Questions on prologues and flashbacks

DevinPhilips · Dec 15, 2008

I need some critical thought... since I'm writing a memoir... it has been suggested in several agent's blogs that a memoir not move in a linear story line. That the first chapter should be a hook, then flashback to tell the story.

For some reason I was thinking that flashbacks were a bad thing.

So... I'm thinking removing the prologue, because evidently agents hate prologues... and moving a chapter from the middle to the first chapter.

It's a dark fast moving chapter that raises many questions... and maybe would encourage a reader to want more?

Any suggestions?? Any thoughts?

alleycat · Dec 15, 2008

DevinPhilips said:
... it has been suggested in several agent's blogs that a memoir not move in a linear story line. That the first chapter should be a hook, then flashback to tell the story.

I like that format in general, although I don't consider what follows to be a flashback. I think of it as an introductory chapter (but I'm not sure if that's what it's called in the publishing world).

It can be a little tough to get into a book when it starts with someone's great-great-grandfather coming to American in 1846. Biographies of major historical persons are bad about this . . . here's a biography of John Kennedy, but first let me tell you about old Daniel Patrick Kennedy who was a poor Irish potato farmer . . . (I made that up, of course; I don't remember who Kennedy's great-great-grandpa was).

MarkEsq · Dec 15, 2008

My book is not a memoir but a biography - but I'm doing just what you suggest. My subject is a foremr FBI profiler and I begin the book with a csae that he solved nearer the end of his career. I do this for two reasons:

1. I think that this case exhibits all of his strengths as a person and agent/profiler, and will give the reader a powerful sense of who he is.

2. I interviewed the guy he caught, on death row, and start the chapter writing about the crime from his perspective. I think (I hope!) that makes for a powerful begining.

After this chapter, I flash back to the start of his career, as a rookie agent. I then stay pretty much in chron order.

Hope that helps - good luck!

DevinPhilips · Dec 15, 2008

Thanks Mark and alleycat... that does make a lot of sense! :hi:

I do remember reading in a screenwriter's book which said the first 10 pages of script were the most important. A movie runs at about one page of script per minute. Supposedly, the attention span of a movie patron is about 10 minutes... and if you haven't gotten their interest within those first 10 minutes, you have lost them for the rest of the movie.

So, I'm thinking the first few pages of a book have to be exceptionally good. A bang at the beginning and then settle down to tell the linear story.

Now I'm trying to figure how to transition from the new chapter one which has quite a bit of action to chapter two which use to be the beginning of the story. :Shrug:

Wayne K · Dec 16, 2008

I did that too, but in the proposal I indicated that. More than one agent or publisher has commented that they liked it, but I did also have the transition problem with chapter two. I finally solved it with a joke.

Kirsten I · Jan 3, 2009

Hmm. My memoir has three story lines--one based on my memories, the other two largely based on family letters. I've found telling the story in roughly chronological order is important for clarity.

So I think how you tell your story depends on your story and what introduction works best for it. The introduction Mark has chosen for his book sounds absolutely right for that book.

Questions on prologues and flashbacks

DevinPhilips

alleycat

Still around

MarkEsq

Clever title pending.

DevinPhilips

Wayne K

Kirsten I