titled anthology The Weird (which is easily my favorite book, a great source of inspiration). Such stories are frequently fascinating and I've tried my hand at writing them a few times.
I wasn't even considering the other brands of unanswered question, but they were still good reads with valuable insight, so I don't mind!
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I had legitimately forgotten that this one was a request! I gotta start marking those!
Hopefully what was said about the second type (especially it's use in The Twilight Zone) was helpful to you!