Stein On Writing: A Master Editor of Some of the Most Successful Writers of Our Century Shares His Craft Techniques and Strategies

by Sol Stein

If the flashback is necessary, can the reader see the action in it as an immediate scene? Is the opening of the flashback as interesting or compelling as the beginning of a novel or story? Does the flashback enhance the reader’s experience of the story as a whole? A good flashback is a scene that is depicted exactly as it would be in the present story except for how it is introduced and how the present story is rejoined. Certain words should carry warning labels for the writer. “Had” is the number-one villain. It spoils more flashbacks than any other word. Most fiction is written in the straight past tense. When writing flashbacks, as quickly as possible use the same tense you’re using for the present scenes. That means in almost all cases the straight past tense, not the variants. Instead of saying, “I had been remembering…”, say “I remembered…”