[Discussion] Breaking the Fourth Wall

[Palamon]

Do you ever break the fourth wall in your fanfictions/original writing works?

My narrator does all the time. Not in a "I know I'm a character in a fanfiction" kind of way, but by saying things like this:

"Oh, you're here," the generic adolescent called out. "Thank you for helping me out Miss ----." Another name had been called out, but the chimera could not hear it. It was almost as if, in a world outside Teyvat, the word of a god would not allow for such name to be said.

My narrator is calling me out in this. "Word of god" is the creator of the story, basically, lol.

But, I break the fourth wall by starting a sentence with "It was almost as if," but not always unless it's followed "in the world of/in an alternate version of/in a world outside of" that usually means the narrator is aware the world he's narrating for is a game.

 

[gimmepie]

I generally do not break the fourth wall. I prefer to keep my immersion as strong as possible.

 

[Vragon2.0]

There is but one character in my story that will have potential fourth wall breaks.

As for just in general, it would depend to me. Some of my works would thrive under the fourth wall breaks, while others would just take away from trying to integrate you into the world. That's probably the biggest thing for me, do I want a heavy focus on the world or is taking folks out of it what I want.

 

[Palamon]

Yeah, I get that breaking the fourth walls breaks immersion if done wrong, and I won't do it in everything I write. In the current thing I'm writing though, my narrator is a glitch of sorts and has self awareness, so the narrator is the only one that actually does. I'd never have a character break the fourth wall unless it's either a first person or third person narrator lmfao.

 

[Venia Silente]

I have a dedicated character for fourth wall breaks in my Gates to Infinity storylines (Gamañel, the DLC shop attendant in Making the World Go 'Round), but to be fair the character is canonically a sort of meta character, or works with the meta, so it only makes sense. Other than that, no, not really, because it doesn't really flow well with my writing style; though I'd like to try it once.