When does a flashback become a backstory dump? Isn't that what a flashback is. It is a memory of a character. Naturally, it provides information but at what point does it become a dump. I know many will say is it pushing the story driving the character. In this circumstance yes. We as the reader need to know of the character's past. It seems like a fine line but maybe there is a clear way to identify the difference.
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Backstory Dump vs Story propulsion
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In what circumstance? I'm not sure what you're asking.
In any case, a flashback is a perfectly valid thing and a dump of any kind generally isn't. Does that help?
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There are distinctions between (a) providing backstory in a flashback scene; (b) providing backstory as an integral part of a character’s current thoughts; and (c) providing information about a character’s backstory as a narrative summary. The first two are preferable as they keep the story’s live action, as it were, moving forward.
With respect to (a), even if a scene is in flashback, it is still a scene, and if it is engaging as any scene should be (it contains tension, it has a purpose within the story), it won’t take the reader out of your story.
With respect to (b), backstory that comes up in a character’s thoughts just blends smoothly into the current action, and is often the best and most seamless way to fill in backstory. For an off-the-cuff example, “Jane hadn’t seen a linoleum floor like that one since the trailer she and Walter lived in when they first went to Los Alamos during the war. Its dull brown tiles reminded her of the late nights he spent at the lab in those days, and the long silences when he finally came home.” <— That sentence is a thought triggered by Jane seeing something in her present scene, and allows you to infer some things about Jane’s backstory: she’s married to a man named Walter who worked on the Manhattan Project, and she went there with him; they lived in a trailer, and their marriage might have been a little strained during that time.
It is (c), when you take the reader out of the story to provide a distant narrative summary of past events, that runs the risk of pulling your readers out of the story and dumping information on them, rather than showing them scenes that engage and illuminate. “During the war, Jane and her husband Walter lived in a trailer in Los Alamos, while Walter worked long hours on the Manhattan Project. Walter could not talk to Jane about his work, and so he didn’t talk to her much at all. The trailer had a linoleum floor.”
Can you see why (b) might be more compelling than (c)? (b) is immediate, in Jane’s POV, and blends into whatever Jane is doing right now in the scene. It also builds reader curiosity by saying things a little indirectly. (c) is distant, not connected to the current actions of either Jane or Walter; it’s just dumped there. By working bits of (b) in and throughout your present action, rather than interrupting the action to dump paragraphs full of (c), you build reader curiosity and maintain their interest, all while keeping them in the middle of your story.
There are times and places for all kinds of exposition, of course, but if you are getting feedback about having too much infodumping, or not working your backstory smoothly into your current story, the distinction I’ve tried to explain here is worth thinking about. One book that discusses this very helpfully is Sol Stein’s Stein on Writing.
With respect to (a), even if a scene is in flashback, it is still a scene, and if it is engaging as any scene should be (it contains tension, it has a purpose within the story), it won’t take the reader out of your story.
With respect to (b), backstory that comes up in a character’s thoughts just blends smoothly into the current action, and is often the best and most seamless way to fill in backstory. For an off-the-cuff example, “Jane hadn’t seen a linoleum floor like that one since the trailer she and Walter lived in when they first went to Los Alamos during the war. Its dull brown tiles reminded her of the late nights he spent at the lab in those days, and the long silences when he finally came home.” <— That sentence is a thought triggered by Jane seeing something in her present scene, and allows you to infer some things about Jane’s backstory: she’s married to a man named Walter who worked on the Manhattan Project, and she went there with him; they lived in a trailer, and their marriage might have been a little strained during that time.
It is (c), when you take the reader out of the story to provide a distant narrative summary of past events, that runs the risk of pulling your readers out of the story and dumping information on them, rather than showing them scenes that engage and illuminate. “During the war, Jane and her husband Walter lived in a trailer in Los Alamos, while Walter worked long hours on the Manhattan Project. Walter could not talk to Jane about his work, and so he didn’t talk to her much at all. The trailer had a linoleum floor.”
Can you see why (b) might be more compelling than (c)? (b) is immediate, in Jane’s POV, and blends into whatever Jane is doing right now in the scene. It also builds reader curiosity by saying things a little indirectly. (c) is distant, not connected to the current actions of either Jane or Walter; it’s just dumped there. By working bits of (b) in and throughout your present action, rather than interrupting the action to dump paragraphs full of (c), you build reader curiosity and maintain their interest, all while keeping them in the middle of your story.
There are times and places for all kinds of exposition, of course, but if you are getting feedback about having too much infodumping, or not working your backstory smoothly into your current story, the distinction I’ve tried to explain here is worth thinking about. One book that discusses this very helpfully is Sol Stein’s Stein on Writing.
