FEATURE ARTICLE: "Fiction-Writing: The Mechanics of Conveying a Character's Recollection"
By Mike Klaassen
Recollection is one of the most useful tools available to a
novelist. As do each of the other
fiction-writing modes, recollection has its own set of issues:
- Prompting
recollection
- Verbs
of recollection
- Recollection
in scenes
- Recollection
vs. flashbacks
- Recollection
in sequels
- Recollection
and epiphany
- Partial
recollection
- Choosing
recollection
PROMPTING RECOLLECTION
If recollection isn't appropriately triggered, the reader
might justifiably ask "Why didn't the character think of that earlier?" To make recollection seem believable, rather
than contrived, it needs to be adequately prompted.
Along this line Orson Scott Card, in Characters & Viewpoint, observes that "If it's a memory the
character could have called to mind at any point, having her think about it
just in time to make a key decision may seem like an implausible coincidence .
. . ." Furthermore, "If the memory is
going to prompt a present decision, then the memory in turn must have been
prompted by a recent event."
Everyone has almost-forgotten information squirreled away in
the nooks and crannies of the mind, but it takes some sort of stimulus to
prompt recollection, to bring the information forth. Recollection may be prompted by anything that
stimulates the character's mind to recall the information. That stimulation may be in a variety of forms
(such as the dialogue of another character or a sensory experience, as with
sight, sound, taste, smell, or touch).
Examples of prompted recollection in fiction abound. In my young-adult novel Cracks, the main character is frustrated in his attempt to climb out
of a cave by a layer of rock that is too smooth for him to climb. He studies the wall and recalls tilted rock
layers along roads cut through hills.
This newly recalled information helps him devise a revised tactic for escape.
VERBS OF RECOLLECTION
As with other fiction-writing modes, there are specific verbs
associated with recollection. Examples
of verbs and phrases that may be used to bring forth a memory include:
- Remembered
- Recalled
- Called
to mind
- Thought
back to
Example using a verb of recollection:
Cisco paused before stepping into
the livery stable. He recalled hearing
something about how Black Bart had killed a cowpoke in Dodge City. A derringer.
RECOLLECTION IN SCENES
A scene, as outlined by Jack M. Bickham in Scene and Structure, is a unit of drama
where a character attempts to achieve an objective.
Depending on the nature of the story, a character may recall
something at almost any point in a scene.
That something may be information that helps him achieve his objectives
or it may complicate, or even thwart, his efforts. Because scenes are largely about action and
are relatively fast paced, moments of reflection in scenes tend to be brief,
even fleeting.
Regarding recollection, Orson Scott Card notes that "If
these quick references to the past are pertinent to the present events in the
story, they won't feel like they're much of a break in the action . . . ."
RECOLLECTON VS. FLASHBACKS
Recollections are easily confused with flashbacks, and have
even been referred to as mini-flashbacks.
While it is accurate that recollection and flashbacks occur within the
mind of the character, and they may both expose backstory, and both need to be
prompted, the similarity ends there.
A flashback stops the forward progress of the story while
the reader is taken back in time to experience a scene from the past. In order for flashbacks to work, they must:
- Be significant enough to
justify taking the reader on a detour.
- Use prompts to transition the
reader into the backstory.
- Use a change of verb tense
from simple past tense (He stopped by his friend's house.) to past perfect
(He had stopped by his friend's house.).
- After transitioning the
reader back in time, the character relives (in simple past tense) the scene
in a dreamlike state.
- The reader is then
transitioned back, with a brief return to past perfect tense and a sensory
reminder that alerts the reader that the character's mind is back in the
present of the story.
Recollection differs from a flashback in that recollection:
- Does not involve a change
in time from the story present to the backstory
- A recollection does not
relive the past
- Recollection is not in a
dream; it is closer to the surface of the character's mind
- Although they can be quite
lengthy, recollections may also be very short
- Flashbacks require
transitions both in and out of the backstory scene, but recollections do
not
- Recollection may be
accomplished merely through verbs and verb phrases of recollection
- No change of tense (from
simple past tense to past perfect tense) is required to assist the
transition
RECOLLECTION IN SEQUELS
While a scene shows a character attempting to achieve an
objective, a sequel is what follows. And
since the character is usually unsuccessful in a scene, a sequel often begins
with a character experiencing frustration. As outlined by Jack M. Bickham,
recollection may be an important part of the thinking phase of sequels, where
the character attempts to "make sense" of his predicament.
Sequels present a potentially huge role for
recollection. While recollection is
usually brief in scenes, recollection may be as long as necessary in sequels.
EPIPHANY
Epiphanies are the "Ah-hah!" moments that put information in
new light. According to Jordan E.
Rosenfeld, in Make a Scene, "An
epiphany is a moment when awareness or a sharp insight dawns suddenly on your
protagonist . . . ." Such moments may be
used to facilitate turning points in plot or to facilitate a change in
character.
"In many cases," states Rosenfeld, "revealing an epiphany
through interior monologue is necessary, as it is hard to demonstrate an
epiphany through behavior, and even dialogue can be a stretch, because
epiphanies are usually quiet, intimate affairs."
Along this line, Orson Scott Card notes that " . . . it
should be a memory of something that the character never understood; new
information or a new experience has changed the meaning of that event in her
mind, so she isn't just remembering, she is also revising. Then the memory isn't passive, it's an active
part of the story."
In my young-adult novel The
Brute, the main character recalls a conversation with his football coach
that leads him to an epiphany about controlling his violent temper.
PARTIAL RECOLLECTION
Sometimes it may be useful to have the character recall only
part of a situation or event. In The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum, the
main character is an amnesia victim who recalls only portions of his former
life as an assassin. In some cases,
partial recollection is portrayed with flashes of recollection, creating a
strobe-light effect.
CHOSING RECOLLECTION
The craft of fiction is largely about making choices, and
the decisions of how and when to use recollection are no exception. In general, recollection may be the most appropriate
tool when:
- The
writer wishes to avoid direct narration
- Expository
devices aren't practical
- A flashback
scene isn't warranted
- Disruption
of the story's momentum needs to be minimized
Recollection is a relatively simple means by which a writer
can bring information into the "now" of the story. The relative simplicity of using recollection
(as opposed to other fiction-writing modes) may contribute to its underuse and
under-appreciation as a writing tool.
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEBSITE? You may, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Author Mike Klaassen publishes "For Fiction Writers," a free monthly e-zine.
