I had a New Foundations in Psychology Class during my Master's program that was the coolest class I EVER had, largely because it was a mind-bender. The GOAL of the class was to bring Psychology into the modern age of science and it went through original psychological theory, grounded in Biological sciences and came through brain chemistry advances and then pushed us to think about it in terms of Quantum Physics—like I said... mind bender. But it really got me thinking about PERSPECTIVE (the whole point/wave conundrum (what is it? Depends on how you're measuring—sound like something a WRITER might use?))... but I digress...
My POINT is that part of what we discussed was 'what defines life?' and the answer was 'Order and Symmetry'. Mammals are symmetrical—an eye on each side, opposing arms, legs, fingers... but something like a snail is also alive—the curving shell... that is also order...
So I suppose what I am saying, is I prefer books that are 'alive'--either symmetrical or looping in on themselves--orderly in some recognizable way... So there... foundation laid...
Dreams in Books
The group of us, in our wisdom, felt italics are a dead giveaway so NOT to use them unless the reader was supposed to be able to tell. But even if readers aren't supposed to be able to tell—if they will find out (and if they won't, then that's a little odd, yes?), they will feel cheated or betrayed if it wasn't separated by a section marker, so they can think back and see where the trick began.
It seemed too, that a favorite technique was to have it start normal and then get stranger and stranger, as this seemed like what real dreams do... normal slice of life, then adding in things that just really don't go together. (in fact a 'dream world' like that would be a pretty good fantasy set up now that I see it). This was the kind of thing my friend was wanting... a reality getting weirder and weirder, and having THAT be what clued the reader in that it was a dream.
A couple of the discussants were adamant about not liking to be tricked (realistic scene of something that shouldn't happen, then starting awake)--It's a technique I don't mind, but have only ever used in a Round Robin where I felt the person before me had painted me into a corner I didn't want to be in. I found it interesting though, how strongly the people who felt cheated by this felt.
I've read books where dreams do both things and I've also read books where dreams are some (possibly unknown) desire or fear (in fact even if they are strange like that, they can still show these things).
But Why Dreams?
I think in a book dreams can serve a variety of purposes. The vast majority of the dreams I've WRITTEN have been in my Harry Potter fan fiction and I've most often used it as a tool for someone with some 'seeing ability'. I think though, even in mainstream, fantasy-free fiction, foreshadowing is a really nice use of them. In CONFLUENCE Hannah (my five-year-old) hears a story that causes some scary nightmares—they are directly caused by the story she's been told, but are foreshadowing too (the story teller knows more than he has let on).
I think that revealing of inner hopes or fears though, is an equally provocative use.
What about you? Are there times you like them? Times you hate them? Uses you condone or don't? Does anybody who KNOWS know of a limit? (how many dreams in a book is too many? I feel certain I've heard a rule, but don't know what it is.) Are there genres they can be used in and genres they can't (wouldn't seem to fit mystery too well, romance though—definitely)
And then there are real life Dreams...
PUBLISHED AUTHOR HART JOHNSON... *sighs *
I can't wait...
And Finally: Happy Thanksgiving to all of you in the States. To the rest of you... it is still Naked Thursday and you have a reputation to live up to!