Should I Add a Glossary?

[Alseki.]

I have had multiple suggestions, and it does sound like a good idea, but I am conflicted.

My reasoning against Glossary is the same as I have against Summary.

I don't want to reveal information about the story before the reader reads the story, I don't want them having pre-conceived and ill-informed opinions that may hamper their experience in the future.

I want them to experience the story as raw as possible. While it is possible to spin the summary in a way that would benefit the author, I don't reckon I am capable of writing such a summary without giving at least a little misinformation or without showing something major.

I have read many books where the summary is straight up a lie, in fact rarely do books have a completely true summary.

Same with glossary. A glossary would give information about certain things ahead of my intended time.

So, should I have one? How should I go about making it?

 

[Garon]

if your story is long and relies on the reader's attentiveness, forcing many characters to be remembered. Then yes. If they can enjoy the story without a glossary. So no it's not needed

 

[Cipiteca396]

New readers don't read the glossary. The only time people use the glossary is if they're coming back to a long running story after a break and have no idea what's going on. Maybe if you tell them to read it, but probably not.

So yes, glossary.

 

[Alseki.]

@Garon
It's not like the story in question is long, it would conclude shorter than most stories. But I reckon it does demand a lot of attention since it's in the form of verses which can be quite difficult to comprehend at times.

@Cipiteca396
I see, if such is the case then there is definitely merit to adding a glossary.

Thank you for your advice, both of you.

 

[TheEldritchGod]

Glossary? Yes.
You write it? No.

Claude.ai - Feed it the chapter where your character first appears, ask it to give you a summary. ONLY THE FIRST CHAPTER. That way, no spoilers.

Waifu Labs for headshots.
aiimagegenerator.org If you want something more complex.

 

[prognastat]

I would include it. Hell I refer to my own glossary at times while writing.

Sometimes it is nice to have a reminder of who is who and what's what.

As for spoilers it's not up to you to prevent them from spoiling anything. That's up to the reader.

 

[Alseki.]

Glossary? Yes.
You write it? No.

Claude.ai - Feed it the chapter where your character first appears, ask it to give you a summary. ONLY THE FIRST CHAPTER. That way, no spoilers.

Waifu Labs for headshots.
aiimagegenerator.org If you want something more complex.

Nah I guess I will pass AI won't be capable of writing a glossary for me.

I would include it. Hell I refer to my own glossary at times while writing.

Sometimes it is nice to have a reminder of who is who and what's what.

As for spoilers it's not up to you to prevent them from spoiling anything. That's up to the reader.

Of course I have a glossary that I refer to during writing, it does help a ton.

Though I reckon I would be uploading a watered-down version publically.

Thanks for your suggestion.

 

[TheEldritchGod]

Nah I guess I will pass AI won't be capable of writing a glossary for me.

Heh. I thought that as well.
If you buy the upgraded version so you can feed it the entire book, Claude will give you a better summary of your character then you thought possible. It is goddamn insane. I bet he'll do a better job than you. No. Trust me. I started using him for all my summaries. He is crazy insightful. You have no idea how much I cram into a character and he notices more than my readers.

An even more useful thing, feed him a book and say, "LIST ALL THE CHARACTERS" then you learn if you forgot any. My book is 284k words long. That happens.

 

[Alseki.]

Heh. I thought that as well.
If you buy the upgraded version so you can feed it the entire book, Claude will give you a better summary of your character then you thought possible. It is goddamn insane. I bet he'll do a better job than you. No. Trust me. I started using him for all my summaries. He is crazy insightful. You have no idea how much I cram into a character and he notices more than my readers.

An even more useful thing, feed him a book and say, "LIST ALL THE CHARACTERS" then you learn if you forgot any. My book is 284k words long. That happens.

I am not underestimating the capabilities of AI, the story in question is an Epic, it is written in verses and does not follow a straight coherent flow and the grammar is non-existent, plus I am planning on writing the glossary as little excerpts of poems as well, hence the AI won't do.

