Hidden surprise now or later

[OldGuy1026]

Okay its me again. The guy with the long running story that so far only six people like.

http://www.literotica.com/stories/showstory.php?id=433011

Okay here's my question, the main character gets accidentally drugs and can see a ghost. Beleive me I do see him from time to time myself. So do I tell the reader the reason why he can see ghost when high on drugs during the story, Chapter 19, or wait till the end where all the loose ends get tied up in a nice pretty package.

Author Conan Doyle would do this, but should we still do that?

 

[CWatson]

Well, it depends on the story you want to write.

A few years ago I was working on a story where the female lead is a porn starlet. By the time the first chapter ended--long before the male and female leads had gotten together--he already knew, or suspected, what was going on. I submitted a draft of this first chapter, and one of the suggestions I got from Dr. Mabeuse was that I hold off on the revelation. I told him, No, that wouldn't serve the story. He was expecting the tale to be a detective story, where Will slowly unraveled the secrets this girl Robin had woven about herself. But what I was writing was the story of a three-person relationship: Will to Robin, Will to Robin's porn-starlet alter ego, and Robin to her porn-starlet alter ego. The focus of the story wasn't in finding out she was a porn star; it was in dealing with the fact that she was a porn star, and how the two of them learned to live with it (or not). As such, delaying the reveal wouldn't serve the story: I can't build something if I'm not allowed to talk about it. So, had I continued with the story (I didn't; it was crap), the truth would've come out by the end of Chapter 2, maybe even the beginning.

Your story could go either way too. Do you want your main to be an enigma, or do you want to focus on the trouble he goes through in dealing with the fact that he's being stalked by this ghost? What's your story about? That answer will determine the timing of the reveal.

 

[OldGuy1026]

Well, it depends on the story you want to write.


Your story could go either way too. Do you want your main to be an enigma, or do you want to focus on the trouble he goes through in dealing with the fact that he's being stalked by this ghost? What's your story about? That answer will determine the timing of the reveal.

You're right, the ghost has always been there and not too much trouble. The problem is the Coalition (the interplanetary government,) is having a war to which Earth is protected from, but they need Talents. or Wizards, to help the fight. Jone's collar prevents his powers from overwelming him. When he takes that collar off, well, he'll see it all.

So yea, I'll give the reader a hint of things to come. Unless somebody else replies LOL