| 1 | %% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1421105164025403300 |
| 2 | %% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread. |
| 3 | %% |
| 4 | [[quoteright:350:[[Film/YoungFrankenstein https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/efe7e45fe75d0cdeacf0fae5d24667fa.png]]]] |
| 5 | |
| 6 | ->'''Kryten:''' Sir, the Space Corps Directives are there to protect us. They are not a set of vindictive pronouncements directed against any one person.\ |
| 7 | '''Rimmer:''' Has anyone ever ''seen'' this legendary Space Corps Directive Manual?\ |
| 8 | '''Lister:''' Well... no.\ |
| 9 | '''Rimmer:''' He's making it up, isn't he? The bloody book doesn't exist! |
| 10 | -->-- ''Series/RedDwarf'', "[[Recap/RedDwarfSeasonVQuarantine Quarantine]]" |
| 11 | |
| 12 | All the books, magazines, and newspapers that exist only within a fictional world, from the [[Franchise/CthulhuMythos Necronomicon]] to the mysteries of [[Series/MurderSheWrote Jessica Fletcher.]] They are more common in SpeculativeFiction, but not restricted to it. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | They serve two main narrative purposes: verisimilitude and {{exposition}}. Jessica is supposed to be an author. It would be bizarre if no trace of the books she writes existed. Reading the Necronomicon may [[GoMadFromTheRevelation frighten the protagonist half to death,]] but it also gives the reader an idea of the {{backstory}}. |
| 15 | |
| 16 | Fictional documents are also used to [[LampshadeHanging comment]] [[ConversationalTroping on]] literary tropes, and as aids to characterization. Characters comparing their own predicament with their favorite book can get very sarcastic about [[ThisIsReality how unrealistic]] it was, while few things so embarrass the ActionGirl as having her little brother read aloud a few choice passages from her favourite {{romance|Novel}}. Sometimes, however, you may just have to TakeOurWordForIt. |
| 17 | |
| 18 | Sister trope to ShowWithinAShow, FictionalVideoGame, and FictionalPainting. |
| 19 | |
| 20 | Common [[SubTrope types]] of fictional document include: |
| 21 | [[index]] |
| 22 | * ApocalypticLog |
| 23 | * BigBookOfWar |
| 24 | * EncyclopediaExposita |
| 25 | * [[SacredScripture Fictional Sacred Book]] |
| 26 | * GreatBigBookOfEverything |
| 27 | * InGameNovel |
| 28 | * RecursiveCanon |
| 29 | * TomeOfEldritchLore |
| 30 | [[/index]] |
| 31 | |
| 32 | If your story is made entirely of Fictional Documents, it's a ScrapbookStory (so please list it there rather than here). If the {{paratext}} quotes from these, it's quoting the EncyclopediaExposita. And if the story ''itself'' appears in the story, it's RecursiveCanon. If it merely claims to have been written by a character within the setting, it probably falls under DirectLineToTheAuthor. In VideoGames, they are almost always used as FlavorText. |
| 33 | |
| 34 | Occasionally prone to {{Defictionalization}}. |
| 35 | ---- |
| 36 | !!Examples: |
| 37 | |
| 38 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 39 | |
| 40 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 41 | * ''Manga/The100GirlfriendsWhoReallyReallyReallyReallyReallyLoveYou'': Shizuka is a fan of "Circlet Love Story", a romance novel about a princess named Io and her beloved knight Kamacle. When Rentarou confesses his love to her, she sees herself as the princess and him as the knight. |
| 42 | * ''Manga/{{Chobits}}'' features a picture book which corresponds to the main character so completely that it becomes of little wonder when it's revealed that [[spoiler: it was written specifically for her.]] |
| 43 | * Near the end of the ''Manga/ChronoCrusade'' manga, there's quotations from both Mary Magdalene's prophecies, and Azmaria's memoir. It's implied that at least some of the manga is "based on" the book Azmaria wrote. |
| 44 | * ''Manga/DNAngel'' has a plotline focused around the fictional fairytale ''Ice and Snow''--which turns out to be the edited, abridged version of the original tale, ''Ice and Dark''. |
| 45 | * In ''Manga/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba'', at the end of the series, it is revealed that over the course of his life Zenitsu wrote a book of his memoirs as a demon slayer, called Zenitsu-den (Legend of Zenitsu), being left as a family possession that his great-grandson personally enjoyed reading; in post-epilogue material it is shown bit by bit that Zenitsu was quite biased towards making himself looking very heroic, the greater than life type, dramatizing the whole affair at the expense of making every other slayer look less impressive than Zenitsu, in his own mind. Afterwards even more details for Zenitsu-den was given, to the point of {{Defictionalization}} in the art gallery Koyoharu Gotouge Exhibition in late 2021, Japan, where a partial rendition of Zenitsu-den was produced for attendees to see; [[spoiler: really showing much personal bias Zenitsu really wrote, but also showing that at the very last chapter of his book, written in his elder years, Zenitsu wisely admitted the previous 24 chapters were all fictional, with the last one being a historically accurate account of all the events that transpired over the course of the series]]. |
| 46 | * A few story arcs ''Manga/IThinkOurSonIsGay'' revolves around ''Koi-Men'', a popular BoysLove genre manga that has been adopted into a popular TV drama. Unlike the norm of that genre, ''Koi-Men'' lacks explicit sex scenes and puts more emphasis on gay romance. It is, for the most part, inspired by the real-life gay romance drama ''Ossan's Love''. |
| 47 | * The villain of ''Anime/{{Monster}}'' bases his identity on a [[MindRape brainwashing]] children's book. The story, along with several others, is reproduced in the series with full text and illustrations. |
| 48 | * Much of ''Anime/PrincessTutu'''s plot revolves around the fictional fairytale ''The Prince and the Raven''. |
| 49 | * A major chunk of the plot of ''Anime/WhisperOfTheHeart'' revolves around the main character struggling to write her first novel - [[Anime/TheCatReturns which was later]] {{Defictionaliz|ation}}ed. |
| 50 | [[/folder]] |
| 51 | |
| 52 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 53 | * ''ComicBook/FireflyTheSting'': Each chapter after the first starts with some documents from the narrating character. For Zoe, it's a video of a conversation with Wash. For Inara, journal pages and drawings. For Kaylee, a diary. For River, assorted drawings and strange writings. |
| 54 | * Pretty much all of the 11 backup features in ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'', in addition to the comic book ''Tales from the Black Freighter''. The comic contains these documents for real in the sense of containing their actual texts and illustrations (this does mean ''Under the Hood'' is a very short book, even though it sounds credible enough when you read it). |
| 55 | -->'''Chapter 1, 2 and 3:''' Chapters 1 through 5 of ''Under the Hood'', written by Hollis Mason (Nite Owl I), discussing the story of the earlier crimefighters. |
| 56 | -->'''Chapter 4:''' The book ''Dr. Manhattan: Super-Powers and the Superpowers'' by Dr. Milton Glass, discussing Manhattan's role in shaping the world of Watchmen; the Introduction is included in the comic. |
| 57 | -->'''Chapter 5:''' "A Man on Fifteen Dead Man's Chests", a history on ''Tales From the Black Freighter'' from ''Treasure Island Treasury of Comics''. |
| 58 | -->'''Chapter 6:''' A variety of documents chronicling Rorschach's personal history, sources including the New York Police Department, the Charlton Home and the New York State Psychiatric Hospital. |
| 59 | -->'''Chapter 7:''' "Blood From the Shoulder of Pallas", an essay written by Dan Dreiberg (Nite Owl II) |
| 60 | -->'''Chapter 8:''' ''The New Frontiersman Issue IVII No. 21'', discussing the vigilantes from a Right-Wing perspective. |
| 61 | -->'''Chapter 9:''' A variety of news clippings chronicling Sally Jupiter's career. |
| 62 | -->'''Chapter 10:''' Various memos from the desk of Adrian Veidt.\ |
| 63 | '''Chapter 11:''' "After the Masquerade: Superstyle and the art of humanoid watching," an interview with Adrian Veidt from 1975. |
| 64 | * Alan Moore's ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier'', in which the titular Black Dossier is a Fictional Document, containing excerpts from other Fictional Documents: Oliver Haddo (of ''The Magician'')'s "On the Descent of the Gods"; British comic strip ''Trump'''s "Life of Orlando"; a lost Shakespeare play entitled ''Faerie's Fortunes Founded''; a sequel to ''Fanny Hill''; a Jeeves and Wooster story detailing an encounter with a Great Old One; and a novel, ''The Crazy Wide Forever'', by Kerouac's alter ego Sal Paradyse, as well as a pornsec booklet as produced by the Minitrue of Literature/NineteenEightyFour. Earlier volumes also included an Allan Quatermain short story, a traveler's almanac, and various fictional Victorian advertisements, posters, postcards, &c. as AllThereInTheManual-type extra features. |
| 65 | * In ''ComicBook/TheSandman1989'', Dream's castle includes a library of books that were never written. |
| 66 | * The Franchise/DCUniverse features "true crime" comics of ComicBook/{{Superman}}, ComicBook/{{Batman}}, ComicBook/WonderWoman, etc.'s adventures, presumably taken from media accounts, etc.; one late '60s Batman story made use of this as its plot (Batman forced to confront the writer of his world's "Batman" comic). |
| 67 | * ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' of course features the great metropolitan newspaper ''The Daily Planet'', as well as Lois Lane, who also had a novel published. |
| 68 | * In ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1987'' Wonder Woman wrote an autobiography titled ''Reflections: A Collection of Essays and Speeches'', with the cover art done by [[ComicBook/GreenLantern Kyle Rayner]]. |
| 69 | * ''ComicBook/CaptainCarrotAndHisAmazingZooCrew'' features fictional Earth-C versions of some DC Comics characters. Captain Carrot in his alter ego works as a writer/artist for his world's DC Comics, writing stories about "Super-Squirrel", "Wonder Wabbit", "the Batmouse", and the "Just'a Lotta Animals" (though the Zoo Crew later discovered that their "fictional" comics characters were actually real, on the parallel world of Earth-C-Minus). |
| 70 | * Marvel examples: |
| 71 | ** The New York-based daily newspaper, ''[[ComicBook/SpiderMan The Daily Bugle]]''. J. Jonah Jameson also used to publish ''Now'' and ''Woman'' magazine. The latter was edited for a time by Carol Danvers aka Ms. Marvel. |
| 72 | ** The Darkhold, which among other things contains the Montesi Formula, which destroys vampires. |
| 73 | *** Dr. Strange's friend Morgana Blessing has published books about the occult. |
| 74 | ** [[ComicBook/XMen Destiny's diaries]], which contain(ed) many visions of the future. |
| 75 | *** Pyro, her teammate in the Brotherhood/Freedom Force is a best-selling novelist. |
| 76 | ** Marvel Comics, which in the Marvel Universe for the most part are licensed by the heroes depicted in them. For a time, [[ComicBook/CaptainAmerica Steve Rogers]] was put in charge of drawing the Captain America comic book. |
| 77 | ** Peter Parker put out ''Webs'', a coffee-table book of photographs of Spider-Man. |
| 78 | ** Marvel Comics in the Marvel Universe are more or less accurate re-tellings of character's adventures with names changed to protect secret identities. In ComicBook/SheHulk, it is explained that the comics code is in charge of making sure they are factually accurate and "approving" comics that can be used as legal accounts of events. |
| 79 | * In ''ComicBook/{{Empowered}}'' mention is made of a lot of slash fan-fiction especially involving the male Superhomeys. Some of the latter was written by Emp herself using a pseudonym. |
| 80 | * [[WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck The Junior Woodchucks' Guidebook]], the most stupendous and comprehensive guide to everything. |
| 81 | * The tourist guide ''Syldavia, Land of the Black Pelican'', a few pages of which are reprinted in ''[[Franchise/{{Tintin}} King Ottokar's Sceptre]]''. And by extension the 14th and 15th-century manuscripts from which some of its illustrations were taken. |
| 82 | ** The manuscript "Journal of Sir Francis Haddocke, Captain in the King's Navy, Commander of the vessel Vnicorn" from ''The Secret of the Unicorn''. |
| 83 | * ''ComicBook/JudgeDredd'' has the Book of the Law, which is about the only volume that Dredd reads. There's also The Comportment, a handbook written by Dredd himself, which is required reading for all judges. |
| 84 | * One ''ComicBook/AstroCity'' story follows a comic book publisher and the trouble he gets into when supers take offense to his fast-and-loose attititude toward the facts. |
