tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37083420.post6364280006244839325..comments2024-01-27T16:10:28.502-08:00Comments on Tara Maya's Tales: FlashbacksTara Mayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09095632631554776002noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37083420.post-60979594122225062352010-07-23T12:34:22.066-07:002010-07-23T12:34:22.066-07:00See, that's what everyone said! They all loved...See, that's what everyone said! They all loved the jungle flashbacks! But I took them out because I was convinced flashbacks in any form just suck. I've since changed my mind. :)<br /><br />Yeah, the flashbacks in italics for Cinders are pretty short. The longest one is probably only 150 - 200 words. I'd have to check.Michelle D. Argylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09696465137285587646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37083420.post-8146545610247322172010-07-23T11:36:34.295-07:002010-07-23T11:36:34.295-07:00Past-perfect is fine in small doses. It shouldn...Past-perfect is fine in small doses. It shouldn't go on for more than a paragraph or so at a time. Usually one line or two is plenty. If one had to write more than a page in past perfect, I'd definitely suggest using a different technique.<br /><br />I don't think italics should be used for scenes longer than a page. These flashbacks were no more than 300 words each, so I decided it would be more distracting to break for a new scene each time than just use italics. Depends on the work.<br /><br />I loved the jungle flashbacks in Monarch, so I hope you leave them in, ultimately. I was thinking of Monarch, actually, when I wrote this post. I think that is definitely an instance where you are weaving together two story lines that are not chronological.Tara Mayahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09095632631554776002noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37083420.post-89937660407693010962010-07-23T06:47:09.871-07:002010-07-23T06:47:09.871-07:00I really agree with you on the past-perfect tense....I really agree with you on the past-perfect tense. I have a few of those paragraphs in Cinders, but they're just part of the normal flow of the story as the character remembers a brief moment in the past. I think they work. But as far as flashbacks go, I've got several in Cinders, and they are long. I've done them how you are doing them - in italics in the same tense as the rest of the book. It works for this one.<br /><br />For Monarch, it has been a pain. I've finally gone with no italics and just transitioning into the memory of the character, using the same tense as the rest of the story.<br /><br />Either way, I've had to be very careful, and it has taken a lot of work to get things to flow right. For Monarch, I ended up taking out the flashbacks (you remember the jungle scenes?) out altogether, and then I put them back in several drafts later. That book has been such a pain. Amazing what some drafts teach us, huh?<br /><br />Good luck with yours! I liked your excerpt from your other post. Really interesting, and great descriptions!Michelle D. Argylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09696465137285587646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37083420.post-88131095645456600622010-07-22T10:54:00.503-07:002010-07-22T10:54:00.503-07:00I'm all for flashbacks - I love getting as muc...I'm all for flashbacks - I love getting as much information about a character as possible and yeah, I love it when the screen turns a different hue ;)Banhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15450115293974960761noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37083420.post-33619158634680931292010-07-21T14:24:08.595-07:002010-07-21T14:24:08.595-07:00There are two kinds of flashbacks which give all f...There are two kinds of flashbacks which give all flashbacks a bad name.<br /><br />One - the novel opens with some dull scene, waking up or on a plane, and immediately uses past perfect to convey backstory.<br /><br />Two - in the middle of the story, a chapter ends with a cliffhanger, then, inexplicably jumps to the character already safe and sound. The escape from the cliffhanger is then related in the past perfect tense.<br /><br />Basically, I don't think it's flashbacks people hate, it's the past perfect tense!<br /><br />Not all stories are best told chronologically.Tara Mayahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09095632631554776002noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37083420.post-58114300182092074682010-07-21T14:01:21.718-07:002010-07-21T14:01:21.718-07:00I worked very hard to avoid flashbacks in my writi...I worked very hard to avoid flashbacks in my writing, totally buying into the idea that they broke the flow of the fiction. Then, one day, a friend said to me that she loved flashbacks in books. Since then, I've been much more welcoming to them. In my novel Rooster, I let flashbacks in, and they became half the book, forming that second timeline, like you describe in your work.Davin Malasarnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09385823575081492949noreply@blogger.com