To Prologue or not to Prologue?

Based on the research I have done over the last six months, authors everywhere seem to be pretty divided on the topic of prologues. I personally like prologues, particularly in thrillers, but they have to serve a purpose, and there must be a reason why they aren't simply the first chapter. There are several situations where a prologue makes more sense as a separate piece instead of as a first chapter: the prologue happens at a different time, the prologue focuses on a different character, the prologue skips ahead to the action. A prologue is a great way to drop the reader right into the action and get them interested right away. They start asking questions about what is going on and have to keep reading to figure out what is going on. The prologue can also introduce characters, plot, or setting in a way that a first chapter may not be able to.

Wanda Morris, author of All Her Little Secrets and Anywhere You Run, gave a talk this year at ThillerFest on how to write a great opening. Naturally, she couldn't conclude the talk without discussing prologues. She noted that some benefit to a prologue are that they give you a sense of who the characters are and give the reader some context on something vital to the story. But she urges - keep them short. Nobody wants a long prologue. She also outlines the three main types of prologues:

1. Action - This type of prologue ends with trouble. The main character might not even be in it, but it ends with some sort of problem that needs to be solved. These prologues often show up in crime novels, where the prologue ends with a crime. Although not a crime novel, Wendy Webb's The Vanishing starts this way. The prologue looks to the past to something that happened before and ends with a big problem. The first chapter then jumps to the present, and the problem from the prologue and it's impact on the present is revealed throughout the story.

2. Framing a story - This type of prologue tends to be pensive and may look back in time. It sets the tone for the rest of the story and usually has an interesting voice. I would use the prologue in Tana French's In the Woods as an example here. Her prologue uses a different voice than the rest of the novel and gets you thinking about the concepts and theme right at the beginning. This type of prologue also tends to show the reader how certain events are going to affect chapter one, which French's prologue also does.

3. Teaser - This is a common type of prologue in which the story opens with something that is going to occur later in the book. The reader gets a glimpse at something that is going to happen, and then chapter one goes back to the beginning and shows you how the story got to that point. This type of prologue tends to be intense and leaves the reader hanging. These prologues are common in thrillers because they amp up the pacing and suspense right from the beginning. The prologue on Benjamin Stevenson's Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone starts this way.

Tessa Wegert, author of the Shana Merchant series of mysteries, lead a panel at ThrillerFest on crafting the best first page, and the panelists mentioned some of the same concepts. Some people like prologues and some don't but to work, they need to serve a purpose, they should introduce ideas, and they often focus on a different time.

Connor Sullivan, author of Wolf Trap and Sleeping Bear, lead another panel on hooking the reader. The panelists provided a list of some stories (books, movies, shows) that hooked them right from the beginning.

1. Hell or High Water - the book starts in the middle of a bank robbery

2. Silverado - starts with someone being woken from a nap to their cabin being shot to hell

3. The Martian - this books starts with a man freaking out about only having 30 days left to live

4. The Immortalists - begins with an old woman explaining to children how they are going to die

5. North by Northwest - A New York City advertising executive goes on the run after being mistaken for a government agent

6. The Americans - you are drawn in by the emotional journey and your feelings on integrity

What books have you read that hooked you right away? What movies or shows? Let me know in the comments.

Also, while we are at it, what about epilogues? Their main purpose is to wrap things up neatly into a tight bow. They aren't common with thrillers, as the reader tends to like the feeling of things not being particularly neat. I personally don't like them and they have ruined some books for me.

What are your thoughts on prologues and epilogues? Let me know in the comments.