While the AI can also generate poems, I think I just do it better myself. Plus I just generally dislike using AI for my creative works, it might be due to stigma, but I also feel after using it for a while that the AIs are really shallow and do not help enhance my creativity. But I digress.

 

[FatElf]

Glossary? Yes.
You write it? No.

Claude.ai - Feed it the chapter where your character first appears, ask it to give you a summary. ONLY THE FIRST CHAPTER. That way, no spoilers.

Waifu Labs for headshots.
aiimagegenerator.org If you want something more complex.

Claude doesn't like Portugal. :(

 

[melchi]

Yes

 

[Alseki.]

Claude doesn't like Portugal. :(

What is a “Portugal?”

 

[FatElf]

What is a “Portugal?”

a potato!

 

[Alseki.]

a potato!

Then what is Ireland?

 

[FatElf]

Then what is Ireland?

Another potato!

 

[TheEldritchGod]

I am not underestimating the capabilities of AI, the story in question is an Epic, it is written in verses and does not follow a straight coherent flow and the grammar is non-existent, plus I am planning on writing the glossary as little excerpts of poems as well, hence the AI won't do.

While the AI can also generate poems, I think I just do it better myself. Plus I just generally dislike using AI for my creative works, it might be due to stigma, but I also feel after using it for a while that the AIs are really shallow and do not help enhance my creativity. But I digress.

Oh. never use it to write anything, it sucks. But if you want a list of all characters, or everything they "say" or how many times a word is used in a given section. I like doing that, seeing what my word frequency is. If I use words like Very, Like, or Just too many times, it bothers me. Creatively? No. AI sucks.

Want to have some frustration? Go to Chat GPT and ask it to "describe a random person"

THAT'S APPARENTLY RACIST.

Explain to me how describing a RANDOM person, who could look like ANYTHING a HUMAN looks like in ANY COMBINATION is racist.

Yeah. Creatively the AIs have all be lobotomized. Don't trust them. But if you want data analysis or a summary or anything like that, yeah, it works fine. Just don't accept suggestions.

 

[CrimsonGenius]

Oh. never use it to write anything, it sucks. But if you want a list of all characters, or everything they "say" or how many times a word is used in a given section. I like doing that, seeing what my word frequency is. If I use words like Very, Like, or Just too many times, it bothers me. Creatively? No. AI sucks.

Want to have some frustration? Go to Chat GPT and ask it to "describe a random person"

THAT'S APPARENTLY RACIST.

Explain to me how describing a RANDOM person, who could look like ANYTHING a HUMAN looks like in ANY COMBINATION is racist.

Yeah. Creatively the AIs have all be lobotomized. Don't trust them. But if you want data analysis or a summary or anything like that, yeah, it works fine. Just don't accept suggestions.

I asked Chargpt to describe Obama.

Barack Obama is a tall, slender man with a warm smile and an eloquent speaking style. He has short, graying hair and often wears tailored suits. His demeanor exudes confidence and intelligence, and he is known for his calm and composed demeanor, even in challenging situations.

Trump

Donald Trump is a larger-than-life figure with a distinctive comb-over hairstyle and a penchant for dark suits and long ties. He often wears an expression of confidence and determination, with piercing eyes and a prominent chin. His speech is characterized by boldness and spontaneity, and he is known for his use of hand gestures to emphasize his points.

and Biden

Joe Biden is a white-haired, avuncular figure with a warm smile and a folksy speaking style. He has a friendly demeanor and is often seen wearing classic suits with a signature pair of aviator sunglasses. He exudes a sense of empathy and compassion, and his mannerisms convey a sense of authenticity and sincerity.

Random Person

Sure, here's a description: A middle-aged woman with short, curly hair, wearing glasses and a floral-patterned blouse, carrying a canvas tote bag and walking briskly down the street.

maybe it got upgraded since then.