Quick question: I am writing a story that begins in the present, flashes back into the past to describe the details and ends with a climatic cliff hanger back in the present. Are there any good rules for transitions? Seems like: Earlier that year … is a bit amateurish but then again, maybe simplicity is the best course of action. Any suggestions on transitions would be appreciated.
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Transitions Present --> Past --> Present
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Active Ink Slinger
In many cases you can use a visual break to prepare the reader for a change in scene, perspective or in this case tense. A line break is usually sufficient, but on a site like this where the paragraphs are separated by line breaks anyway, you might want to use something more obvious like a triple star:
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There are no hard and fast rules, but separating out sections in different tenses in this way prevents the transition from feeling jarring or confusing to the reader.
The simple act of changing tense will tell your reader that they are now reading about events that happened in the past. If you want to clarify when they took place then a line like the one you suggested would work. Try experimenting with a few things to see which ones you like best.
Alyson Noel's "Evermore" is one book that I've read that tells the bulk of the story in present tense with flashbacks in past tense, and I am sure there are more. You might want to look for examples to see how other authors do it.
Hope that helps
Mo
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There are no hard and fast rules, but separating out sections in different tenses in this way prevents the transition from feeling jarring or confusing to the reader.
The simple act of changing tense will tell your reader that they are now reading about events that happened in the past. If you want to clarify when they took place then a line like the one you suggested would work. Try experimenting with a few things to see which ones you like best.
Alyson Noel's "Evermore" is one book that I've read that tells the bulk of the story in present tense with flashbacks in past tense, and I am sure there are more. You might want to look for examples to see how other authors do it.
Hope that helps
Mo
