Are Flashbacks Completely Taboo?

[songofsuzanna]

There is a flashback in my novel that isn't very long, just a few lines of dialogue and some action, at a moment when the hero needs to make an important decision, when the character can either evolve or devolve (so to speak).  But I keep reading about how flashbacks are completely taboo, you should never do them, period.  Is this true?

[Haru]

If it's well done it should be ok. Even Jim used them in at least one book I remember, the scenes in Camp Kaboom and what follows. And they are integrated brilliantly, so I don't think they should be considered taboo outright.

But there is also the risk of them feeling alien and they just would hinder the story more than they would help it.

So I think the best way to go would be to try it, and if it fits you can use it. If the read is too bumpy, rewrite it.

[Lanodantheon]

Flashbacks are denounced in writing advice columns, books, and articles because amateurs and new writers tend to overuse them and/or use them incorrectly.

Flashbacks are taboo to veteran writers because they easy and they are easy to misuse (stop any forward action and be a collection scenes meant solely for exposition)

If a Flashback, 1) moves the story forward, 2) is compelling and 3) provides information that cannot be conveyed any other way or nearly as efficiently then go ahead and use a Flashback. 

[songofsuzanna]

Thanks for the advice!  The information is something that can be conveyed in conversation between two characters but I think that maybe a flashback has more of an emotional punch to it.  I'll play with it and see if it works or if there's a better way of doing it.

[meg_evonne]

WTF! Flashbacks are eloquent and powerful! I've taken classes from several editors at major houses, from writer workshops that included the likes of Brett Johnston Anthony from Harvard, BK Loren Millieum Short Story winner.  Who ever would say that this important writer's tool was taboo. Idjits.

Not only are flashbacks essential to tension beats in your writing and another way to disperse backstory (if not used as a crutch) they are a literary staple. Idjits. Idjits. Idjits.

Hint: Many writers hate to write them and they suck at them! Could this be an easy out for lousy writers? LOL

Now, whether the flashback is doing more than chugging out boring bacckstory, or if it works the way you are using them? That you will have to decide. FLASH TO YOUR HEARTS CONTENT. You can always reorganize later, if need be.

Ditto to this excellent advice!

If a Flashback, 1) moves the story forward, 2) is compelling and 3) provides information that cannot be conveyed any other way or nearly as efficiently then go ahead and use a Flashback.  

My blood pressure is still up...  OK, if you are getting feedback that your FB isn't working, it might be because it is far too short. A couple lines dropped at a tension point to give what you think is more emotional/tension out of a scene probably needs more to make it a true value to your story. That's just a thought though.

[Lanodantheon]

My blood gets boiling the same way as Meg whenever I read, "Don't Use Voice Over" in the film writing books, seminars, etc, usually mentioned right besides Flashbacks.

Flashbacks and Voice overs(in Film writing) are both harped on by writing teachers for the same reason, amateurs overuse them and use them badly. Using them as a crutch distorts any narrative technique's purpose of moving the story forward.

As Meg said, if used properly, both Flashbacks and Voice-Overs(in film) have been used to great and powerful effect. They can be important tools for exposition and other parts of a story's narrative if used correctly.

Use a Flashback when you want to show something rather than tell it without breaking the flow of action. For example, say Girl A and Boy B have a rocky relationship in a story. B wants to ask A out after getting his life together again. You could could have a character say in dialogue that they have a rocky relationship and at the end of of their last date, A beat B with a ukulele OR you could Flashback and show the scene of the outcome of their last date, which ends with A beating B over the head with a Ukulele.

In that instance, telling about the incident through dialogue will tell you how bad the relationship was. But, with a Flashback you can SHOW the relationship and put their relationship fully into context. You can show what was said that set her off and show how her demeanor changed and why.

Besides, seeing someone beaten humorously with a Ukulele is much funnier than hearing about it.

[Beefstew]

Basically nothing is taboo.  As long as you can do it well, do it.  Some things are harder to pull off then others, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try.  You can't grow as a writer if you don't push your limits.

[BobForPresident]

If it's well done it should be ok. Even Jim used them in at least one book I remember, the scenes in Camp Kaboom and what follows.

Probably one of my favorite scenes, too.