| 85 | [[/folder]] |
| 86 | |
| 87 | [[folder:Fanfiction]] |
| 88 | * ''Fanfic/KyonBigDamnHero'' opens every chapter with an excerpt from one of these, whether a guide to being a hero, poetry, or some sort of diary. |
| 89 | * The fic ''[[FanFic/EquestriaAHistoryRevealed Equestria: A History Revealed]]'' is full of them and serves as one itself, being an InUniverse historical essay on the history of Equestria, written with an [[TheConspiracy insane conspiracy theorist's edge]]. As it possesses its own bibliography and cites these "sources", the fic is filled with all sorts of [[PlayedForLaughs referenced books]], the most notable of which include: ''What are Fingers? Anthro Puberty and You, On Heroism: The Glory of Celestia and the Equestrian Civil War,'' and ''[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin How the Sea-Pony Wished Upon a Star and Unknowingly Started Racial Prosecution Under An Emergent Fascist Regime: A Collection of Filly’s Tales and Legends That Start Off Whimsical But End in Destruction and Death.]]'' |
| 90 | * ''[[Fanfic/{{Exoria}} The Exoria Files.]]'' |
| 91 | * In the ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' fan fiction ''[[FanFic/ElementalChessTrilogy The Game of Three Generals]],'' after it's announced that his wife is pregnant, Roy Mustang is gifted with an expectant father's advice book called ''Look What You Did to Me.'' |
| 92 | * In ''FanFic/AGrowingAffection'', Naruto's maternal grandfather was a prolific writer, and implied to be the reason Naruto was able to ghost write for Jiraiya. Hinata is a fan of his fantasy trilogy ''The Kunoichi and the Priest.'' |
| 93 | * Chapter 7 of '"Fanfic/MuvLuvComet'' opens with several articles discussing the future acquisition plans of the US Space Force. |
| 94 | * Every chapter of ''Fanfic/TheMobiusChronicles'' starts off with a passage from somebody's future memoirs or a history book written after the war. |
| 95 | * The ''Fanfic/{{Pokeumans}}'' FanVerse has produced several, including Spiritus' memoirs and an untitled play by Amy the Jigglypuff about her own story. |
| 96 | * ''[[Fanfic/TheEquestriaChronicles Sun & Moon]]'' is presented as a history written by Twilight Sparkle, and references other documents at the start of chapters. |
| 97 | * The ''Manga/PandoraHearts'' fanfic ''Fanfic/BeyondTheWindingRoad'' [[DiscussedTrope discusses]] has these in a bonus chapter that reads like a history podcast, covering the events of the manga from the eyes of future historians. The extended version of the podcast in Advance IV notes that much of the information historians have about the Dukedoms before and after the Revolution of 1901 comes from newspapers, journals, letters, and diary entries. A photographic version of this trope is the ''Lamontre Fils'' Photograph (the tea party photograph from the manga), which contains the last known images of many of Sable's aristocracy before their mysterious deaths and includes the unexplained image of the late Oz Vessalius, someone who'd been declared dead ten years before the photograph was taken. Naturally these documents are a source of great mystery to historians and conspiracy theorists. |
| 98 | * In the ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' story ''Fanfic/WearingRobertsCrown,'' both Robert Baratheon and Tyrion Lannister are published authors (helped by Robert's invention of the printing press). Tyrion writes books based on his exploits as a gentleman-adventurer. Robert's known publication was a bit controversial since it was a sex manual - he may have also written an agricultural advice book. |
| 99 | ** Also, Varys publishes a newspaper. |
| 100 | * Fanfic/CodeGeassColorlessMemories Most of the Fanon Wiki pages are written as documents and messages found In-Universe by characters of different groups and also concerning different matters that each page touches upon. |
| 101 | * In ''Fanfic/ChrysalisVisitsTheHague'', the second chapter is a life-sized but completely fictional BBC online article detailing Chrysalis' arrival in the city, fake comments and adverts included. |
| 102 | * [[OncePerEpisode Each chapter]] of ''Fanfic/InShortSupply'' begins with some kind of fictional document, usually providing background on that chapter's theme or the characters involved. Examples include [[HeroAntagonist Dib]]'s journal, information about Irken religion, or transcripts from a black market sale. |
| 103 | * ''[[https://www.fimfiction.net/story/48073/the-history-of-the-human-war The History of Human War]]'' is a book the Mane Six read in ''[[https://www.fimfiction.net/story/50850/innocence-once-lost Innocence Once Lost]].'' |
| 104 | * There are several examples of this throughout ''Fanfic/SkyholdAcademyYearbook'', seeing as how [[Franchise/DragonAge Varric]] is a published author who teaches writing classes. Both he and a couple of his students occasionally disrupt the plot by sharing in-universe stories they've written. |
| 105 | * A few of the chapters in the main volumes of ''Fanfic/TwiceUponAnAge'' are comprised of letters or reports written by various ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'' characters during the course of the adventure. |
| 106 | * In ''Fanfic/AThingOfVikings'', each chapter opens with epigraphs that are presented extracts from various books that will be published in the future of the new history where trained dragons become a common part of human civilization, ranging from historical books providing brief hints about the human characters' future histories to some details about dragon biology. |
| 107 | [[/folder]] |
| 108 | |
| 109 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 110 | * ''Film/BlackMirrorBandersnatch'' follows Stefan's efforts to adapt a {{Gamebook|s}} called ''Bandersnatch'' into a video game. |
| 111 | * ''Film/MirrorMask'' has "The Really Useful Book" and "A Complete History of Everything". |
| 112 | * In the original novel ''Frankenstein'', the actual method of bringing [[FrankensteinsMonster the Monster]] back to life is never detailed. In the Creator/MelBrooks film ''Film/YoungFrankenstein'', this fact is parodied by the discovery of a book by Frankenstein entitled simply ''How I Did It''. It's likely a parody of the book he made of his work in the Universal movies, ''The Secret of Life and Death''. This is also sort of HilariousInHindsight today after O.J. Simpson wrote a similarly titled book about how he murdered his wife (hypothetically, [[SarcasmMode of course]]). |
| 113 | * The great Depression Era novel ''O Brother Where Art Thou,'' by Sinclair Beckstein, is cited by director John Sullivan in the 1941 ''Film/SullivansTravels'.' |
| 114 | ** No real details about the book are ever given, but the Coen brothers' 2000 film [[Film/OBrotherWhereArtThou of the same name]] fits the supposed saga nicely in plot and details. |
| 115 | * In ''Film/FindingForrester'', Creator/SeanConnery's eponymous character's reputation is entirely based on his only novel, ''Flying to Avalon''. |
| 116 | * One of the many details of the final draft script of ''Film/ANewHope'' that didn't make it into the finished cut of the movie [[note]]Along with the scene where Luke's friend Biggs (who was killed in the Death Star attack) was introduced and a large amount of George Lucas's [[{{Narm}} Narmy]], awkward dialogue that was script-doctored out of existence[[/note]] but preserved in Creator/AlanDeanFoster's novelization was the ''Journal of the Whills'', which seems to have been intended as a history of the Empire and its collapse. This does get a few sly references in the movies, especially the prequels; it's amazing how awesome [[UnreliableNarrator R2-D2]] (who supposedly told the story to the Willis) gets when nobody's looking... |
| 117 | * ''Film/AirplaneIITheSequel'' features a musical variant: moon-base commander Murdock is shown shuttle-pilot Ted Striker's record, which is a [[ExactWords vinyl LP]] titled "Ted Striker's 400 Polka Favorites". |
| 118 | * ''Film/NightTrainToLisbon'': The writings of Amadeu de Prado, a doctor who wanted to be a writer but went into medicine inspired by his sick father. |
| 119 | * Creator/WesAnderson ''loves'' this trope. |
| 120 | ** ''Film/TheRoyalTenenbaums'' includes numerous books by its characters: ''Family of Geniuses'' by Etheline Tenenbaum, ''Old Custer'' by Eli Cash, ''The Peculiar Neurodegenerative Inhabitants of the Kazawa Atoll'' and ''Dudley's World'' by Raleigh St. Clair, ''Three Plays'' (''Erotic Transference'', ''Nakedness Tonight'', and ''Static Electricity'') by Margot Tenenbaum, and ''Accounting for Everything: A Guide to Personal Finance'' by Henry Sherman. |
| 121 | ** Suzy in ''Film/MoonriseKingdom'' packed six YA novels when she ran away: ''Shelly and the Secret Universe'', ''The Girl from Jupiter'', ''Disappearance of the 6th Grade'', ''The Francine Odysseys'' by Gertrude Price, ''The Light of Seven Matchsticks'', and ''The Return of Auntie Lorraine''. |
| 122 | ** ''Film/TheGrandBudapestHotel'' has the main narrative framed as the story within the book ''The Grand Budapest Hotel'', written by "our great author." |
| 123 | * ''Film/RosemarysBaby'' prominently features ''All of Them Witches'' by J. R. Hanslet as both a source of information and as a clue to the identity of certain characters. |
| 124 | * Dr. Leo Marvin's self-help book ''Baby Steps'' is a major force driving the plot of ''Film/WhatAboutBob'' |
| 125 | * In the "new" 1985 at the end of ''Film/BackToTheFuture1'', George has become an author who just published ''A Match Made in Space'', obviously directly inspired by his encounter with "Darth Vader, of the planet Vulcan" back in 1955. |
| 126 | ** Marty's attempt to take ''Gray's Sports Almanac'' (covering the years 1950-2000) back from 2015 in the second movie led to a Biff-centric dystopian alternate 1985. |
| 127 | * In the world of ''Film/{{Beetlejuice}}'', every new dead person is assigned a copy of the ''Handbook for the Recently Deceased''. It apparently reads like stereo instructions. |
| 128 | ** And the publishers of this book also produced ''The Living and the Dead'', instructions for living humans on "peaceful co-existence" with ghosts. It also reads like stereo instructions. |
| 129 | * ''Film/AustinPowers:'' Austin is evidently the not-so-proud author of ''Swedish-made Penis Enlarger Pumps and Me: (This Sort of Thing Is My Bag, Baby.)'' |
| 130 | * ''Film/DoctorSeries'': |
| 131 | ** In ''Film/DoctorInTheHouse1954'', Simon and Tony read ''The Student's Friend'' by Gordon Joycey when they get stuck during their first time examining patients. |
| 132 | ** ''Film/DoctorInLove': |
| 133 | *** Dr. Hare reads ''A Touch of Spice'' by Jack Lane while he recovers from jaundice. |
| 134 | *** Dr. Hare tells Mr. Green to read ''The Garden of Pleasure'' by Tony Worth to learn about sex. |
| 135 | ** In ''Film/DoctorInDistress1963'', Sir Lancelot inspects ''True Tales of Love and Jealousy'' at the railway station bookstall. |
| 136 | ** In ''Film/DoctorInClover'', Dr. Grimsdyke reads ''Rejuvenation by Drugs and Other Methods'' by Professor J.V. Kaginovitch after Jeannine rejects him for being too old. |
| 137 | * ''Film/PleaseTurnOver'' has ''Naked Revolt'', the book Jo writes using people she knows as the [[WriteWhoYouKnow basis for her characters]] that drives the plot of the film. |
| 138 | * ''Film/UpPompeii'' has ''The Daily Tablet'', a newspaper scroll read by the citizens of Pompeii. |
| 139 | [[/folder]] |
| 140 | |
| 141 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 142 | * Creator/IsaacAsimov: |
| 143 | ** "Literature/CatchThatRabbit": Gregory Powell always keeps a copy of the ''Handbook of Robotics'' nearby. A NoodleIncident is referenced where he would've ran out of a burning building naked rather than lose his copy. |
| 144 | ** ''Literature/FoundationSeries'': |
| 145 | *** "Literature/TheEncyclopedists": Mayor Hardin obliquely controls the ''Terminus City Journal'', a newspaper that he uses to sway public opinion in his favour, such as [[GuileHero creating the position of mayor to begin with]]. |
| 146 | *** "Literature/TheTraders": ''Blood of the Spirit'' is one of the religious texts used in the Foundation's [[ScamReligion Religion of Science]]. |
| 147 | *** "Literature/SearchByTheFoundation": Within the ''[[EncyclopediaExposita Encyclopedia Galactica]]'' entry for Arkady, several books of hers are mentioned; her novel ''Time and Time and Over'' (set in Kalgan) and a [[Literature/TheMule biography]] of her grandmother, [[SpinOffspring Bayta Darell]]. An unnamed author had written ''Unkeyed Memories'', also about Kalgan. |
| 148 | ** "Literature/GalleySlave": |
| 149 | *** ''Physical Chemistry of Electrolytes in Solution'' is the first book that [[RobotNames EZ-27]] proofreads on-screen. |
