Handout - Flashback

Characteristics

 When a character remembers something from the past it is called a Flashback.

 It is like a memory.
 A flashback can be as short as a few sentences in a story, or a whole story can be a flashback.
 A flashback is an interruption in the plot to describe an action of the past.
 After the flashback, the story returns to the present time of action.
 Flashbacks make a comparison between the present action and something that happened in the past.
 Flashbacks provide background information in a more interesting way; this could be through thoughts,
memories, or dreams.
 Flashbacks can explain the reasons behind a character’s behaviour or events and situations that might be
unclear.
 This technique can add suspense to the narrative.

Structure

 Focus on a single important event.

 Start with a Hook line.
 Give a short background.
 Give a short character, place description etc.
 Transition to flashback – give the flashback a distinct trigger, make sure it has a purpose in the story. Keep it
short.
 Come back to the present. Connect the flashback to the present via writing about reflection on lesson learned or
a change that took place.

Flash Back - SUGGESTED MODEL

PAST: FLASHBACK ABOUT IMPORTANT MEMORY OR EVENT. MAKE SURE TO HAVE –
1. A BEGINNING, MIDDLE AND END (3 PARAGRAPHS) – minimum 3 sentences, maximum 5 sentences each.
2. PRESENT: SHOULD SHOW WHY EVENT WAS IMPORTANT OR CHANGED YOUR CHARACTER

HOOK - Green
BACKGROUND - Red
DESCRIPTION - Blue
TRANSITION - Purple
THEME: REFLECTION ON LESSON LEARNED/CHANGE THAT TOOK PLACE – Orange

It was October, but the thermostat said it was late May. He rolled up his sleeves and loosened his polyester tie,
but there was no relief. 41 degrees Celsius, a scratchy uniform and no air conditioning. It was days like these
when John was unhappy with his parents for making him go to school. He walked into Mr. U’s class and sighed.
They called him Mr. U because no one knew how to spell or say his last name. “Only one more week”, he
muttered to himself. He decided to empty his locker of all the old tests, worksheets and notes. It was then that he came
across a class picture from 4th grade. He could barely recognize himself. His braces shone like diamonds in the sky.
Suddenly, he was back in the orthodontist’s office in great discomfort and seething pain.
FLASHBACK STARTS HERE!
The bright lamp burned into his eyes as Dr. Scaggs peppered him with questions, “So, you play any sports? How about
those Yankees?” John could not stand how people kept asking him questions as they stuffed more and more cotton
and metal into his mouth. He could only make inaudible noises and grunts in response. He felt the pressure as they
locked each piece of metal into place. He wondered how people would look at him the next day at school. Would
people laugh? Would they care? On the ride home, he felt the braces getting caught on the inside of his mouth.
John’s thoughts returned to the kids at school. One thing was for sure; things would never be the same again.
BACK TO THE PRESENT!
The bell rings and he snaps his head up as if waking from a strange dream. He was staring at his messy locker. The
picture had fallen to the floor and he felt people rushing around him to sit down for 1 st period. He picked up the picture
and laughed. So what if he had to go through some embarrassment? John thought about the braces and how he had
blown the whole thing out of proportion. He was about to go to high school, and there were many things he was unsure
of or nervous about. Would he fit in? Would he make the football team? Could he keep up with all of the reading and
homework? But as much as these things seemed overwhelming and scary, he knew that he would look back and
laugh someday. After all, making mountains out of molehills is human nature.