Did you read last week’s blog post on beginning your story in the middle of the action?

In that post, we talked about not wanting to bore our readers with a ton of exposition as we set up the world and characters at the beginning of the story. 

We want to hook readers immediately.

Since background information shouldn’t bog down your introduction, how do you ensure your readers get the information they need?

This week’s blog post is going to look at incorporating relevant exposition through the use of flashbacks– just one of many techniques that writers can utilize.

Now, some writers will tell you never to use flashbacks! Others will suggest using it sparingly.

I’m not here to debate the effectiveness of incorporating flashbacks into your narrative (although, feel free to share your insights in the comments below!).

Based on this post’s title, I am giving YOU permission to write flashbacks!!

Today, I’ll share with you why you may decide to use a flashback, how to choose flashbacks that are relevant to the plot and leave you with some tips for writing flashbacks that flow seamlessly into your story.

Flashbacks can provide important information about your main characters’ pasts- information that your readers wouldn’t come across in your present-day storyline but are crucial to understanding the drive behind your character’s decisions. 

A flashback can answer questions that readers are curious about, such as:  “How did the MC become this way? Why have they reacted with such behaviour? Why didn’t they say what they were truly feeling?” and so much more!

Any flashbacks that are used need to be significant and relevant to the plot. This is why some writers caution against using flashbacks.

As writers, we have a whole world dreamt up for our characters. There are so many past events that we’d love to share with our readers, but some of them do not add to the story.

Our plot remains tight when the flashbacks that we use demonstrate a cause-and-effect connection between your character’s current state within the present storyline and their past experience. 

Readers must first feel connected to the characters before any flashbacks are introduced. The beginning of the story is for captivating your readers, not info-dumping.

A flashback at the beginning of your manuscript may run the risk of your audience closing the book prematurely.

• Make the reader care even more about your character. 
• Provide some clarity around your character’s current decisions while still leaving much to be curious about.

A flashback needs to be relevant to the current present-day scene. It should make sense that the main character would be engaging with this memory at that particular point in time. 

The reader shouldn’t be jarred or confused by this change of plot point.

For example, J.K. Rowling uses concrete items to spark flashbacks throughout the Harry Potter series. This allows Harry to become acquainted with Voldemort’s past and discover how he became the villain that we know in the present.

From Tom Riddle’s diary to the Pensieve, the use of these doors to the past is crucial as Harry is not engaging with his own memories. When encountering these items, it still makes sense that a memory would be experienced here. 

In books where flashbacks are the memories of the main character, concrete objects can still be used. For example, a family heirloom could spark a flashback of a lost family member who had a great impact on the character’s upbringing.

Whether it’s a physical object or something else, there needs to be a reason that a memory has been sparked– a sound, a smell, a place- all of these could be the trigger.

A trigger needs to precede a flashback or your readers will be left wondering why they should even care.

From there, it’s the writer’s decision on how to pull the reader into the flashback. Will it be a third-person retelling or a direct first-person ramble down memory lane?

Think back to the books that you’ve read.

Is there a flashback that struck you deeply? A favourite technique a writer used to seamlessly enfold a flashback into their narrative?

Share these techniques in the comments below for us all to explore!

I know, I know, I’m getting repetitive, but it’s all about whether the flashback you intend to incorporate will be relevant and impactful to your main character’s current situation as well as the overall plot.

You’re gonna need to do some honest reflecting here as you consider using that exciting flashback scene you’ve come up with.

The fears a character has, the barriers they put up for themselves and the decisions that they make throughout the story are influenced by past experiences. 

Trauma doesn’t always need to be disastrous or cruel. Not all characters need to come to the story utterly broken. 

It can be a small event that impacted the future of your character, something that may not have impacted another with a different personality in the same way. 

Look to who your character is at their core to determine what would crucially influence their life path.

The scene you’ve chosen for your character to relive should express the motivation behind your character’s current decisions. 

Why did your character decide to run instead of standing for what they believed in? Or, how did they become the villain of the story? Why did they leave home instead of following in their families’ path? 

The spark behind each of these decisions can often be found in your character’s past.