| 150 | *** ''Social Tensions Involved in Space-Flight and Their Resolution'' is Professor Simon Ninheimer's book, the one that he alleges has been destroyed by [[RobotNames robot EZ-27]]'s editing. It is named often enough to be referred to by the shortened title, ''Social Tensions''. |
| 151 | *** Ninheimer's book involves a variety of references; ''Sociological Reviews'' (containing a paper from Suzuki on neurological effects in low gravity), ''Social Science Abstracts'' (a magazine in which Ninheimer is annotating for inclusion), as well as unnamed papers by Speidell and Ipatiev. |
| 152 | ** "Literature/TheImaginary": ''Helo's Tables of Time Integrals'' is a mathematics book similar to the real life ''CRC Standard Mathematical Tables and Formulae'' or ''Standard Four-Figure Mathematical Tables''. Lor Haridin uses ''Helo's'' to look up complicated mathematics answers. |
| 153 | ---> "You look 'em up in a table, taking half an hour to find the proper entry, and they give you seventeen possible answers. You have to pick the one that makes sense, and - Arcturus help me! - either they all do, or none do! Run up against eight of them, as we do in this problem, and we've got enough permutations to last us the rest of our life." --- '''Lor Haridin''' |
| 154 | ** ''Literature/Liar1941'': The first few books Dr Calvin gives [[AffectionateNickname Herbie]] are textbooks such as ''Theory of Hyperatomics''. After telling her that he prefers fiction, she starts giving him books like ''Purple Passion'' and ''Love in Space''. |
| 155 | * ''Literature/MyNextLifeAsAVillainessAllRoutesLeadToDoom'': Several romantic novels the girls read get mentioned occasionally, the most prominent being ''The Devilish Count'', owing to the eponymous count being frequently compared to Nicol. |
| 156 | ** ''Literature/PebbleInTheSky'': |
| 157 | *** The newspaper that [[FirstNameBasis Grew]] reads is called the ''Tribune''. It provides information about Bel Arvardan, the archeologist, visiting Earth and Affret Shekt's search for volunteers to test his Synapsifier. |
| 158 | *** ''Journal of the Galactic Archaeological Society'' is a prestigious science magazine, which has published Bel Arvardan's research. |
| 159 | *** ''Physical Reviews'', a less-popular scientific magazine but still with galactic circulation, has published an article about Affret Shekt's invention of the Synapsifier. |
| 160 | * Creator/JorgeLuisBorges ''loved'' this trope. Many of his stories are either supposedly true stories about made-up books, or supposed commentaries (not stories in the usual sense) on made-up books. In his own words: "It is a laborious madness and an impoverishing one, the madness of composing vast books, setting out in five hundred pages an idea that can be perfectly related orally in five minutes. The better way to go about it is to pretend that those books already exist, and offer a summary, a commentary on them." To name a few: |
| 161 | ** "The Garden of Forking Paths": The Chinese protagonist's ancestor renounced his political post, and everything that came with it, to pursue two projects: To write a novel "with more characters than there are in the ''[[Literature/DreamOfTheRedChamber Hung Lou Mêng]]''"; and to construct a maze "in which all men would lose themselves". Though he cloistered himself for 13 years to work on these, sadly he was murdered before he could finish the novel; and if he ever did make the maze, it was never found. The novel's incompleteness is apparent, as it is "a shapeless mass of contradictory rough drafts"; for example, the hero dies in chapter 3, only to show up alive in chapter 4. As it turns out, [[spoiler:the novel and the labyrinth are one and the same. The novel reflects the author's belief that [[TheMultiverse reality is constantly branching into many realities]] based on the choices people make]]. |
| 162 | ** "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius" is about ''A First Encyclopedia of Tlön'': A 40-volume encyclopedia about a fictitious planet called Tlön, whose people hold an extreme form of subjective idealism (denying the reality of the material world); their world is understood "not as a concurrence of objects in space, but as a heterogeneous series of independent acts." As a consequence, their languages don't have nouns; some of them are composed entirely of verbs, others entirely of adjectives. The encyclopedia was written by [[spoiler:a secret society called Orbis Tertius, over the course of several generations]]. |
| 163 | ** "The Approach to Al-Mu'tasim" is a commentary on ''The Conversation with the Man Called Al-Mu'tasim: A Game of Shifting Mirrors'', the second edition of an earlier work (now out of print) simply called ''The Approach to Al-Mu'tasim''. The book is about a free-thinking Bombay law student who, from the small amount of spiritual clarity radiating from certain people, infers the existence of a ''perfect man'' who he calls Al-Mu'tasim, and goes on a search for him. The commentator has praise for the book, but also notes that based on what he has been able to find out, it [[WorldOfSymbolism leans too hard into allegory and symbolism]] [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks compared to the original]]. |
| 164 | ** "An Examination of the Work of Herbert Quain" is about fictitious Irish author Herbert Quain, and a commentary on four of his novels: ''The God of the Labyrinth'', ''April March'', ''The Secret Mirror'', and ''Statements''. |
| 165 | ** "The Analytical Language of John Wilkins" shows that he couldn't resist this trope even in his ''non''-fiction. In order to make a point about the inherent arbitrariness and subjectivity of classification, he presents the reader with a NonsenseClassification of animals (with such categories as "those who have just broken the flower vase" and [[ShapedLikeItself "those included in this classification"]]), claiming that it was discovered by the translator Franz Kuhn in a Chinese encyclopedia called ''The Celestial Emporium of Benevolent Knowledge''. (Interestingly, perhaps to ward off any suspicions that ''he'' made it up, Borges himself implies in the very same essay that the encyclopedia may be inauthentic.) There is no evidence that any such book ever existed, and those familiar with Borges's work have always taken it with a grain of salt; but there have also been serious academics who have taken it at face value and used it to back up claims about non-Western thinking. |
| 166 | * Creator/DavidEddings ''loves'' these. The prologues of nearly all his books take the form of a fictional document detailing what has gone on before. |
| 167 | ** Some that specifically deserve to be called out from Literature/TheBelgariad: ''The Mrin Codex'' and the ''Darine Codex'' are the collected ravings of two madmen inspired by the prophesy of light. ''The Ashabine Oracles'' are writings by [[BigBad Torak]] under the influence of the prophecy of dark. |
| 168 | * Lisa Goldstein is fond of this trope. In ''Walking the Labyrinth'', there is Emily Wether's diary, Callan's diary, Lady Westingate's pamphlet and Andrew Dodd's review. In ''Dark Cities Underground'', there is a fictional children's series called the Jeremy Books. In ''The Uncertain Places'', there is a fictional Brother's Grimm fairy tale as well as excerpts from a police interview from the 1920's. |
| 169 | * Daniel Handler also uses this trope in his books written as Daniel Handler. In ''Adverbs'', there is Helena's novel ''Glee Club''. In ''Literature/WhyWeBrokeUp'', there is an imaginary book of recipes for food from the movies called ''Real Recipes from Tinseltown''. |
| 170 | * Creator/StephenKing occasionally has characters in one book reading a book written by a writer who was a character in another book, such as Rose (''Literature/RoseMadder'') reading Paul Sheldon (''Literature/{{Misery}}''), or Jo (''Literature/BagOfBones'') reading William Denbrough (''Literature/{{IT}}''), or Darla (''Literature/LiseysStory'') listening to an audio book by Michael Noonan (''Literature/BagOfBones'') or Fran (''Literature/TheStand'') reading a book by Bobbi Anderson (''Literature/TheTommyknockers'') to someone. In ''The Tommyknockers'', Bobbi's neighbors compare her favorably to "that other writer" from Maine, who writes the stories with all the monsters and cursing (King himself). |
| 171 | ** A large percentage of ''Literature/{{Carrie}}'' is excerpts from books, magazine articles, or investigative reports relating to various characters and events. |
| 172 | ** King does it again in ''Literature/TheRegulators'' (under pen name Richard Bachman), interspersing narrative with newspaper clippings, letters, diary excerpts, etc. |
| 173 | *** ''Literature/TheDarkHalf'' features excerpts from novels written by the characters Thad Beaumont and [[EvilTwin George Stark]]. |
| 174 | * Many of the page quotes in Creator/DeanKoontz novels are from ''The Book of Counted Sorrows'', though this eventually became TheRedStapler. |
| 175 | * Juliet [=McKenna=] likes them even more; she [[EncyclopediaExposita prefaces nearly every chapter]] with a fictional document. Some of them are only [[CowTools tangentially relevant]]. |
| 176 | * Craig Thomas has used this in his novels, such as ''Wolfsbane'', ''Sea Leopard'' and ''Literature/{{Firefox}}''. |
| 177 | * The novels and short stories of Kilgore Trout, a failed science fiction author who's a recurring character in several of Creator/KurtVonnegut's novels. His 117 novels and 2000 short stories were published by a disreputable porn company and used as filler material for trashy erotic magazines though, so only a handful of other characters have ever heard of Kilgore Trout. His novel ''Venus On The Half Shell'' ended up making the transition [[{{Defictionalization}} from fictional document to real book]] when sf writer Philip José Farmer wrote and published it under the name Kilgore Trout (Vonnegut was apparently not amused, and the byline in later editions was Farmer's own name). |
| 178 | * The French sci-fi writer Bernard Werber frequently uses this device. The ''Ants'' trilogy has fragments from his fictional character Edmond Wells's ''Encyclopedia of Relative and Absolute Knowledge'', which was later published in paperback form under Werber's name (rather disappointingly, it mostly intersperse the bits already quoted from it and include little, if any new material). This last detail is egregious since Wells explains in his atypical encyclopedia that he thinks he is turning schizophrenic and the paperback makes it sound as if it were Werber's voice (moreover, Edmond actually dies just before the beginning of the first novel and only appears through flashbacks and the ''Encyclopedia'', and he's a bit of a MadScientist at that). Also, the ''Thanatonautes'' series has fragments from a character's collection of world myths and legends concerning life after death. [[{{Postmodernism}} Yes, you know what it means]]. |
| 179 | * Creator/PGWodehouse: |
| 180 | ** Most of the books on the pig-related shelf in the library of Literature/BlandingsCastle, including most notably Lord Emsworth's favourite, Whiffles On the Care of the Pig. (The title is given with variations in different novels, in ''Galahad at Blandings'' the author is called Augustus Whipple). |
| 181 | ** Other Wodehouse examples: the [[UptownGirl inter-class]] [[RomanceNovel romance novels]] of Rosie M. Banks (examples include ''A Red, Red Summer Rose'', ''Only a Factory Girl'', ''The Woman Who Braved All'', ''The Courtship of Lord Strathmorlick'', ''Madcap Myrtle'', and ''Mervyn Keen, Clubman'') and various detective novels read by the protagonists (which generally have overblown titles like ''A Trail of Blood''). |
| 182 | ** A number of older Wodehouse characters caused scandals by writing their memoirs, with examples including Lady Carnaby's "Memories of Eighty Interesting Years.", [[Literature/JeevesAndWooster Bertie Wooster's uncle Willoughby]]'s "Recollections of a Long Life" and the sadly never-published Reminiscences of the hon. Galahad Threepwood. |
| 183 | * In Walter Moers' ''Literature/TheThirteenAndAHalfLivesOfCaptainBluebear'' there is ''[[EncyclopediaExposita The Encyclopedia of Marvels, Life Forms and Other Phenomena of Zamonia and its Environs]]''. There are also many imaginary books and plays including ''The Voltigork's Vibrobass'', an experimental drama which lasted 240 hours and had a literal cast of thousands by Wilfred the Wordsmith and the bestseller ''How Dank Was My Valley'' by Psittachus Rumplestilt. |
| 184 | * In Ayn Rand's ''Literature/AtlasShrugged'', one of the so-called intelligentsia writes an article titled "The Octopus" which slams Henry Rearden. Then there's "Why Do You Think You Think?", "The Heart is a Milkman", "The Vulture is Molting", and even a "The Future" magazine. Then there's the laws and regulations and plans, including the "Anti-Dog Eat Dog Rule" to the "Equalization of Opportunity" bill to the "Railroad Unification Plan" to the "Steel Unification Plan". There are even audio versions, with Richard Halley's works and its bastardizations. |
