Writing Blog Number 2

20240123 Non-Linear Narrative

Non-Linear Narratives

Most stories are written in linear narrative. You start at point A, and events happen in order until you get to point B. Simple. Sometimes, you might start in point A and go to point B in this timeline, but in a past timeline you start at point C and go to point D to give backstory, and the story tells them both at the same time. This latter technique is done well in the film The Godfather Part II; it is 2 stories being told at the same time.

Another way of doing it is to have timelines disrupted and cut and pasted all over the place, almost at random. This is called non-linear narrative, and for years it was considered experimental and did not sell well, and was mainly done for personal interest, for a writer to see if they could do it.

Then came Christopher Nolan, and his non-linear narrative movies, and now it is becoming more and more accepted across story-telling.

So, a non-linear narrative is a story where the events are told out of order. It does have a through-line, but the climax might come at the start or in the middle, the initial meeting of characters might come after we discover they're married. It is an intricate method of story-telling and there is a fine balance between giving too much information too early and not giving enough so that it does make sense. As for making sense, often these stories do not come together in a reader's mind until part of the way through, so the writing needs to keep them enthralled.

To my mind, non-linear narrative can work. You just have to make sure you don’t give away too many spoilers before you get near the end. These sorts of books do require at least some modicum of planning; do it as a pantser and you get lost. Some claim they write it as a linear narrative and then mix it up. However, that tends to not work because it feels like a story that's been cut up. Writing it as a non-linear narrative gives it a more natural feel. If you are going to try, I would personally recommend keeping a flow chart of events and marking which chapter they appear in so you don’t get confused, double up, leave things out, etc.

I enjoy a good non-linear narrative but they are really difficult to write.

Flashbacks, memories or dreams are not non-linear narrative. They are merely a means of letting the audience know what is happening in a straight-forward linear tale.

On that topic, the use of flashbacks in novels is often debated. Basically, if it works for the story, if you think it works and is needed, then keep them. In fact, they are a good way to avoid the tell instead of show, and also means you don’t have to start the story so long ago. If used sparingly, they can be useful. However, I read a novel not that long ago which had embedded flashbacks. At one stage, it was a flashback within a flashback within a memory. It was so confusing. Of course, if done for comedic effect, then that's fine, but this was a serious novel about a fractured family. I tend to treat flashbacks like salt. A little is fine. Too much can be nauseating. While this is not non-linear narrative but it can feel that way to some readers, and that is something you need to be aware of.