This is a review (of sorts) of a book that shall remain Nameless, broken down into all the things it did that you Really Shouldn't Do. Part one is here.

Info dumps are more or less what they sound like - the author unloading a great wodge of information on the reader, often in the form of "Well, as you know, John..." (TvTropes warning) and other painfully obvious gambits. The relevance and necessity of the information aside, the author makes little attempt to show you these facts or integrate them into the storyline, but tells you straight up what they want you to know. 

The best (or worst?) info-dumper I've ever read was Michael Crichton. His info dumps grew to be entire chapters, often written in a completely different typeface, and not actually necessary to the enjoyment of the book. In fact, you could usually skip them altogether (and I did), and the story would still be completely comprehensible. (I have a theory that his publishers changed the typeface specifically to enable this.) Try it - go pick up a Michael Crichton book you haven't read, and skip all of the science-sections. In many ways, it's a much better read.

Info dumps are frowned upon because they disrupt the reader's immersion and enjoyment of the story, often to deliver information that the reader isn't interested in. Nameless insisted on telling me the astrological signs and future portents of more or less every character I met (and some I hadn't, and some a second time because I hadn't seen them in a while). Each time, I gritted my teeth and scanned the text to find where the story picked up again (sometimes several pages later) muttering "I really don't care, I don't want to know, get back to the story!" under my breath.

It was compounded by the fact that this information was not in any way relevant to the outcome of the story. It was never referred to or mentioned again, and had no effect on the characters themselves or the plot. It was simply used in place of actual storytelling or characterisation, probably because the author had spent far too much time building character dossiers, and wasn't willing to let that information stay on her side of the book.

When you deliver an info dump, the story (which is the reader's main impetus for reading) judders to a halt, and has to wait around for the information road train to cross the intersection. The reader has to wade through information that's typically dull (compared to the engagement of the story) and often not actually necessary or relevant. It sends a giant neon sign into the sky proclaiming "I was too lazy to find a better way to communicate this bit to you!" and gives your reader a chance to surface from the story, glance at their watch and put the book down because they've remembered that they really need to fold their socks before dinnertime.

The acceptable info dump

If you're facing a seemingly necessary info dump in your writing, the first think you do is remove all of it. Test the story - how badly is it falling apart? Could you tweak the story a little bit here, and here, so that it makes sense without that information? No? Really? Give it to someone else, and see if they can work it out.

Are they baffled? Okay, what is the barest information the reader needs to make this comprehensible? Add pieces, one bit at a time, until you're at that minimum. And give your reader credit for their intelligence - readers want to make the connections themselves, they don't want it spelled out.

Hopefully you've now cut your info dump in half, and are only holding pieces that are absolutely essential to the story. Can any of these pieces of information be shown, rather than told? Can they be spread out a little through the text, and revealed at different times? Can another aspect of the story be extended slightly to imply this information? (and stop yourself saying 'no, no, no' right away - that's the lazy way ou

If you've reached this point, and you still have an info dump on your hands - make it a joy to read. Don't try to hide it with "As you know," tropes - all they do is call attention to it, and make people cringe. Deliver it as briefly but as enjoyably as you can, and then get on with the story.

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