| 185 | * ''Literature/TheBookOfAllHours'' in Hal Duncan's duology of the same name. |
| 186 | * Creator/RobertRankin's novel ''The Book of Ultimate Truths'' is about a search for the missing chapters of a book called ''The Book of Ultimate Truths'', a book about the secrets of the world. |
| 187 | ** Several of his books also include reference to fictional private detective Lazlo Woodbine, who has appeared in various other novels. |
| 188 | * The ''Literature/BooksOfPellinor'' are all written as if they are histories of the fictional land the books are based in. The back of the book even includes annotations, a bibliography, family trees and various other fictitious documents. |
| 189 | * In ''Literature/ABrothersPrice'', Jerin goes through his and his brothers' birth certificates, which are a bit different from birth certificates in our world. He also receives a letter at some point in the narrative, which is quoted in the book. |
| 190 | * Lawrence Block's ''The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling'' revolves around ''The Deliverance of Fort Bucklow'', the spectacularly awful result of Creator/RudyardKipling's descent into FilibusterFreefall. |
| 191 | * Walter Moers' ''Literature/TheCityOfDreamingBooks'' is chock full of fictional documents from ''Thanks But No Thanks'' by [[AlliterativeName Goliath Ghork]] to ''Silence of the Sirens'' by Count Klanthu of Kinomaz. |
| 192 | * ''Literature/TheCatWhoSeries'': Moose County newspapers ''The Moose County Something'' and its predecessor, the ''Pickax Picayune''; also ''City of Brotherly Crime'', the book Qwill wrote when he was younger. |
| 193 | * ''Franchise/CthulhuMythos'': |
| 194 | ** The ''Necronomicon'', spawned in the [[Creator/HPLovecraft Lovecraft]] horrorverse but since widely exported to other canons and other media. ''Many'' different Necronomicons have been published over the years. Their quality... varies. Some are merely collections of Mythos stories. Others run the gamut from psudeophilosophical ramblings to attempts at a "genuine" version of the Mad Arab's writings. |
| 195 | ** Website/TheOtherWiki has a rather extensive list of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cthulhu_Mythos_arcane_literature Cthulhu Mythos arcane literature]], most of which falls under this trope. ''The Book of Eibon'', ''Unaussprechlichen Kulten'', and ''De Vermis Mysteriis'' are mentioned nearly as often as ''The Necronomicon''. |
| 196 | * ''Sex Is My Adventure'', Josella Playton's undeservedly-infamous novel in ''Literature/TheDayOfTheTriffids''. |
| 197 | * Used extensively in Creator/JackVance's ''Literature/TheDemonPrinces'' series. A lot of the chapters, in fact, start with more or less related quotes from various invented works. Titles mentioned include the many-volumed "Life" by Baron Bodissey or the "Scroll from the Ninth Dimension". Also quite prominent in the story is a fictional magazine named "Cosmopolis". |
| 198 | * Creator/KatherineKurtz's ''Literature/{{Deryni}}'' series has a few of these: |
| 199 | ** Camber is seen working on an ancient scroll in his research on Orin and his student Jodotha; Camber has a scholarly bent which he indulges in retirement. |
| 200 | ** In the short story "Legacy" Prince Wencit Furstán is reading one of Ariella's letters to her brother and lover Imre; a key paragraph is part of the text of the story. |
| 201 | ** In ''The King's Justice'', Rothana reads some of Orin's poetry aloud to Richenda in the ladies solar. Jehana overhears and enjoys them until she's told the author was Deryni. |
| 202 | ** Jehana later finds a copy of ''Annales Queroni'', an autobiographical treatise on Deryni Healing by the tenth-century Dom Queron Kinevan, in Kelson's arcane library annex. She's reading it when she discovers she isn't alone in the library: Barrett is reading a work by Kitron, and he refers Kitron's ''Principia Magica'', as well as authors Jokal and Sulien. |
| 203 | * This trope appears as a central theme in the book ''Literature/TheDiamondAge'' by Creator/NealStephenson. In it, the protagonist girl is given a very high tech teaching book by the name of "The Young Ladies' Illustrated Primer", which also appears as a subtitle of the book. It's not so much a fictional ''document'' as a fictional ''nanotechnological superweapon'', but most of the time it looks and acts like a book. |
| 204 | * Franchise/{{Discworld}}: |
| 205 | ** ''Mr. Bunnsy has an Adventure'', a Beatrix Potter pastiche from Terry Pratchett's ''Literature/TheAmazingMauriceAndHisEducatedRodents'' |
| 206 | ** Pratchett is very fond of this trope; other examples from Literature/{{Discworld}} include ''The Necrotelicomnicon'' aka ''Liber Paginarum Fulvarum'' (a TomeOfEldritchLore), ''The Joy of Tantric Sex with Illustrations for the Advanced Student, by A. Lady'', ''The Book of Going Forth Around Elevenish'', ''The Little Folks' Book of Flower Fairies'', ''The Bumper Fun Grimoire'', ''How to Dynamically Manage People for Dynamic Results in a Caring Empowering Way in Quite a Short Time Dynamically'', ''Wellcome to Ankh-Morporke, Citie of One Thousand Surprises'', and many more, usually parody versions of real books. The ''[[UniverseCompendium Discworld Companion]]'' includes a full list. |
| 207 | *** Several have been [[{{Defictionalization}} Defictionalised]] for merchandising purposes, including ''Where's My Cow?'' (a children's book) and ''Nanny Ogg's Cookbook'' (a follow-up to her in-universe book ''The Joye of Snackes''). |
| 208 | ** Some of the books even become important plot devices, like ''[[Literature/GuardsGuards The Summoning of Dragons]]'' (slightly foxed and heavily dragoned), ''[[Literature/InterestingTimes What I Did on My Holidays]]'', and [[Literature/TheTruth the first newspaper in Ankh-Morpork]]. |
| 209 | * ''Dining Out On Mythical Beasts'', a cookbook by Grimspite the sinistrom of ''Literature/TheDivideTrilogy''. It would probably be a fairly standard recipe guide in our world, because FaeriesDontBelieveInHumansEither. |
| 210 | * Excerpts from Princess Irulan's various scholarly works (and other people's, for that matter) [[EncyclopediaExposita appear as chapter headers]] throughout the ''Franchise/{{Dune}}'' novels. |
| 211 | ** There's also ''The Orange Catholic Bible'' that Yueh gives Paul. It's stated in some of the background material that the book contains most of the scriptures of the major religions of Earth. The copy given Paul is no larger than the end of his thumb, but has 1800 pages, and the print is so small that a built-in magnifier has to be used to read it. |
| 212 | ** There's also the ''Literature/DuneEncyclopedia'' which is both written as in-universe and references other fictional documents. |
| 213 | * There are multiple chapters in ''Literature/TheEmpiriumTrilogy'' that start off with excerpts from in-universe texts, letters, and other such documents. They're used to give the audience glimpses of the goings on of background characters, flesh out the world of Avitas, or both. |
| 214 | * The book ''The Hive Queen and the Hegemon'' is one of the most influential in the society of the ''Literature/EndersGame'' Series. |
| 215 | * ''Literature/TheFaultInOurStars'' features ''An Imperial Affliction'' as well as ''The Price of Dawn'' and its sequels. The epigraph is from ''An Imperial Affliction'', as a reference to ''Literature/TheGreatGatsby'', whose epigraph is also from another fictional book. |
| 216 | * ''Fergus Crane'': |
| 217 | ** ''Practical Pot-Holing for Beginners'' by Edward T. Trellis, the main textbook referred to on the school ship Betty-Jeanne. |
| 218 | ** ''The Cycling Fish'', a popular musical farce (also by Edward T. Trellis), is referenced to several times throughout the book, either in passing or in the background of illustrations. According to the critics, "[[NoodleIncident the elephant is as thrilling as ever]]". |
| 219 | * Robert Sobel's ''Literature/ForWantOfANail'' is a counterfactual history of the North American continent following a failed American Revolution which includes a frequently referenced bibliography with dozens of fictional academic books. |
| 220 | * ''[[Literature/GoodOmens Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch]]'' contained both ''The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch'' (obviously) and [[spoiler: that book's sequel]]. |
| 221 | * ''Literature/HarryPotter'' has stacks of these, from trading cards to school textbooks to government pamphlets to wizarding comic books. As time has gone on, Rowling has taken to [[{{Defictionalization}} turning some of them into published works]] (''Literature/FantasticBeastsAndWhereToFindThem'', ''Literature/QuidditchThroughTheAges'', ''Literature/TheTalesOfBeedleTheBard''). |
| 222 | * Creator/JohnMoore's ''Literature/HeroicsForBeginners'' has ''The Handbook of Practical Heroics'', which is exactly what it sounds like: a self-help book for wanna-be heroes. |
| 223 | * ''Franchise/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy'' in all of its incarnations. |
| 224 | * In particular, the film ''The Navidson Record'' from ''Literature/HouseOfLeaves'' doesn't actually exist, and the protagonist tells you this in the book's introduction. Meanwhile, the meat of ''[[color:blue:House]] of Leaves'' is an [[EverybodyIsJesusInPurgatory academic analysis]]/summary of said film. A few of the people and books referred to in the analysis's footnotes are real; the vast, vast majority of them are completely made up. |
| 225 | * ''Literature/{{Hurog}}'': In ''Literature/DragonBones'' reference is made to several, very long ballads that Ward liked to quote to people who really annoy him, as part of his ObfuscatingStupidity. Thankfully, the reader is spared the full texts. Those ballads become a plot point when a runaway slave tells Ward that this is how she learnt that Hurog is a safe place to go; she met a guy who had been the victim of Ward's habit of reciting ballads. (The knowledge is outdated, Ward's father was a jerk who would have happily sent her back. Ward isn't, though.) |
| 226 | * Italo Calvino's ''Literature/IfOnAWintersNightATraveler'' has excerpts from ten wildly different fictional novels, though the [[AudienceSurrogate Reader]] can never get past the first chapter of each. |
| 227 | * ''Literature/{{Inkheart}}'' is the most important plot device within its eponymous frame story. |
| 228 | * ''Literature/{{Julian}}'' works on the theory that Julian the Apostate, in the last months of his life, partially dictated his memoirs while campaigning in Persia. |
| 229 | * Garth Nix's ''Literature/KeysToTheKingdom'' has ''The Compleat Atlas'', which is a magic book that will tell you anything about the House. |
| 230 | * ''Literature/TheKingInYellow'', a fictional play script from the book of short stories of the same name. |
| 231 | ** [[{{Defictionalization}} The version written by Thom Ryng]] is actually quite good, though it fails to drive its readers or players insane. |
| 232 | * Footnotes in ''Literature/LoyalEnemies'' seem to be written from an in-universe perspective, sometimes referring the more curious reader to in-universe documents on subjects such as the biology of werewolves or the [[NegativeSpaceWedgie witch rings]] of Beloria. |
| 233 | * ''The Grasshopper Lies Heavy'' from ''Literature/TheManInTheHighCastle'', a popular AlternateHistory novel within the story that becomes very important to the plot. Given that ''The Man in the High Castle'' is an alternate history itself, this means that ''The Grasshopper'' depicts a world similar to our own (though not the same). |
| 234 | * ''Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore'' has several examples, including ''The Dragonsong Trilogy'' (which turns out to be a plot device). |
| 235 | * The Others from the ''Literature/NightWatchSeries'' have The Great Treaty between Light and Darkness, which restricted the century-old bloodshed between the Light Ones and the Dark Ones, regularized the relations between the two factions and stipulated formation and functioning of the Watches. |
| 236 | * ''The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism'', in George Orwell's ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour''. |
| 237 | * The ''Literature/{{Noob}}'' novels feature a couple of magazine articles related to ''[[FictionalVideoGame Horizon]]''. |