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A flashback is a scene which takes place earlier in the timeline from the rest of the narrative. It's not an infodump by default.
It shouldn't be used solely for the goal of explaining backstory because that can be done in other ways.
In first person POV you can frequently get away with information dumps that would get you slaughtered in third person. If you look at some of the really complex science fiction, a lot of them are in first person, probably in part for that reason.
It shouldn't be used solely for the goal of explaining backstory because that can be done in other ways.
In first person POV you can frequently get away with information dumps that would get you slaughtered in third person. If you look at some of the really complex science fiction, a lot of them are in first person, probably in part for that reason.
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You can also reveal backstory in dialogue, which is another satisfying way if giving information without pulling the reader out of the story. This follows Lakey's suggestion of a memory being jogged. You can also jog memories with more than just sight. Use a smell, taste or hearing a song etc, to bring some of the character's past into the present.
If the flashback is well-timed (i.e., it comes at the right moment in the story not only for the information to be revealed but to give new meaning to the character's motivations) and it's written as a scene (with good pacing and conflict) and not as exposition (a summary), then it won't feel like an infodump at all.
True infodumps tend to be thick, indigestable slabs of information that the reader has to chew her way through, getting the fat and gristle along with the meat. They usually happen because the author assumes the reader Needs To Know All This Right Now. Which is rarely true.
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This! Some writers assume that their readers won't get the point if they don't tell them every little detail. Readers are intelligent and can read between the lines.
I wholeheartedly agree with what Lakey said above.
Consider a PTSD flashback. Your character is at a birthday party, and someone pops a balloon. Immediately he / she is brought back to, and immersed in a memory of bullets flying through the walls and seeing their friend die. Then a moment later, back at the birthday party, he / she returns to themselves - huddling under a table and crying.
Consider a PTSD flashback. Your character is at a birthday party, and someone pops a balloon. Immediately he / she is brought back to, and immersed in a memory of bullets flying through the walls and seeing their friend die. Then a moment later, back at the birthday party, he / she returns to themselves - huddling under a table and crying.
No, we don't. One of the most beloved characters in Star Wars (Han Solo) has no past. The audience didn't need that information because it had no connection to the story being told. If you want to include a backstory, it should be something that is needed in order to understand the current story. In Star Wars, Luke had a backstory because the audience was very curious to know how he got separated from his dad and they ended up being enemies. Another thing was that the backstory itself was interesting, it was worth telling. It could have been told in a single line of dialogue, too, but the writers decided the story was so good, it was worth telling it in full. It would have been alright either way. In "Titanic" the backstory lasted for most of the movie. In Harry Potter we hear little bits about Harry's past here and there, yet we still get to learn the whole story. There are many ways to include past events and whichever you choose, the only thing to keep in mind is to do it in a way that the reader wants to read the next page, and then the next.
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We so don't.
When do we learn of James Bond's upbringing?
Remember those chapters about Sherlock Holmes' childhood?
The first Spenser novel's tales about his parents?
Dude, no one even knows what Winnie was like as a cub, not a pooh.
This is officially Not A Thing. No one needs to know that unless it's very specifically relevant to the story at hand.
To echo the others... if you need to know a character's backstory, it's no longer 'backstory' but just 'story'. As in it becomes the narrative.
With the Luke thing above... it's no longer his backstory, if the film focuses on his upbringing. It's the story, front and central.
Sorry, that probably sounds pedantic.
With the Luke thing above... it's no longer his backstory, if the film focuses on his upbringing. It's the story, front and central.
Sorry, that probably sounds pedantic.
As my betters above have mentioned, info dumps and flashbacks--not the same thing. However, if you're using flashbacks to info dump, don't do that either. Info dumps should only enhance the story, sprinkled throughout, a few lines max. Anything that feels like a lecture will bore the reader.
Long stretches of exposition CAN be done well, but it takes a lot of skill. We have to ensure it's entertaining. AND smoothly integrated into the story line.
If the exposition is of some prior activity, do it as a flashback. Or do it as a BRIEF summary.
If the exposition is of some prior activity, do it as a flashback. Or do it as a BRIEF summary.
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I just started a reread of Stephen King's novel The Gunslinger, which I consider his best work, period. And a great novel, by any standard. If you want to know how to handle things like this (and many other craft issues), take a hard analytic look at how King does it.
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Thank you, Lakey. That was a very detailed answer that clearly outlined a better way to read a flashback.
I am finding that there is no way to really dump information without criticism. Fiction simply doesn't want it. Most of the flashbacks I could delete which obviously tells me that the scene is not needed, but it is so interesting to understand the character better. I will use technique (b) and also weave the info into the scenes.