Sometimes, an author jumps into a friendship or a romance way too fast and the audience doesn’t believe it because there is little connection between these characters. 

Characters with a history that began before the introduction of your novel provide a solid foundation to continue developing their relationship. 

In The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins presents us with a reason to care about Peeta and his relationship with Katniss right from the reaping.

Peeta could have just been another tribute, but with Katniss’ memory of how Peeta provided her family food, Collins tells us to pay attention. And sure enough, we see that Peeta’s care for Katniss is reciprocated when he is injured, laying the foundation for their relationship throughout the trilogy.

Ok, so flashbacks and memories are back story. Always.

They provide your audience with the history of your character, the reason that your character is in their current situation and why we should care about them at all. 

Your readers are not wondering what the name of your MC’s first pet was or the book that they read last summer. Not unless it influences their current decision-making.

If your back story doesn’t directly influence your plot (or front story) then there is no reason for it to be in your novel. Your backstory is there to serve the front story, not overshadow it.

Why? Because your readers do not care! 

They have questions that they want answered and all of those questions apply to your front story. 

How did your MC get here?

Why did they just deny themselves the thing that they clearly want the most?

Why did they pick a fight with their love interest?

Use your flashbacks to sprinkle the answers to your readers’ questions about the front story. Give your audience insight into how your character has arrived at their current situation.

Always ask yourself, what do my readers want?

If your flashback doesn’t impact your main character now, don’t use it.

Above all of the reflective questions that I’ve provided you, this one needs to be answered with a resounding yes!

This question is your unbroken plot circle: readers must care about the front story (your characters) before you incorporate the back story and the back story must be relevant to the front story. 

When integrating a flashback you are pausing your front story and therefore disrupting the flow of your plot. As a writer, your goal is to not disrupt the story any more than it needs to be.

Your readers should not question the change between the past and the present. It should be seamless. 

Brain-dumping background information is overwhelming for the reader. If they can’t determine how it is immediately relevant to the plot then they may be wary to continue. 

Sprinkling back story throughout the narrative rather than sharing it all upfront allows your audience to easily digest the information and connect what they have learned to the story.

Every flashback begins with a trigger- something or someone that strikes a memory. A physical object, a sound, a place, or a person can all be triggers.

Once your character has been triggered then it is time to signal to the reader that we are moving out of the present and traveling into the past.

But, how can you do this in a way that won’t leave your readers reeling in confusion.

This is a very simple way to create a visual break in your writing. Use an asterisk or a fancy symbol at the beginning and end to separate the front story from your back story. This technique signals to your reader that the plot has shifted for the time being.

Another easy and visual technique would be to use a title or a date that signals the change. Some authors have entire chapters dedicated to flashbacks where the story shifts from past to present, chapter to chapter. 

When you are just beginning to write flashbacks, the above two techniques may be easiest to start with.

Once you’ve become adept at determining the relevancy of your flashbacks and developing appropriate triggers, you can start experimenting with more complex ways to introduce your memory.

Seamlessly shifting from present to past tense within your writing, void of page breaks or titles is a talent! 

To do this without confusing your reader and incorporating clear transitions, it may be helpful to write the present story first- no flashbacks just yet! 

Since you will then have your character’s journey completed, you can reread the entire manuscript from start to finish and determine crucial points where a flashback would add strongly to the plot. 

Your use of present and past tense can be easily switched between when adding in these scenes after the fact and with the entire plot confirmed, you are likely to have less struggle with connecting the back story to your character’s present. 

Remember, if a flashback is relevant then it is still influencing them in the present. They haven’t fully healed from or understood that trauma or event yet. 

One suggested way to incorporate relevant backstory into your narrative is through the use of flashbacks. 

I encourage you to take a look at your work in progress and consider whether this technique would make sense for your story. If so, reflect on your MC’s backstory, what past events will speak to their current conflicts and growth?

Take a stab at writing a scene from your character’s memory!

Share your thoughts on using flashbacks below!

Have you found any unique ways to incorporate a flashback that fluidly jumps in and out of the present?

Talk soon!

Julia