My take is that any scene that slows down the novel is bad. In the case of flashbacks, using Camp Kaboom as an example, as long as it's full of action that moves the character forward, you're safe. My general rule: you can do whatever you want as long as it's cool and exciting. If Camp Kaboom had been Harry sitting around drinking, being sad, going for a swim or watching Star Wars by himself at the drive-in, then it wouldna worked.

[LizW65]

I should freaking hope NOT!  Lies of Locke Lamora, which I just finished, and Name of the Wind, which I'm currently reading, both make heavy use of this device, and are considered excellent examples of the genre.
(Oh, and I have a pretty big one toward the beginning of my finished novel.)

[BobForPresident]

Ooo, and one of my favorite movies of the past ten years, Walk the Line, is more than half flashback.

[Quantus]

Ooo, and one of my favorite movies of the past ten years, Walk the Line, is more than half flashback.

And Memento is arguably one long series of flashbacks, but done uniquely and well.

[Wordmaker]

There are a ton of rules for writing. For a first-time author, it is usually best to stick to them in as much as you are able, because it can take time to develop the skill to bend and break them well.

But never be afraid to break them.

If you feel that your story needs a flashback, go for it. One flashback scene won't be the be-all and end-all of whether or not your book gets published, and if an agent or publisher wants it removed, they will tell you.

My book deals with past-life memories. Whole chapters are essentially a form of flashback, and my editor hasn't made a mention of changing that. If you can make the flashback work as part of the story, and not as a way of dumping information, then it'll be fine.

[Lanodantheon]

And Memento is arguably one long series of flashbacks, but done uniquely and well.

I only just saw that movie though I had heard about it before. Thanks for bringing it up Quantus.
In my Film Theory & Writing Classes Momento was always cited as the textbook example and best explainer of the difference between Plot and Story and the difference between chronology and linearity.

Going back to the original question of the thread, I think context is important(like rereading the original question):

There is a flashback in my novel that isn't very long, just a few lines of dialogue and some action, at a moment when the hero needs to make an important decision, when the character can either evolve or devolve (so to speak).  But I keep reading about how flashbacks are completely taboo, you should never do them, period.  Is this true?

In this case, you have the tipping point for the character. When the character's Desire Line(The progression of character getting closing and closer to his/her goal) and the Need Line( The progression of how the character has to change to achieve his/her goal). This is actually a really good time to Flashback if you want to illustrate the thinking process of your character.

The key here songofsuzanna is how you present the source of the flashback. If the 3rd Person Omniscient Narrator all of a sudden went, "Back in time, some years ago..." it will break the linearity of the action and the flow is dead. That's a bad move.
If the flashback is an illustration of the character remembering that event and said flashback is the motivation they need to make that crucial decision, then the Flashback works and drives the story to its conclusion.

Basically I'm saying, make sure the Flashback is motivated by something going on in the scene not because the Narrator wants to. IF you have a first-person narrator, it makes it that much easier because it's someone telling the story in their own words.

[Aakaakaak]

Jim used several flashbacks in GS. However, he has what, 20-ish best sellers and is still improving?

Flashbacks in a series that hasn't established itself can be dangerous, especially for newbies.

[meg_evonne]

. . .Film Theory & Writing Classes Momento was always cited as the textbook example and best explainer of the difference between Plot and Story and the difference between chronology and linearity.

Going back to the original question of the thread, I think context is important(like rereading the original question):
In this case, you have the tipping point for the character. When the character's Desire Line(The progression of character getting closing and closer to his/her goal) and the Need Line( The progression of how the character has to change to achieve his/her goal). This is actually a really good time to Flashback if you want to illustrate the thinking process of your character.

The key here songofsuzanna is how you present the source of the flashback. If the 3rd Person Omniscient Narrator all of a sudden went, "Back in time, some years ago..." it will break the linearity of the action and the flow is dead. That's a bad move.
If the flashback is an illustration of the character remembering that event and said flashback is the motivation they need to make that crucial decision, then the Flashback works and drives the story to its conclusion.

Basically I'm saying, make sure the Flashback is motivated by something going on in the scene not because the Narrator wants to. IF you have a first-person narrator, it makes it that much easier because it's someone telling the story in their own words.

OK  going to go back and read your posts in slow detail.  interesting comments. very,very useful.  thank you.  new concepts for me, although i have heard of the need and desire lines.  do you recall the textbook? i've had lots of people refer to "story" and its thoughts on the three acts.  did this idea come from that?