My main character is alone a lot in the story. Possibly first person is a better choice. First person is tricky, but for me, "close 3rd person," is brutal. It is so easy to fallout.
Curlz, that Han Solo ref was great. Even though I may love the backstory I guess it is not needed. Surely not seven pages worth.
This is simply not true.
You can give a reader necessary backstory by dribbling it into the narrative. For example, in the excerpt you posted for crit in SYW, you could have let the reader know the main character was a former rock star by writing a scene where he was recognized on his way to his therapy session. You could have given the reader information about his ex-wife and his mother in dialogue with his therapist.
You've said dialogue is your strong point - use it.
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SFF novels have to content with an enormous amount of worldbuilding and information, as a normal part of writing. Much more than other genres.
If you don't read much SFF normally I'd recommend picking a good one to see how they handle it.
If you don't read much SFF normally I'd recommend picking a good one to see how they handle it.
To Harlequin's point and as a SF writer myself, if that's your genre, info dumping is frowned upon and has to be done seamlessly. World-building is essential and the reader will forgive backstory lines if it enriches the plot/world, but don't dump in paragraphs. It keeps coming back to if the reader starts to feel it's an info dump, you've gone too far. If they swallow it down and can't wait to keep reading, you did good.
There is no way to dump information without criticism, because you should never just dump info, whatever the genre you are writing in. The information, flashbacks or backstory need to be weaved into the main story, so it doesn't slow the narrative.
I believe people have already given you some great ways this can be achieved but using dialogues or specific scenes.
Furthermore, you need to ask yourself when you want to add info or backstory, does it advance the story, or does it develop the characters? It needs to have a purpose.
Interesting thread.
To me, an infodump is undesirable by definition.
In two sections, I have a lot of information to get across to the reader. Possible flashback, and explanatory backstory.
One - backstory for the character concerned - I have decided to do by having the character recall the specific incident that made him what he is - relive it through his witnessed monologue.
The other - backstory to finally lock events together prior to moving onward to the finale - I've tried to get across through a dialogue exchange. The only tricky bit I have here is that the meeting between the parties is deliberate so the information can be given to the protagonist. But the reader is aware of this. I would normally prefer to have a reluctant giver of information. I have tried however to break it up into a question and answer flow - with revealed information being used to trigger another question.
I could cover both situations by extra flashback scenes, but that creates other issues- and I feel the flow is better without the extra scenes.
Do the methods I have picked work?
Just the way I have chosen to skin the cat, so to speak.
If the reader finds the content flows, keeps the story unfolding, and is interesting - hopefully, yes.
Guess I'll find out in due course.
To me, an infodump is undesirable by definition.
In two sections, I have a lot of information to get across to the reader. Possible flashback, and explanatory backstory.
One - backstory for the character concerned - I have decided to do by having the character recall the specific incident that made him what he is - relive it through his witnessed monologue.
The other - backstory to finally lock events together prior to moving onward to the finale - I've tried to get across through a dialogue exchange. The only tricky bit I have here is that the meeting between the parties is deliberate so the information can be given to the protagonist. But the reader is aware of this. I would normally prefer to have a reluctant giver of information. I have tried however to break it up into a question and answer flow - with revealed information being used to trigger another question.
I could cover both situations by extra flashback scenes, but that creates other issues- and I feel the flow is better without the extra scenes.
Do the methods I have picked work?
Just the way I have chosen to skin the cat, so to speak.If the reader finds the content flows, keeps the story unfolding, and is interesting - hopefully, yes.
Guess I'll find out in due course.
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If it's interesting, it's not a "dump." If it's something the reader WANTS to know at a certain point, it's not a "dump." But it takes a good deal of skill to make long sections of exposition interesting. It's hard to know exactly where to place exposition, not too soon or too late, just when the reader is beginning to wonder about the information.
I've seen it done lots of times. Most often in sci-fi, also in historicals. Some kinds of mystery writing I've seen it done well, especially police procedurals where readers expect it and want it, as they follow along trying to figure out how and why someone committed a crime.
I've seen it done lots of times. Most often in sci-fi, also in historicals. Some kinds of mystery writing I've seen it done well, especially police procedurals where readers expect it and want it, as they follow along trying to figure out how and why someone committed a crime.
"dump" is just a term of art...not necessarily pejorative.
Done too early or too much they come across as ham fisted and jolty (as in jolting out of the story flow). Kept to a minimum and done in a way that is congruent with the narrative, they can give the reader some valuable insight at the appropriate time, which enhances the reading experience.
Done too early or too much they come across as ham fisted and jolty (as in jolting out of the story flow). Kept to a minimum and done in a way that is congruent with the narrative, they can give the reader some valuable insight at the appropriate time, which enhances the reading experience.