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I think it depends on what the main problem is in the novel. If the main problem is technical in nature, the reader needs to have some sense of what it technically possible. If the main problem is ...
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#4: Attribution notice removed
by
System
·
2020-01-03T20:41:50Z (over 4 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/23619 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#3: Attribution notice added
by
System
·
2019-12-08T05:23:21Z (over 4 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/23619 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision
by
System
·
2019-12-08T05:23:21Z (over 4 years ago)
I think it depends on what the main problem is in the novel. If the main problem is technical in nature, the reader needs to have some sense of what it technically possible. If the main problem is psychological or moral, however, what matters is the decision to use or not use the power in question.
There is a whole cottage industry online doing "if A has power B why don't they just do C" analysis of superhero movies. Most superpowers are poorly explained and inconsistently applied, and it usually doesn't matter because the movies are essentially morality plays.("With great power comes great responsibility.)
The main thing is that the reader should not feel that the author has changed the rules in the middle of the game in order to get the ending they want.
#1: Imported from external source
by
System
·
2016-06-28T18:28:35Z (almost 8 years ago)
Original score: 8