| 238 | * Early in ''Literature/November9'', Ben begins writing a romance novel titled ''November 9'' inspired by his and Fallon's lives and relationship, with Fallon even initially believing that getting material for the novel is the main reason they continue to meet once a year on November 9th (she's wrong, of course). The manuscript becomes particularly significant when Fallon reads a section and discovers from it that [[spoiler:Ben actually set her house on fire two years before they met. In the end, reading more of the manuscript and learning why Ben did this prompts Fallon to forgive him and accept that she's in love with him]]. |
| 239 | * The ''Literature/OldKingdom'' series features quite a few of these; of particular note is ''The Book of the Dead'', which follows people around, can only be opened by a necromancer and closed by an uncorrupted Charter mage, and causes the reader to forget the parts of it that would be too unpleasant to remember until needed. Slightly more mundane, but still magical, texts include ''The Book of Remembrance and Forgetting'', which is about how to see into the past; ''In The Skin of a Lyon'', which is about how to turn into an animal; and ''Creatures by Nagy'', which is a bestiary of unpleasant Free Magic monsters. It's that kind of series. |
| 240 | * SpeculativeFiction author Creator/BruceSterling's short story "Our Neural Chernobyl" was written as a ''review'' of a fictional monograph (a non-fiction book on a specific real-world topic) about the "neural Chernobyl", which described the development, release, and consequences of a retrovirus that caused massive growth in brain complexity in almost all mammals, something catastrophic for humans as the process makes humans massively intelligent, but effectively burns out the brain after a while. The story even touches on the book's exploration of the controversial topic of non-human uplifting from the virus, where many animals became much more intelligent, to the point cats developed torture devices to use on mice. |
| 241 | * When medieval poet Wolfram von Eschenbach wrote ''Literature/{{Parzival}}'', a German retelling and continuation of Creator/ChretienDeTroyes' ''Perceval'', he answered criticism of discrepancies between his version and Chrétien's earlier ones by claiming he was being faithful to the original account by one "Kyot the Provencal", whom he alleged to have been Chrétien's source as well. |
| 242 | * About half of each the books in ''Literature/ThePendragonAdventure'' is journals from Bobby Pendragon himself, detailing his stays and attempts to save the Territories. |
| 243 | * ''Literature/ThePrincessBride'' is a real novel written as if it were the annotated '[[AdaptationDistillation just the good bits]]' version of an even longer novel about the history and culture of the fictional nation Florin. |
| 244 | * ''Literature/{{Safehold}}'': |
| 245 | ** The ''Holy Writ'', the holy book cooked up by Langhorne and Bédard, with most of it written by Chihiro, as part of their GodGuise. |
| 246 | ** Book 10 starts off with an excerpt from [[spoiler:a biography of Merlin published circa 4200 CE, the better part of a thousand Earth years after the beginning of the series, revealing that Merlin will eventually succeed in his mission of breaking the Church of God Awaiting and the ''Holy Writ''.]] |
| 247 | * Creator/DorothyLSayers: |
| 248 | ** In ''The Documents in the Case'', Munting's novel ''I to Hercules'' is an unexpected hit. |
| 249 | ** Harriet Vane in the ''Literature/LordPeterWimsey'' novels is an author of detective stories, such as ''Death 'Twixt Wind and Water'' and ''The Fountain-Pen Mystery''. |
| 250 | ** Literature/MontagueEgg frequently quotes rhymes from "The Salesman's Handbook". |
| 251 | * In ''Der Schimmelreiter'' (''The Rider on the White Horse'') by the 19th-century German writer Theodor Storm, the narrator claims to be piecing together from memory a novella he read as a youngster. |
| 252 | * ''Literature/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents'': Snicket's letters at the end of each book, leading his editor to the manuscript of the following book and several props borrowed from it; also, numerous diaries and newspapers are quoted within the narrative, while the supplementary books are each a full-blown ScrapbookStory. |
| 253 | * ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'': "Being a Reprint from the Reminiscences of John H. Watson, M.D. , Late of the Army Medical Department". |
| 254 | ** Holmes himself was the author of numerous monographs regarding the science of detection, including ones on the analysis of typewritten documents, on the dating of handwriting, on the tracing of footprints, on cryptoanalysis, and of course on the different types of cigar(ette) ash. |
| 255 | ** Professor James Moriarty's work, ''On the Dynamics of An Asteroid'', has been [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow suppressed by the scientific community]] since its initial publication, and as Creator/IsaacAsimov 's Black Widowers deduce, [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt it's a good thing too.]] |
| 256 | ** The Baker Street Museum in London has a number of books lying about that were purportedly written by Holmes, Watson, and Moriarty. One of Holmes's texts is a book about [[MythologyGag bees]]. |
| 257 | * ''Literature/SimonArk'': "The Vicar of Hell" is concerned with the search for a surviving copy of ''The Worship of Satan'': a Tudor-era occult text that had been banned by the government and all known copies siezed and destroyed. |
| 258 | * In the ''Literature/StarTrekVoyagerRelaunch'', the Royal Protocol document, bane of Starfleet Officers everywhere. A complete list of dos and don'ts for interacting with alien royals, it's a necessity if diplomatic incidents are to be avoided. It's mind-numbing in its detail, full of little rules along the lines of "when greeting the King, touch your head to the ground three times and then wave your left hand. Oh, and under no circumstances wear purple". An important plot point arises when it's realized "Royal Protocol" has a very different meaning to the Borg. |
| 259 | * ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'': ''Death in the Slave Pits of Lorrd, or How I Spent My Inter-Term Break'', an essay [[DirectLineToTheAuthor supposedly written by]] Tash Arranda of ''Literature/GalaxyOfFear'', cites several in-universe documents. |
| 260 | * In ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'', each book shares it's name with an in-universe book: |
| 261 | ** The first book, ''Literature/TheWayOfKings2010'', is named after one of the oldest surviving books, written by an ancient king named Nohadon. It is a set of parables, documenting a journey Nohadon went on alone, each teaching or exploring a lesson about what it means to rule. The book also inspired much of the philosophy of the now also ancient Knights Radiant. It's lessons are more or less ignored in modern Alethkar, both due to it's association with the now disgraced and fallen orders of Knights, as well as for containing lessons like "[[AristocratsAreEvil nobles should act responsibly]]" and "[[BloodKnight fighting isn't always the best solution]]." |
| 262 | ** The second book, ''Literature/WordsOfRadiance'', is named after an in-universe book chronicling the history of the Knights Radiant, their abilities, and their ethics. It was written a few centuries after the Orders had already fallen, though, and the author acknowledges some of the information is unreliable, based on hearsay or superstition. |
| 263 | ** The third book, ''Literature/{{Oathbringer}}'', is named after an in-universe book [[spoiler:written by Dalinar (after Navani taught him to read)]] chronicling the events of his life. The book in turn is named after the Shardblade Oathbringer, which once belonged to the first man to unite Alethkar, and was Dalinar's Blade for most of his life. |
| 264 | ** The fourth book, ''Literature/RhythmOfWar'', is named after the in-universe book made from the compiled research notes of the [[spoiler:Fused Raboniel and the human Navani]]. Specifically, it regards their notes on the various types of Investiture Light and how the Rhythms of Roshar affect them. [[spoiler:The book centers mostly on the Rhythm of War, the combination of the Rhythm of Honor (which creates Stormlight) and the Rhythm of Odium (which creates Voidlight). Together, they create Warlight, as well as the creation of Anti-Voidlight and Anti-Stormlight, which can destroy entities of the respective investiture]]. |
| 265 | * Used from time to time in ''Literature/SwordOfTruth'', mostly in the form of books of prophecy. Being prophesies, they are then [[ScrewDestiny promptly ignored]]. |
| 266 | * ''Literature/TheseWordsAreTrueAndFaithful'' features two fictional newspapers, ''The Georgeport Standard-Vanguard'' and ''The Georgeport Gayzette,'' both to provide exposition and to satirize the news media. |
| 267 | * Extracts from Literature/ThursdayNext's autobiography are scattered throughout the series. Extracts from others characters' jottings/memoirs also feature prominently. |
| 268 | * Creator/JRRTolkien's [[Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium Middle-earth legendarium]] (''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'', etc) has lots of fictional pieces of literature, both in prose and poetry, and also historic and scientific texts. Most well known is for obvious reasons the ''Red Book of Westmarch'', which contains Bilbo and Frodo's ''The Downfall of the Lord of the Rings and the Return of the King''. |
| 269 | ** ''The Book of Mazarbul'', the record of Balin's [[ApocalypticLog doomed]] Moria colony, in ''The Lord of the Rings''. |
| 270 | * ''Literature/TortallUniverse'': |
| 271 | ** The Books of Gold and Silver are two noble genealogies that are mentioned from time to time. |
| 272 | ** ''[[Literature/TortallASpysGuide A Spy's Guide]]'' is a collection of sensitive documents collected by George Cooper while clearing out a room at Pirate's Swoop. |
| 273 | * ''To Serve Man'', appearing in the short story of the same name by Creator/DamonKnight (and adapted as an episode of ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959''). Written by the alien Kanamits, it turns out [[spoiler: it's a [[ToServeMan cookbook]].]] |
| 274 | * In ''Literature/TroubledBlood'' from the ''Literature/CormoranStrikeNovels'', Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott both read ''The Demon of Paradise Park'', a biography about the serial killer Dennis Creed, in order to familiarize themselves with the story of Margot Bamborough's (the cold case they're investigating) potential killer. Robin also manages to get a hold of an advance release copy of another book, ''Whatever Happened to Margot Bamborough?'', a much more sensational tract written by a disreputable author which never made into general press because the family sued to stop it. |
| 275 | * The ''Literature/VillageTales'' series is stuffing with these. Including historical documents attributed to Wordsworth, Pope, Addison, Johnson, and Grey (and the Duke of Taunton's late InUniverse godfather, Sir John Betjeman), and parliamentary speeches printed in ''Hansard.'' All of them excellent ShownTheirWork [[{{Pastiche}} pastiches.]] |
| 276 | ** The MacGuffin in ''Literature/{{Evensong}}'' is one, as well: Lord Crispin's CompromisingMemoirs. |
| 277 | ** Similarly, there are plenty of fictional paintings and valuables in the ducal collections by RealLife Old Masters, often with hilarious InJoke titles... |
| 278 | * ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': |
| 279 | ** Several of the ''Literature/HorusHeresy'' books have characters talk about an epic called The Chronicles of Ursh. They never go into more detail about it. |
| 280 | ** In the Literature/CiaphasCain novels, [[DirectLineToTheAuthor Amberley Vail]] uses extracts from other sources to fill in the blanks left by Cain's self-centered account. These include the PurpleProse-filled memoirs of a future general in his unit, histories of varying accuracy, travel guides, and even a children's book about promethium. |
| 281 | * Much of [[Creator/KarelCapek Karel Čapek]]'s ''Literature/WarWithTheNewts'' consists of fictional newspaper excerpts commenting on the situation with the Newts (and, eventually, the eponymous war). |
| 282 | * ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'': Everything published by Whateley Press. |
| 283 | ** ''Introduction to the Modern Theory of Mutant Powers'', a Whateley Press textbook by Filbert R. Z. Quintain, M.S., Ph.D., F.A.A.S. |
| 284 | ** From ''[[http://whateleyacademy.net/index.php/content_page/item/1103-all-hallows-ball-part-two All Hallows Ball Part Two]]'': |
| 285 | ---> Dr Quintain's [...] ''Beyond Shiva: A Detailed Study of the Avatar Trait'' |
| 286 | ** There is also ''Sara's Little Purple Book'', a guide to exploiting PowerPerversionPotential while avoiding ManOfSteelWomanOfKleenex problems. |
