Quote:
Originally Posted by gmw
If your readers want more information about the books you have written then perhaps that would encourage you to provide a website that was a sort of virtual representation of that world ... but a Wiki (to me) suggests user participation in the construction of that world, and I can't quite see that as viable.
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How do you get from a) a wiki to b) user participation in the construction of that world? In my experience, the vastly overwhelming number of fan-made wikis for fictional creations are detailed collections of what's in those works, with the occasional bit of fan-based speculation about certain aspects thrown in but generally clearly marked as such.
For a single book, a wiki is probably unnecessary. If you have a multi-volume series, though, or a number of stories with loads of different characters and detailed world-building all set in the same, shared universe, a wiki can be both a way for your readers to explore that fictional universe and for you to keep track of things.
So, should you build one? If there's demand from your readers and you don't mind the administrative overhead (SPAM is a constant problem, so you need to set it up to only allow registered users to edit stuff, and you'll still get SPAM even so), it might be worth a try, certainly. Especially if there's a chance that your readers will do the bulk of the work involved in filling the wiki with content.
Do other indy's do that? Some do, some don't. As a reader who loves detailed world building and often reads book series, I appreciate those who do. :-)