muniiam wrote:How long should the prologue be? And if I'm planning on dividing it into chapters, how long would you like the chapters to be?
Next questions, how long/many words should a scene be, or a conversation with a character? And what makes a great prologue great to you?
The length of anything you write should be one of your lesser worries.
There's no right answer when it comes to that. No standard for the perfect length of a prologue, conversation, etc.
I've read prologues that are just a couple of words long, and prologues that took me an hour+ too read. As for what the prologue is suppossed to depict, that also heavily varies.
One work uses it to introduce characters, plot and setting, another shows a scene completely unrelated to the aforementioned, which will only make sense once you've reached a certain part very late in the story, while using the first chapter to introduce characters, setting and plot.
So, regarding the length, I'd say just write and see what happens.
If it's 7000 words, then it's 7000 words. If it's just 500 it's just 500.
I wouldn't see a problem with either as long as it's interesting and draws me in.
You should just make sure not to artificially draw out the prologue (or a conversation), because you want to reach a specific word count. That might turn out bad.
As for the contents, I can only say what I personally like to see.
Introducing the main characters, giving a glimpse as to what they're like, as well as what kind of story it's going to be would be enough.
For me characters and plot are the most important, so I'd like to see as soon as possible if I'm going to like the main characters and if the story might be interesting.
(Actually, even introducing the characters would be enough. I can also enjoy a plot that's not too great, if the characters are interesting/fun. However, if a plot is absolutely great and I hate the main characters, I can't enjoy it at all. So yeah, I'd put the main focus on introducing the characters, but that's just me).