| 287 | ** Sara claims that the Great Old Ones have their own novels, but states that reading one would probably kill a mortal, or else drive them insane. |
| 288 | * ''The Book of Night with Moon'' from Diane Duane's ''Literature/YoungWizards'' series. |
| 289 | * ''Literature/AMemoirByLadyTrent'': |
| 290 | ** Every book is presented and reads like an old-fashioned memoir penned by Lady Trent. |
| 291 | ** Isabella makes many references to in-world books on both her travels and dragon biology, including the first book's namesake, ''A Natural History of Dragons''. |
| 292 | ** The plot of the SpinOffspring novel ''Turning Darkness Into Light'' centers around Lady Trent's granddaughter translating a lost mythological epic from several clay tablets. |
| 293 | * ''Literature/TheNo1LadiesDetectiveAgency'': Mma Ramotswe finds a book called ''The Principles of Private Detection'' by an American detective named Clovis Andersen and uses it to launch her own detective agency, quoting it as needed throughout the series. She actually meets her hero, and while he proves a competent investigator, at the end he reveals [[spoiler:the book was an utter failure: he had to get it privately published, only ever sold 30 copies out of the 200 printed, and has no idea how one ever wound up in Botswana of all places.]] She gives him a YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre speech which seems to work, as he sends her a letter indicating he feels a lot better about himself. |
| 294 | * ''Literature/WhileMyPrettyOneSleeps'': |
| 295 | ** Ethel Lambston was writing an article for a magazine about New York's fashion industry; during the research process she also claimed to have found something that could make a bestselling non-fiction book. She had already turned in the article for publication before she disappeared, but was still working on the book, initially leading many people to believe she'd holed up somewhere to finish her manuscript without telling anyone. Neeve and Ethel's potential publisher Jack Campbell end up going through Ethel's extensive notes to find clues as to what happened to her. |
| 296 | ** A moment of comic relief is provided via a manuscript Jack Campbell is reading. It turns out to be an extremely cheesy and ridiculous erotic romance book, revolving around a lonely therapist who finds passion in life again after embarking on a torrid affair with an older client. Jack tells his assistant that the story is "horrendous" but that it will probably sell well regardless. He also questions the heavily {{idealised sex}} scenes, saying that having sex [[MakingLoveInAllTheWrongPlaces out in the garden]] on a summer night would realistically result in lots of mosquito bites. |
| 297 | [[/folder]] |
| 298 | |
| 299 | [[folder:Live Action TV]] |
| 300 | * ''Series/BirdsOfAFeather'': The {{Revival}} reveals that Dorien became a famous author by releasing ''Sixty Shades of Green'', an extremely steamy memoir. This ends up getting her in trouble with the legal team behind Literature/FiftyShadesOfGrey. |
| 301 | * ''Series/{{Bones}}'' makes frequent reference to the novels that Brennan has written, and one episode includes a series of murders that imitate those in one of her books. (In a playfully meta note, the books have the same title scheme as the Kathy Reichs novels that the series is based on, and "Kathy Reichs" is the name of Brennan's fictional forensic anthropologist.) |
| 302 | * ''I Believe'', the auto-biography that Brittas writes between Series 4 and 5 of ''Series/TheBrittasEmpire''. Apparently, it mentions Laura a lot; Tim, not so much. |
| 303 | * ''Blush'', the fashion magazine whose offices are the setting for ''Series/JustShootMe''. |
| 304 | * The Chronicle, the tabloid from the show of the same name. |
| 305 | * The fat sci-fi paperback ''Creator/StephenColbert's Alpha Squad 7: Lady Nocturne: A [[ParodySue Tek Jansen]] Adventure'' is, inexplicably, not popular with publishers. Colbert eventually decided to self-publish in the form of comic books and animated shorts, both of which ''do'' exist in RealLife. |
| 306 | * Agent [=McGee=]'s novels in ''Series/{{NCIS}}''. In one episode, characters from his book are being killed--a book that hasn't even been published. |
| 307 | * Jake Sisko's novel ''Anslem'' in ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine''. Particularly important to the frame story of "The Visitor." |
| 308 | ** Also, the Ferengi "Rules of Acquisition", which is considered to be the most important book in the entire Ferengi culture. |
| 309 | ** There's also the Federation Charter, their version of the Constitution. And several texts at Starfleet Academy. |
| 310 | * ''Series/CriminalMinds'' has several: |
| 311 | ** David Rossi is the author of several books on criminal psychology; an [=UnSub=] quotes from them in an interrogation scene in "Masterpiece." |
| 312 | ** A new book on the Keystone Killer induces the unsub to resume his murderous ways in "Unfinished Business." |
| 313 | ** A reporter who wrote a book on the Boston Reaper is a character in "Omnivore." |
| 314 | ** Professor Ursula Kent's SF novel in "Empty Planet." |
| 315 | ** Johnny [=McHale's=] comic book ''Blue'' in "True Night." |
| 316 | * The Space Corps Directive of ''Series/RedDwarf'', dedicated to listing every possible rule of the [[GovernmentAgencyOfFiction Space Corps]] in extreme detail. [[KnowNothingKnowItAll Rimmer]] frequently attempts to justify himself by quoting random rule numbers from it, only for [[MrExposition Kryten]] to recite the (entirely irrelevant) actual rule. Shortly after the above quote, Holly beams a holographic copy of the Space Corp Directives into Rimmer's hands, proving it does exist. It's much thinner than you might think; the rules are apparently in small type. |
| 317 | * In an episode of ''Series/CornerGas'', at the end Brent does an "if you want to find out more, visit your local Library!" segment with the books featured in the episode. One of them he says is just something the prop guy made for the episode, but is still a surprisingly good read. |
| 318 | * The Bro Code, which Barney quotes on various occasions in one episode of ''Series/HowIMetYourMother''. Barney claims it was written by his ancestor Barnabas Stinson on the back of the U.S. Constitution. It is heavily implied that Barney just made it all up, making this a ''fictional'' fictional document. |
| 319 | ** Subverted now since [[{{Defictionalization}} the Bro Code is now an official book]]. Also, "quotes" from the Bro Code appear in the closing credits of each episode, not all of which appeared in actual dialogue. |
| 320 | * Richard Castle's MANY novels in ''Series/{{Castle|2009}}''. |
| 321 | ** Well, the Derek Storm novels at least. ''Heat Wave'' is [[{{Defictionalization}} Defictionalized]]. And even then there are real comic book adaptations of the (still-fictional) Derek Storm novels. |
| 322 | * On ''Series/{{Lost}}'', Sawyer reads a fictional manuscript for a novel called "Bad Twin" that was later Defictionalized. |
| 323 | ** Between season 5 and 6, a fictional documentary TV episode on the DHARMA Initiative has been released. |
| 324 | * The horror novels of [[Series/GarthMarenghisDarkplace Garth Marenghi]]. Garth reads out passages at the start of episodes and [[ProductPlacement has Dagless read one of them]] to keep his mind occupied. |
| 325 | * ''Dreaming of Sean'' that appears in the ''Series/Numb3rs'' fifth season episode "The Fifth Man" Alan is holding when Don wakes up in recovery after being stabbed. |
| 326 | * ''Series/TheXFiles'' episode "Jose Chung's ''From Outer Space''" has the book ''From Outer Space'' being written by Jose Chung. It's supposed to be a non-fiction science fiction about an alien abduction case. |
| 327 | * The two playwrights Mossop and Kindrick in the third season of ''Series/{{Blackadder}}'' are writing and rehearsing a play titled ''The Bloody Murder Of Prince Romero And His Enormously-Bosomed Wife''. |
| 328 | -->'''Blackadder:''' So, a philosophical work, then. |
| 329 | -->'''Kindrick:''' Indeed it is, sir. The vileness of the murder and the vastness of the bosoms are entirely justified within context. |
| 330 | ** Blackadder has himself written his own novel: ''Edmund: A Butler's Tale''. "A sizzling depiction of domestic servitude in the eighteenth-century, with some hot gypsies thrown in". |
| 331 | * ''Series/{{Ghostwriter}}'': "A Crime of Two Cities" prominently features a fictional British series of children's books about a girl named Sophie Madison. |
| 332 | [[/folder]] |
| 333 | |
| 334 | [[folder:Magazine]] |
| 335 | * ''{{Magazine/Analog}}'': On page 43 of the [[Recap/Analog1941 May 1941 issue]], the first page of Creator/IsaacAsimov's "Literature/Liar1941", a robot is reading a book titled ''Purple Passion'', by Irma L. |
| 336 | [[/folder]] |
| 337 | |
| 338 | [[folder:Radio]] |
| 339 | * ''Radio/DimensionX'''s "[[Recap/DimensionX37PebbleInTheSky Pebble in the Sky]]": Dr Avardan has been published in the ''Galactic Archeological Journal'', but Procurator Ennis only heard of him from a newspaper article. |
| 340 | * ''Radio/TheNavyLark'': Sub-Lieutenant Phillips, a classic CloudCuckoolander who is supposed to be TheNavigator despite him having NoSenseOfDirection, repeatedly refers to "Sinbad the Sailor's Big Book of the Sea" as his navigation manual. |
| 341 | * ''Radio/XMinusOne'': In "[[Recap/XMinusOneE056ProjectTrojan Project Trojan]]", the war program is inspired by a story in ''Incredible Science Fiction Tales''. To "research" for the project, the characters read more ScienceFiction tales from the magazine. |
| 342 | [[/folder]] |
| 343 | |
| 344 | [[folder:Print Media]] |
| 345 | * ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' has ''Hamster Huey and the Gooey Kablooey'', as well as ''Chewing'', a hobby magazine about chewing gum. ''Commander Coriander Salamander And 'Er Singlehander Bellyander'', the sequel to ''Hamster Huey'', is mentioned once. |
| 346 | * ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' made reference to a whole series of books starring ''The Six Bunny-Wunnies'' on various adventures, authored by one Helen Sweetstory. Over a dozen titles were given, each usually mentioned only once, but ''The Six Bunny-Wunnies Freak Out'' is the most widely remembered for having been banned by the local school board and subsequently championed by Linus. |
| 347 | [[/folder]] |
| 348 | |
| 349 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 350 | * ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' has numerous fictional documents that are quoted in cards' flavor text and in some of the novels and comics. Some of the notable ones include ''The Antiquities War'', an epic poem about the Brothers' War that the comics and novel are [[DirectLineToTheAuthor supposedly based on]]; ''Sarpadian Empires'', whose first six volumes are quoted in Fallen Empires flavor text and whose seventh volume was printed as a card in Time Spiral; and ''The Underworld Cookbook'', which is only quoted on three cards (one of which is from the self-parody expansion Unhinged), but whose author's name, Asmoranomardicadaistinaculdacar, is the longest word ever to appear on a Magic card. ''The Love Song of Night and Day'' actually exists and was written as part of the world-building for the Mirage expansion, and can be read [[http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtgcom/feature/145 here.]] |
| 351 | ** The end of the ''Rise Of The Eldrazi'' block had quotes from a book called the War Diaries as flavour for some cards. It seems like an account of the terrible fighting against the Cthulhu-sytle horrors of the Eldrazi, and contains sentences about crucial turning points. |
| 352 | * A pair of [[{{Defictionalized}} meta-examples]] from ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': ''The Book Of Exalted Deeds'' and the ''Book Of Vile Darkness'', which exist as powerful artifacts in-universe and useful splatbooks out-of-universe. |
| 353 | ** ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'' uses it via its DirectLineToTheAuthor: at least ''Aurora's Whole Realms Catalogue'' and every ''Volo's Guide to [blank]'' are supposed to be "actual" books printed on Toril, and some others, like ''Elminster's Ecologies'' mostly consists of various in-'verse {{exposition}} texts. |
| 354 | ** The ''TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}}'' campaign setting features the Tome of Strahd, an exceedingly rare manifesto written by Strahd von Zarovich which serves as the foreword of the Ravenloft sourcebook. Also, and more popularly, there are the Van Richten's Guides, written by famed doctor and monster hunter Ruldolph van Richten. Copies of these books are published and distributed by the doctor's office and serve as guides on proper hunting techniques. Often, Dr. van Richten complains in his books that there are so many other inferior and incorrect works on monster hunting in existence that he sees it as his duty to put out properly researched guides that won't get novice hunters killed. Out of universe, the Guides exist and are written in the author's voice for the fluff sections, though it is assumed that any crunchy statistics and in-game information is ghosted out of the in-universe versions. |
