The only reason to go into a flashback is that, without the information it provides, what happens next won’t make sense. Thus there is a specific need—or cause—that triggers the flashback. • This cause needs to be clear, so we know, from the second the flashback begins, why we’re going into it. We must have a pretty good sense of why we need this information now. And as the flashback unfolds, we always need to sense how it relates to the story that’s been put on hold. • When the flashback ends, the information it provided must immediately—and necessarily—affect how we see the story from
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