Often writers are
told to avoid flashbacks. In some cases this advice is wise. However, if used
judiciously flashbacks are a powerful writing tool, especially for deepening
character. What’s important is when and why characters choose to remember, what
they remember, and the emotion or emotions the memory evokes.
One of the most
important things to remember is to only use flashbacks at a point in the story where
they will have a direct impact on the ongoing action. For example, a flashback
can justify a character doing something that goes against how they have behaved
up until that point in the story by showing a past event that serves as a
trigger for this seemly strange behavior.
The flashback itself
needs to be an emotional high or low point. But it doesn’t have to be a long or
extensive memory. In fact, tiny and more personal flashbacks tend to covey a
stronger emotional impact on the character and reader.
For example, a
withdrawn and prudish Victorian school teacher might risk social rebuff by
rescuing a drunk prostitute from ridicule because a yellow ribbon in the
woman’s hair reminds the teacher of her own mother who was an opium addict. Perhaps
the flashback has to do with her mother putting a yellow ribbon in the
teacher’s hair, the sensation of a loving touch in the teacher’s otherwise
harsh childhood.
Equally important
is the character’s attitude toward the flashback. If the teacher’s memory of
the yellow ribbon makes her feel hatred or envy instead of compassion or
confidence, then her behavior toward the prostitute might be entirely
different.
The flashback
doesn’t just deepen the character that’s remembering it. The flashback also can
show a lot about the character or characters being remembered. Was the
teacher’s mother kind but a victim of circumstance? Or was she in reality
abusive and the ribbon was used for both kindness and punishment? Is there a
third character in the scene, the teacher’s brother who in the past was
ridiculed by the mother and now is treating the prostitute in a similar manner?
Now here’s a
tricky thing. A character’s emotional reaction to or understanding of a
flashback can change as a story progresses. Instead of being stagnant, the
flashback can transform into a marker of a character’s growth. For example, if
we go back to the schoolteacher story, perhaps at first she hates the
prostitute because of her memories of her mother. But as the story goes on, the
teacher’s experiences make her realize that she was cruelly judgmental of her
mentally ill mother. At the end of the story, the teacher might see the
flashback through new eyes and have a different reaction to a woman and yellow
ribbon.
One of the best
ways to experiment with flashbacks is to think about your own past. What tiny
moments in your past do you recall with strong emotions? Do certain smells or
tastes affect you emotionally because of something in the past? Now add similar
experiences to your characters’ backstories and let them surface at moments
when a hot spike of emotion is needed.
BEYOND YOUR TOUCH
Blurb:
She wants more than he can promise.
His desires could lead to betrayal.
But without each other, neither can survive the
dangers ahead.
Annie
Freemont knows this isn’t the right time to get involved with a man like Chase.
After years of distrust, she’s finally drawing close to her estranged family,
and he’s an employee on their estate in Maine. Though she never intended to
stay on the estate for long, her father’s illness and the mysteries surrounding
her family made leaving impossible. And now with the newfound hope of rescuing
her long-missing mother, Annie’s determined to be involved with the family’s
plans one way or another.
If
only she could keep her mind off Chase and focus on the impending rescue. But
there’s something about the enigmatic Chase that she can’t resist. And she’s
not the only woman. Annie fears a seductive stranger who is key to safely
freeing her mother is also obsessed with him. As plans transform into action
and time for a treacherous journey into a strange world draws near, every move
Annie makes will test the one bond she’s trusted with her secrets, her
desires—and her heart.