| 355 | * Much of the rich background information for ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' is conveyed through quotes, [[AfterActionReport after-action reports]], or excerpts from fictional investigations, histories, or [[ApocalypticLog journals]]. In an example of {{Defictionalization}}, one such book, ''The Imperial Infantryman's Uplifting Primer'', has actually been published. |
| 356 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'' has a lot of these, some of which have been [[{{Defictionalization}} Defictionalized.]] Notable examples include ''[[TomeOfEldritchLore The Broken-Winged Crane]]'', ''[[BigBookOfWar The Thousand Correct Actions of the Upright Soldier]]'', ''The Book of Three Circles'', ''The White Treatise'', ''The Black Treatise'', ''The Book of Bone and Ebony'', and ''Oadenol's Codex''. |
| 357 | ** Creator/WhiteWolf hasn't left their [[TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness Worlds of]] [[TabletopGame/NewWorldOfDarkness Darkness out]] either, with examples such as ''The Book of Nod'', ''The Ericyes Fragments'', ''The Prince's Primer'', ''Revelations of the Dark Mother'', ''The Silver Record'', ''Chronicles of the Black Labyrinth'', ''Rites of the Dragon'', and ''The Testament of Longinus''. |
| 358 | * ''TabletopGame/StarTrekAdventures'': Sidebars in the rulebooks include quotations from a wide range of authors regarding events in ''Star Trek'', usually but not always related to the topics on the page. |
| 359 | * Because ''TabletopGame/SentinelsOfTheMultiverse'' is supposed to be based on in-universe comic books, the flavor text for each card is cited as coming from one Sentinel Comics title or another. This is to the point that the tabletop RPG spinoff is the ''Sentinel Comics RPG'' as opposed to the ''SOTM RPG''. One of the goals of the Definitive Edition, aside from fixing some notorious balance issues from the Enhanced Edition, was to clean up the "publication timeline" of the fictional comics. |
| 360 | [[/folder]] |
| 361 | |
| 362 | [[folder:Theatre]] |
| 363 | * ''Theatre/UnderMilkWood'': |
| 364 | ** Rev. Jenkins' ''White Book of Llareggub'', a compendium of the town and its residents. |
| 365 | ** Mr. Pugh has just had a copy of ''Lives of the Great Poisoners'' delivered to his house. It's unclear whether he actually intends to poison his overbearing wife, or just vicariously wishes he could do. |
| 366 | [[/folder]] |
| 367 | |
| 368 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 369 | * Several games have used fictional documents as part of the documentation. Well-known examples include text adventures from Creator/{{Infocom}} and the ''VideoGame/{{Ultima}}'' series, as well as ''VideoGame/{{Wipeout}}''. |
| 370 | * ''VideoGame/ANNOMutationem'': There are several in-game books that are primarily for examination; one being called "History of [[AIIsACrapShoot Evil AI]]". One of significance is called [[TomeOfEldritchLore The Codex]], a mysterious scroll written in an ancient codified language. Its contents are a source of information and different hypotheses such as the existence and details regarding [[EldritchLocation Hinterland]]. |
| 371 | * ''VideoGame/BaldursGate'' is full of these. Some provide plot-relevant information ("The History of the Dead Three") other just notes on the setting. One is a recipe for cookies. |
| 372 | * In ''VideoGame/BeyondGoodAndEvil'', Jade's sidekick Double H quotes passages frequently from the the 'Carlson & Peeters' military manual, a BigBookOfWar. While the player eventually does see a section of the book in digital form, most of what we know about the book is from Double H offering advice from the book as quoted passages: "If you can't go through a door, go around it!". Perhaps one of the few fictional documents which also serves as inspiration for someone's BattleCry. |
| 373 | -->'''Double H:''' CAARRRLSONNN AAAND PEEETERRRRS! -Whack!- |
| 374 | * The Books of Chzo, which includes The Book of The Bridge, the Book of The New Prince, The Book of Victims, and the Book of The Prince. These Books are shown in pieces throughout the VideoGame/ChzoMythos in order to flesh out most of the back-story and themes of the series. |
| 375 | * ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry2'': Each mission's start-up screen contains a passage from "Guidepost for the Hunters" alongside its Chapter and Clause numbers. These briefly foreshadow what you're about to encounter during the missions, but they're narrated in a subtly cryptic manner; the "Hunter", "Protector" and "King" subjects mentioned in these passages refer to Dante, Lucia and Arius respectively, while the other bosses are mentioned using their descriptions or {{Meaningful Name}}s. |
| 376 | * ''Franchise/DragonAge'' has a bunch of fictional documents - books with notes on the setting, silly poetry, letters between characters, and [[VideoGame/DragonAgeII Varric's]] schlocky novels (Hawke: "'Hard in Hightown.' 'Siege Harder.' What does that even MEAN? Ohh, Varric must be stopped.") Particularly prevalent is Anders's Manifesto, which the rebel mage appears to have stuffed in every book on Hawke's shelf, left on every table, and dropped in the fireplace. (Some fans have even attempted a {{Defictionalization}} of it.) |
| 377 | * ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'': |
| 378 | ** The series in general offers hundreds per game, dating back to ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall Daggerfall]]''. These documents range from full blown [[InGameNovel In-Game Novels]] like the ''2920: The Last Year of the First Era'' series, ''The Real Barenziah'', ''King Edward'', ''A Dance in the Fire'', and ''The Wolf Queen'' to religious texts such as ''For My Gods and Emperor'' and ''36 Lessons of Vivec'', to numerous historical works which help fill in the thousands of years of backstory, to simple notes handwritten by the world's inhabitants to make the world feel more alive (you can literally find the grocery lists of [=NPCs=]). Many of the histories presented within the game [[UnreliableCanon are contradictory and at odds with each other]], leaving it up to the reader to piece together the history of Tamriel for him/herself. For tropes relating to these works, see ''Literature/TheElderScrollsInUniverseBooks'' page. |
| 379 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'': |
| 380 | *** ''Morrowind'' has the lightly pornographic play ''The Lusty Argonian Maid'', written by the CampGay (though technically bisexual) Crassius Curio. It centers around a character named [[HerCodeNameWasMarySue Crantus Colto]] and his...interest...in his, well, [[LizardFolk Argonian]] maid. A quest in the game has you attempting to find actors willing to be in it. |
| 381 | *** There is also ''Boethiah's Pillow Book'', named after the [[OurGodsAreDifferent Daedric Prince]] Boethiah, master ManipulativeBastard. It needs to be stolen from a respectable Dunmeri noble family so they can be blackmailed with it. This heavily implies it's obscene nature, but it can only ''imply''. When you try to read it, all you get is: "No words can describe what you see. Or what you think you see." |
| 382 | ** Come ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'', a sequel to the ''Lusty Argonian Maid'' has been written. One of its DLC expansions adds ''The Sulty Argonian Bard'', a GenderFlipped version for the ladies. |
| 383 | * In ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'', The Wasteland Survival Guide, the quality of which depends on how much work you put into it, including none at all! |
| 384 | * The hugely popular epic poem (and later play) LOVELESS is frequently quoted by Genesis in ''[[VideoGame/CrisisCore Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII]]''. What we hear of the plot is that it's about two young men, in love with the same woman, who go to war and end up on opposite sides. And after that? Well, the last chapter of the poem is missing, so nobody's sure. [[StylisticSuck And Genesis is the only named character who doesn't think it's a trainwreck.]] |
| 385 | * In the ''VideoGame/{{Homeworld}}'' clone ''O.R.B.: Off-World Resource Base'', both factions use the same holy text called Torumin in their state religions. Naturally, a few quotations from it are present in the game (moreso in the manual). In fact, the initial conflict between the factions is directly caused by an incorrect interpretation of the Torumin by one of them. |
| 386 | -->All living creatures wake to the light of the sun; |
| 387 | -->When there are two suns, |
| 388 | -->Does this increase our awareness? |
| 389 | -->Shadow upon shadow, light negates light. |
| 390 | --->Divination MI |
| 391 | * ''VisualNovel/HotelDuskRoom215'' has a subplot involving writer Martin Summers. His first, most famous novel is called "The Secret Word" and the story behind this...story is the driving factor to his role in the greater scheme of the plot. |
| 392 | * ''VideoGame/HungryLamu'': Lamu's favorite book, "The Llama is Hungry", is based aroud a Llama who spends his day eating food. Within the book, there is red writing from Lamu that reveals his backstory and a newspaper clipping about [[spoiler:Eric Bronze, a quack doctor whose animal-human genetic modifications are proven to be false, and on the back of the clipping reveals that Lamu was Bronze's son who he experimented on.]] |
| 393 | * Although not many appear in the game itself, information about a few characters from ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' is taken as extracts from in-universe documents, such as Cecil B. Heimerdinger's daily journals or a Zaunite field report of an attempt to track down Twitch (it doesn't go well). The player can also build an item called the Morellomnicon, a book literally crackling with magical energy. |
| 394 | * ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' has a few books mentioned in the game. Most notably one called ''In the Darkness of Shadow Moses'', a novelization of the events of the first game which is available to read on the main menu of ''[[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty MGS2]]''. |
| 395 | * ''VideoGame/MonkeyIsland2LeChucksRevenge'' has an entire library of fictional documents, mostly comprised of various jokes, in-jokes, and parodies. |
| 396 | * In the vein of plot-important fake books is ''In-Laqetti'', of ''VideoGame/{{Persona 2}}'' fame. A composition of [[SoYouWantTo/WriteAConspiracyTheory patchwork conspiracy]] including aliens, Mayans, and [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Master-D himself]], which would apparently cause the [[EarthShatteringKaboom world to go bye-de-bye]]. Thanks to a bit of [[WordsCanBreakMyBones kotodama]] and extreme Wikiality, things start coming true. |
| 397 | * ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'': |
| 398 | ** The Pokédex, in both Regional and National forms. A digital encyclopedia that updates itself with every Pokemon you see and catch, providing various FlavorText and data for each species. Most Pokémon Professors appear to have their own version. |
| 399 | ** Bookcases throughout the series, if checked, are mentioned have various books, magazines and so on on their shelves, some of which are named. In ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'', as well as ''Platinum'', you can even read [[PamphletShelf extracts]] of the mythology books in Canalave Library. |
| 400 | ** Shauntal of the [[VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite Unova]] [[VideoGame/PokemonBlack2AndWhite2 Elite Four]] is shown to be a writer -- however, none of her books have so far been named. A Fairy Girl in ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'' is said to have enjoyed her new novel, though. |
| 401 | * ''VideoGame/QuestForGlory'' uses the correspondence courses from Famous Adventurer's Correspondence School as supplements to the manual for each game until the 5th game, which features Famous Adventurer himself as an NPC who helps the player with some of the Rites of Rulership. |
| 402 | * The ''Emigre Document'' of ''VideoGame/ShadowHearts'', seemingly based on the untranslatable ''Voynich Manuscript'' carries in it all manner of [[DangerousForbiddenTechnique dangerous knowlege]] including resurrection. That part always fails in the most catastrophic ways possible, usually summoning soulless abominations from your loved ones corpse to devour them and you as well. [[spoiler:Except for two recorded times. And in the first example, the corpse couldn't take the stress and dissolved before the process finished.]] |
