novelraw Chapter 93 Definition of Narrative Trick
Chapter 93 Definition of Narrative Trick
Jiang Liumei held the heavy manuscript of "Summer of the Ubume" and became so engrossed in the story that she couldn't tear herself away. She read for more than ten hours straight until six o'clock in the afternoon before finally finishing the entire story of "Summer of the Ubume".
Jiang Liu Meili placed the manuscript of "Summer of the Ubume" on the table, stretched languidly, rubbed her tired shoulders and neck, and then looked up at the other side of the table, intending to see what Mai Shiro Kyosuke was doing.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he raised his head, his eyes met those of Maijo Kyosuke.
As their eyes met, they both turned their heads away simultaneously.
It was Maijo Kyosuke, with his thicker skin, who broke the awkward silence first:
"Miss Jiang Liu, have you finished reading the story of 'The Summer of the Ubume'?"
"I'd like to hear your thoughts on this work."
Jiang Liumei took a sip of tea, her face regaining the expression befitting a magazine editor-in-chief, and said with a smile:
"How do I feel? Perhaps only 'unbelievable' can describe how I feel right now?"
"The protagonist, whose speech and behavior are as strange as a mental patient; an exorcist with an extraordinary ability who always has a sour face; a riddle detective who can see other people's memories because of an eye injury; and a dull and upright detective."
"A woman who is twenty months pregnant cannot give birth, a husband who mysteriously disappears into a secret room, a series of strange and bizarre deaths of babies, a corpse that cannot be seen if you don't want to look at it, a terrible motive for obsessing over offspring, a tragedy that a family cannot bear, and the reason why the Ubume (a mythical bird) will give birth to a daughter in the summer."
"Although these strange things are almost impossible in the real world, Ms. Mai, you still managed to fool me successfully with your excellent writing!"
"Although I don't know how well the public will accept this kind of story, for me personally, this story, 'The Summer of the Ubume,' has truly achieved something that no one has ever seen before, no one has ever heard before, and no one else can ever write!"
Jiang Liumei opened the manuscript of "Summer of the Ubume," took out her notebook from her briefcase, and wrote down a series of notes as she spoke:
"I don't know what your creative philosophy is, Mr. Wucheng."
"However, I will try to organize what I have seen using my own perspective."
"In the story of 'Summer of the Ubume,' you created the first exorcist detective in history, and also created the first detective in history with the superpower to see other people's memories."
"At the same time, Ms. Mai, you have also pioneered the use of psychological disorders, mental illnesses, collective unconsciousness, and pseudopregnancy to successfully link diseases with folk monsters and the Ubume, packaging them into an excellent mystery."
"While readers would undoubtedly feel cheated if they read this story, its innovative design is truly a stroke of genius, comparable even to 'The Tokyo Zodiac Murders'!"
"But the most important point is the terrifying atmosphere and sense of suspense it creates."
"Honestly, the scene where Enokizu Reijiro opens the door to find a corpse, and Kyogoku-do's exorcism that causes Kyoko's stomach to burst open, really gave me the illusion of watching a horror movie!"
Upon hearing Jiang Liumei's words, Maishiro Kyosuke smiled faintly and then added:
"Ms. Jiang Liu, your summary of 'Summer of the Ubume' is very accurate, but there is one point you did not mention. However, this is normal, since Mr. Yu Shan did not notice it either."
When Jiang Liu Meili heard Mai Cheng Jingjie's words, a look of confusion appeared on her face. Relying on her memory, she counted on her fingers, thinking about what questions she had not thought of. However, the story of "Summer of the Ubume" was too complicated and chaotic.
Jiang Liu Meili thought for a full three or four minutes, but still couldn't figure out which point Mai Shiro Kyosuke was referring to.
"Ms. Mai, I really can't figure it out. Please tell me?"
Maijo Kyosuke pointed to the word "I" in the manuscript of "The Summer of the Ubume" and said:
"What I'm talking about is the 'me' in the story, namely the third-rate writer Tatsumi Sekiguchi."
When Jiang Liu Meili heard Mai Shiro Jingjie mention Sekiguchi Tatsumi, she seemed to think of something, but she couldn't remember what she was going to say.
Seeing the anxious look on Jiang Liu Meili's face, Mai Shiro Kyosuke didn't keep her in suspense any longer:
"Miss Jiang Liu, like Mr. Yu Shan, you have focused all your energy on the mysteries of Geng Zi's twenty-month pregnancy without giving birth, Mu Lang's mysterious disappearance in the secret room, and the series of bizarre infant deaths at Jiuyuan Temple Hospital, but you have overlooked another mystery I set up in the book."
"Simply put, I used a lot of narrative tricks in 'Summer of the Ubume'."
Maijo Kyosuke picked up a pen and began to explain as he wrote on the paper:
"Speaking of narrative tricks, we must mention Agatha Christie, one of the three golden masters of detective fiction who passed away just four years ago. Her masterpiece, *The Murder of Roger Ackroyd*, is a work that perfected the narrative trick!"
Simply put, narrative trickery refers to the author's use of writing techniques and story structure to conceal or mislead the reader of crucial evidence until the truth is finally revealed, leaving the reader with an indescribable sense of shock!
"Common narrative tricks include character-based narrative tricks."
"For example, a person may be a man, but through written descriptions, the reader may mistakenly believe that he is a woman."
"A person who is clearly a young person is misled into being an old person."
"Readers think the person they see in the story is A, but the actual person is B."
"Even more absurd scenarios will occur, such as everyone believing that A is a person, but in reality A is a dog, which is both laughable and absurd."
"Then comes the time-based and space-based narrative tricks."
"The author uses a lot of text in the story, but the time or space given is confused, and eventually it appears."
"The stories that readers believe happened on the same day actually occurred decades ago and now."
"Or it could be a story that also takes place in 'Central Park,' but actually one takes place in 'Central Park' in Shinjuku, Japan, and the other takes place in 'Central Park' in Nagoya."
"In addition to narrative tricks involving characters, time, and space, there are also cognitive narrative tricks, such as common color blindness that prevents the differentiation of colors, or auditory and visual hallucinations that involve seeing or hearing misleading evidence."
After explaining the types of narrative tricks to Eri, Maijo Kyosuke circled the cognitive narrative trick with his pen:
"Going back to the initial topic, in the book 'Summer of the Ubume,' in addition to the mysteries you have been paying attention to, I also cleverly used cognitive narrative tricks to foreshadow the story."
"In the story, Tatsumi Sekiguchi is mentally unstable, irritable, timid, and has low self-esteem. It seems that everyone in the story looks down on him and everyone is targeting him. But when the truth is finally revealed, everyone realizes that Tatsumi Sekiguchi is the biggest mystery in the story and also the one who is the most seriously ill."
"I used this trick of 'unreliable narrator' partly as a tribute to Agatha Christie's 'The Murder of Roger Ackroyd'."
"Secondly, I have minimized the mention of the name 'Sekiguchi Tatsumi' as much as possible. In the entire book of more than 300,000 words, I only mention the name 'Sekiguchi Tatsumi' nine times."
Why did I design it this way?
"Because I wanted to enhance the reader's immersion in the story, to make them feel like they are 'Tatsumi Sekiguchi' in the story."
"The process of reading 'The Summer of the Ubume' is like following 'Tatsumi Sekiguchi' through an exorcism ritual conducted by 'Kyogoku-do'!"
"As the demons in 'Tatsumi Sekiguchi's' heart are removed, the doubts in the readers' hearts are also resolved!"