Should I put a glossary on my novel?

[OscarTlau]

Hello! I am a beginner to novel writing and i was wondering IF i should add a glossary in my novel.

I feel like glossaries are for complex novels that are based on systems, litrpgs, etc etc....
I also feel that it kinda spoils parts of the novel, since the characters or stuffs are going to be explained throughout the story.

Idk if its REALLY mandatory but also many have told me to put glossary incase i forgot about characters or other things.

And if I need to put a glossary, any tips on how to make it spoiler-free?
Also idk if this is the right forum to post this question.

 

[CharlesEBrown]

As soon as I figure out how to structure it, I will add one to my more complicated story but don't see a lot of need for one in general

 

[OscarTlau]

As soon as I figure out how to structure it, I will add one to my more complicated story but don't see a lot of need for one in general

That is what I am thinking... I don't plan on make my story too complicated that it will need a glossary for it. Especially when everything will have been explained by the end of it.

 

[CharlesEBrown]

My glossary will be mainly so *I* can keep track of names and places. Keep having to scroll back through several chapters for some of it!

 

[Prince_Azmiran_Myrian]

SH Glossaries are uncommon, you don't really need it unless you want to have one for some reason.

 

[beast_regards]

Glossary is the nice feature, but I doubt the readers use it that much. I personally gave up on it very quickly.

 

[Paul__Michaels]

I love glossaries. There's always a point in time where I forget about somebody or a place that I need to look back on. It saved my ass many times when I need to bring something up in my stories.

The way I look at a glossary is that it should mainly be used for the author. Some readers will really appreciate it. But it will help you in the long run.
The only sad thing about glossaries is you have to update them.
I guess for the answer if you should put one in? That's up to you. It take some time to make it, but you should be slowly adding on every once in awhile. Think of it as a tool, especially for a longer stories

 

[Dec]

should add a glossary in my novel

As a reader - please do.
Makes it easier to remember who is who, especially when there are a lot of people and places in the novel.

Idk if its REALLY mandatory but also many have told me to put glossary incase i forgot about characters or other things.

No, it is not.
You can have a Google Docs (or something else) for your use. Well, you should have something like that anyway.
But as a reader - please add one.

And if I need to put a glossary, any tips on how to make it spoiler-free?

Add only bare-bones info and only include what was already written.
For example, use it to hold descriptions about people that were met, short descriptions about visited places, monsters, and so on.
Include only what was already published.

Also idk if this is the right forum to post this question.

Yes it is

 

[OscarTlau]

As a reader - please do.
Makes it easier to remember who is who, especially when there are a lot of people and places in the novel.


No, it is not.
You can have a Google Docs (or something else) for your use. Well, you should have something like that anyway.
But as a reader - please add one.


Add only bare-bones info and only include what was already written.
For example, use it to hold descriptions about people that were met, short descriptions about visited places, monsters, and so on.
Include only what was already published.


Yes it is

I will definetly put this to thought... Thanks for the suggestion, especially from the pov of a reader.

 

[OscarTlau]

As a reader - please do.
Makes it easier to remember who is who, especially when there are a lot of people and places in the novel.


No, it is not.
You can have a Google Docs (or something else) for your use. Well, you should have something like that anyway.
But as a reader - please add one.


Add only bare-bones info and only include what was already written.
For example, use it to hold descriptions about people that were met, short descriptions about visited places, monsters, and so on.
Include only what was already published.


Yes it is

Just added a glossary into my novel.. Can you check how it is and maybe give a feedback when you have time to spare?

 

[Dec]

It's good enough, I'd say. But you might want to run it via a grammar checker (like Grammarly) or human editor, as you made some errors - mostly in the punctuation department.

As for anything else, consider looking at this;

[Tutorial] For new users of Scribble Hub!

This tutorial is constantly maintained by yours truly and encompasses the basics for readers and writers. Check Section-C for finding more writing tutorials and a helping hand in developing your story by other ScribbleHub users! To navigate more easily ctrl+f the titles in the table of contents...

forum.scribblehub.com

Search for Glossary Function part

 

[soupsabaw]

It's not mandatory or anything, but it could be fun to make. And somewhat helpful if you have a good handful of characters. Readers can go back and check to see who someone is if you leave a brief description in a glossary.