| 403 | ** If that is not Lovecraftian enough, also available is the ''R'lyeh Text'', translated as ''Codex of Lurie'', which you find in a nudie mag. |
| 404 | * Many of the techs and secret projects in ''VideoGame/SidMeiersAlphaCentauri'' use quotes from fictional books ostensibly written by the various faction leaders, although a few quotes are from RealLife works. They are also used to introduce each faction when first selecting them. This is continued in the ''Alien Crossfire'' ExpansionPack with the 5 new human and 2 alien factions (yes, aliens write and read books too). |
| 405 | -->Our first challenge is to create an entire economic infrastructure, from top to bottom, out of whole cloth. No gradual evolution from previous economic systems is possible, because there is no previous economic system. Each interdependent piece must be materialized simultaneously and in perfect working order; otherwise the system will crash out before it ever gets off the ground. |
| 406 | --->CEO Nwabudike Morgan, "The Centauri Monopoly" |
| 407 | * The Sunken Scrolls in the ''Franchise/{{Splatoon}}'' series are a set of miscellaneous documents and fragments that can be found scattered throughout the Octarian domes, most of which contain bits of information regarding [[StoryBreadcrumbs the games' backstory and lore]]. The contents of the scrolls vary widely, and include newspaper clippings, historical photographs, [[FictionalPainting paintings]], schematics of Octarian technology, sheet music, propaganda and recruitment posters, ''Hyakunin Isshu'' cards, [[SacredScripture religious texts]], and much, much more. |
| 408 | * ''VideoGame/TheTalosPrinciple'': Dozens of them on the various computer terminals, to help the AI learn who its makers were and what happened to them, as well as possibly inspire it to make something great based on one or more of them. The most prominent one, of course, is the origin of the Talos Principle itself, supposedly posited by a Greek philosopher named Straton of Stageira. |
| 409 | [[/folder]] |
| 410 | |
| 411 | [[folder:Web Animation]] |
| 412 | * ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' features ''Ninjas of Love'', implied to be a {{doujinshi}}. |
| 413 | [[/folder]] |
| 414 | |
| 415 | [[folder:Web Comics]] |
| 416 | * ''Webcomic/GunnerkriggCourt'': While researching the minotaur, Antimony was unimpressed with ''Gainsbury World Mythology'' and ''Mythology 4 Kidz!'' as sources. Later, she's seen reading ''TannhauserGate'', and Kat borrows ''Important Stuff (Like Science)'' from the library. |
| 417 | * In part 2 of the Lebanese comic [[http://www.malaakonline.com Malaak: Angel of Peace]], [[http://www.malaakonline.com/II10.html a collage of fictional newspapers]] is used on one page to suggest that the heroine has piled up missions and has been noticed by the general public. The papers' titles and contents (ads included) are all parodies of actual papers and places. |
| 418 | * The various popular Heterodyne Boys pulp novels in ''Webcomic/GirlGenius''. |
| 419 | ** And less popular, the ''Trelawney Thorpe: Spark of the Realm'' books, which are from ''British'' publishers. |
| 420 | ** And of course the classic tome ''Using Found Objects as Weapons''. |
| 421 | ** ''Everybody Wants to Talk'' by Gilgamesh Wulfenbach's spymaster, published by Extremis Press. The author describes it 'a vanity project from my youth'. It has since been added to Forbidden Stacks of the Immortal Library, and simply realising that they are face-to-face with the author makes one suspect confess immediately. |
| 422 | * ''Webcomic/TheLegendOfGenji'' has ''Benderteen'', a popular gossip magazine aimed at teenagers that regularly prints exclusive interviews with the false Avatar Luan. |
| 423 | * The various mad science journals (including the New Journal of Malology) from ''Narbonic''. |
| 424 | * In ''Webcomic/TheLifeOfNobTMouse'' and ''Webcomic/AllOverTheHouse'', ''The Blobland Gang'' is a set of books, TV & radio shows, and even a film. They are all based on Hubert Schlongson's visits to Blobland to learn about the adventures of Nob Mouse and Company. |
| 425 | * ''Webcomic/TheWayOfTheMetagamer'''s sequel, ''The Way Of The Metagamer 2: InNameOnly'', exists only within the comic. |
| 426 | * The ''Seventy Maxims of Maximally Effective Mercenaries'' of ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'' (originally ''Seven Habits of Highly Successful Pirates''), a BigBookOfWar and spoof of a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seven_Habits_of_Highly_Effective_People well-known book on business-managements self-empowerment]] [[BuffySpeak type stuff.]] |
| 427 | * ''Webcomic/UnwindersTallComics'' are ''loaded'' with fictional books. Unwinder is a fan of the ''After Dark'' series, a series of [[Literature/TheTwilightSaga romance novels involving zombies who are actually super-attractive athletes who can also fly,]] as well as the remarkably dull sci-fi {{doorstopper}}s of Gary P. Rastov. Excerpts from all of these are provided, of course.\ |
| 428 | The author even parodies his use of this trope, by having Unwinder [[StoryWithinAStory write his own webcomic,]] with said webcomic featuring its own, uniquely dull, fictional novel: ''The Gun and the Grapes'', which cranks NarrativeFiligree up to eleven. Back in the main comic, a reader is unimpressed by Unwinder's metafiction. |
| 429 | -->'''Amy:''' I can't really tell what you're going for here. ...You invented an intentionally boring author and provided an intentionally boring prose sample. Mission accomplished. Now why should I care?\ |
| 430 | '''Unwinder:''' There's...there's a certain audience for this. |
| 431 | * Several are mentioned in passing in ''Webcomic/TheMansionOfE''. |
| 432 | * ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'' has [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2002-08-16 a copy of the journal of the wizard]] who enchanted the [[MineralMacGuffin Dewitchery Diamond.]] |
| 433 | * The ''Pridelands'' novels from ''Webcomic/{{Housepets}}'', an epic ''Game of Thrones''-esque series with various big cat species, written specifically to appeal to cats in a universe where all animals are anthropomorphised and sentient. It turns out that this is partly because it was written by a cat. Grape and Maxwell are stated fans of the series, and given their discussions of it, it appears to have a very complicated mythos. Peanut takes an interest as well, and several of the other dogs admit to have found [[BlatantLies 'only a couple of bits of it']] interesting. |
| 434 | [[/folder]] |
| 435 | |
| 436 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 437 | * The titular handbook in ''AudioPlay/TheCartographersHandbook'' is an actual document that all Cartographers carry with them. |
| 438 | * The entry on the [[{{precursors}} Iormunean Imperium]] in ''Roleplay/OpenBlue'''s [[AllThereInTheManual Worldbook]] quotes multiple fictional documents as the source of information for the otherwise completely unknown lost civilization. |
| 439 | ** The Worldbook's article on TheChurch also features verses from their holy book, the Book of Zod. |
| 440 | ** Port Allison's history also quotes passages from the island's discoverer, a Columbus expy named Julian Argenio. |
| 441 | * The Website/SCPFoundation: |
| 442 | ** [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-140 SCP-140]] details the history of ancient history of the evil Daeva empire. Unfortunately, SCP-140 allows that history to become ''less'' ancient, since it's a RealityWritingBook which [[{{Retconjuration}} retroactively extends the history of the empire forwards in time]] by writing more about Daeva any time it comes in contact with fluid capable of being used for writing (which includes blood). If the book's history ever catches up with the present day, then our current reality would cease to be, replaced with one where the Daeva rule. [[ParanoiaFuel And the Foundation doesn't have every copy out there.]] |
| 443 | ** SCP-701, otherwise known as "[[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-701 The Hanged King's Tragedy]]". It's a fictional play around since 1640, the plot of which is described [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp7011640b1 here]]. It being an SCP item, performing the play runs the risk of incredibly bloody and graphic events unfolding. Also, [[ParanoiaFuel copies are still in circulation and are occasionally found under different titles]]. |
| 444 | [[/folder]] |
| 445 | |
| 446 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 447 | * One episode of ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' features the "classic novella" ''Lo The Plow Shall Till The Soil Of Redemption''. One critic (i.e. Ron) describes it thus: "snobby, pompous, overwritten, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and the pictures [are] in black and white]]!" |
| 448 | * A ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode features the Music/{{Beck|Musician}}tionary and the Rhyming Becktionary. |
| 449 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' has lots of these, including |
| 450 | ** ''Shall There Ever Be Another Rainbow?'', C. Montgomery Burns' touching autobiography. One must not forget of course his ''other'' tell-all autobiography ''Yes, I Am a Vampire'', with a foreword by Creator/SteveAllen. |
| 451 | ** Bob Woodward's book about Jebediah Springfield. |
| 452 | ** Marge Simpson's bodice-ripper novel of Nantucket whaling. |
| 453 | ** Various stage works, most notably the musicals ''Streetcar!'' and ''Stop the Planet of the Apes''. |
| 454 | ** Periodicals like ''The Springfield Shopper'' and ''Junior Sceptic Magazine''. |
| 455 | ** Lisa's unfinished novel: ''They promised me ponies''. |
| 456 | ** Kang and Kodos' recipe book ''How To Cook For Forty Humans''. |
| 457 | * ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': |
| 458 | ** The JustForFun/DaringDo series. |
| 459 | ** Countless reference works in Twilight Sparkle's library. Of particular note is the one that contains the backstory of Nightmare Moon and apparently some other major Equestrian threats, such as [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsRainbowRocks The Dazzlings]]. |
| 460 | ** The Foal Free Press, the newspaper at the school the Cutie Mark Crusaders attend. |
| 461 | * The Franchise/{{Transformers}} follow the Covenant of Primus, a book of prophetic texts delivered by their creator-god, in many continuities, most notably ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'' and the "Aligned" continuity branch that includes the ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'' TV series and a series of novels. |
| 462 | * ''Tobin's Spirit Guide'' was referenced often by Egon on ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters''. |
| 463 | * ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' has ''A Dinner of Onions'' which Peggy is tasked to read for a book club in "Full Metal Dust Jacket". The book is seen in future episodes being read by various characters and also has a film adaption. In the same episode, Bobby discovers a series of fantasy books titled ''The Elves of Evermore''. |
| 464 | * ''[[WesternAnimation/TheDoverBoys The Dover Boys at Pimento University]]:'' Dan Backslide ([[RunningGag coward, bully, cad, and thief!]]) consults the ''Handbook of Useful Information'' for help in kidnapping dainty Dora Standpipe, and the narrator makes reference to another installment in the series, ''[[NoodleIncident The Dover Boys in the Everglades]].'' |
| 465 | * ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'' has the book ''Mind Games'' by Jay T Doggzone, which contains '''very bad''' advice for men on relationships and attracting women, and is generally believed to be a parody of Neil Strauss's '''The Game'', which describes and discusses the teachings of the real-world Pick-Up Artist subculture. |
| 466 | * ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' has the "Yipper" franchise, which is shown to have comic books, a TV series, and (most prominently) trading cards. Apparently it's about cartoon dogs who fly airplanes. |
| 467 | * The ''WesternAnimation/WileECoyoteAndTheRoadrunner'' short "WesternAnimation/StopLookAndHasten" has Wile E. follow the instructions provided by the book ''How To Build A Burmese Tiger Trap.'' The resulting pit proves to be very effective.. if you are hoping to catch [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin a Burmese tiger.]] |
| 468 | [[/folder]] |
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