I am wondering if we can use footnotes to describe technologies used in a science-fiction novel instead of describing it by switching from an omniscient POV, that describes everything in a poetic way, to a "historian" POV. I understand this is not something we see usually in a novel, but I am wondering if there are historical precedents for this, and if you think it's perfectly reasonable to do so.
Answer
Can you do it? Sure.
Should you do it? Most likely, no.
It's not that you can't use footnotes as an explanatory aide. Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time does so. It's just a matter of making use of the disruption in a constructive manner beneficial to the experience you are attempting to invoke.
There is no such thing as a bad idea in writing. It's the execution that matters. As a result, nobody can honestly tell you if it is going to be a bad idea or not to do something, because we won't know if you're able to pull it off unless we see you try it first.
Anyone who says you can't do it just hasn't succeeded at doing it. The value of the footnotes is to disrupt the reader's reading of your story in a choreographed manner or to make the reader experience first-hand the narrator's perspective of the world.
Personally, I would dissuade you from trying it. Footnotes are a great tool, but not something just anybody can pull off. It takes a level of skill that most writers don't have. If you do attempt to do so, be prepared for dozens of rewrites by virtue of footnote alone. That said, if you think you can do it, I recommend writing a sample work (a few pages in length) and using it as a proof-of-concept to see how well your beta-readers respond to your attempt at the stylistic device. If you fail to make it work, feel free to try again or feel free to give up on it. There's no shame in admitting your limitations after all. It's better that your work is good because you did your best than it is to fail because your best wasn't good enough.
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