Starting a story in media res means to start it in the middle of the action. For example, let's say your protagonist realizes she is suddenly late for a meeting and she rushes to work. A lot of things could happen between her realizing she's late and her rushing off. Maybe she forgot her purse, or perhaps she runs into an unknown stranger while making her way to work and he gives her a secret coded message.
For some, starting in media res can be simple, easy, and exciting. But for others, it may be more difficult. In order to successfully incorporate media res into your story you have to make sure you explain things later on. It's always great to keep the suspense going, but not long enough so that your readers stop reading in frustration. Remember, show, don't tell. Use dreams, flashbacks, and dialogue to slowly reveal more about your characters and the story.
Actually, if you think about it, there are actually a lot of stories written in media res. At the moment, I can't think of any examples off the top of my head so if you wish to read some stories written in media res, google it.
Now let's talk about the opposite of media res, ordinary world.
Not as fancy-sounding as media res, huh? Starting in the ordinary world simply means starting in the protagonist's casual everyday life. Take Harry Potter for instance. We are first introduced to this abused and despised ordinary boy who is hated by his uncle and aunt. Then after a while, the situation begins to form and the story begins. Harry meets Hagrid who explains that Harry is a wizard and that he must come to Hogwarts. Meanwhile, Harry's like "What?!?!" and Hagrid's like "Yeah, you're a wizard."
Starting in the ordinary world is basically sticking to the traditional story-writing stages. There's the beginning, middle, and end. Now compare it to starting in media res. With that, you start from the middle, go back to the beginning and explain things, and then end it at the end.
In my opinion, I prefer starting in media res, but honestly, I'm better with writing in the traditional ordinary world. It really depends what kind of story you're writing and what your target audience is. The best way to decide this would be to write it in media res and ordinary world and then choose which one sounds better. So far, I haven't started any stories in media res, but I am hoping to. Starting with media res often attracts more readers then with ordinary world
The thing with starting with the ordinary world is when to begin the whole story. If you wait too long, readers will get bored and put the book down. You MUST get it at the right time. The exact, as-close-to-perfect as you can get right time. Let your friends and family review your first few chapters and make sure you get honest responses from them. Starting in ordinary world can be more stressful in a way, but if you can master it, it can be rewarding.
In conclusion, media res and ordinary world can be both highly difficult and extremely easy at the same time. It just depends on a lot of things. Some prefer media res, while others don't. And it's perfectly fine. I haven't read much stories starting with media res, but out of the two, it's definitely my favorite and I hope to write my own story with it soon.
So, what are your thoughts? What do you prefer? Please comment below and tell us your opinion.
:)
- Ashlyn, Aspiring Author of Today
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