I’m printing out this one as well. I love the idea that compelling characters need to give a nod to their lives outside the confines of the story or novel, something that convinces the reader they are real. It’s something that I think we do intuitively as we create and edit our way forward into our work but even as I write this, I’m thinking of my Australian painter in residence at the Renoir Museum in the south of France who needs more than the right Aussie expressions and lingo to make him real. We need a glimpse into the rest of his life.
Might be interesting to consider the differences (or lack thereof) between hyperdiegesis and backstory as it relates to characters in "non-fantasy" stories. How does HD function in "realistic fiction" (the world as we know it)?
I suppose this question rhetorical, as I can parse out the answer, so maybe it's more of working through the nuance of these ideas.
Backstory tends to be blocks of expository history--centered and over inscribed with authorial intent and only dramatized in the containing frame of flashback which is inherently drama-deflationary. Hyperdiegesis are traces of proof of life uncentered -- acknowledgement that life exceeds the author.
I love the concept of "reality dividend."
Thank you Junot!
I’m printing out this one as well. I love the idea that compelling characters need to give a nod to their lives outside the confines of the story or novel, something that convinces the reader they are real. It’s something that I think we do intuitively as we create and edit our way forward into our work but even as I write this, I’m thinking of my Australian painter in residence at the Renoir Museum in the south of France who needs more than the right Aussie expressions and lingo to make him real. We need a glimpse into the rest of his life.
I love these lessons of yours!
Kate
Great food for thought, appreciate it!
Might be interesting to consider the differences (or lack thereof) between hyperdiegesis and backstory as it relates to characters in "non-fantasy" stories. How does HD function in "realistic fiction" (the world as we know it)?
I suppose this question rhetorical, as I can parse out the answer, so maybe it's more of working through the nuance of these ideas.
Backstory tends to be blocks of expository history--centered and over inscribed with authorial intent and only dramatized in the containing frame of flashback which is inherently drama-deflationary. Hyperdiegesis are traces of proof of life uncentered -- acknowledgement that life exceeds the author.
Thanks for this - that's a good way to distinguish the two