One thing many writers struggle with is revealing character backstory, which I completely understand. It’s a delicate matter. It’s important because it explains why the character is who they are. Nevertheless, you have to reveal the character’s backstory without giving out too much information and ending up boring the readers. I know, it’s always more complicated than it needs to be.
However, I won’t let you struggle alone. In this post, we’re going to learn what a backstory is and how to reveal character backstory effectively.
What is Character Backstory?
Backstory refers to everything that has happened before the story begins. It’s the history and experience of a character. It’s an explanation of how and where their identity was formed.
For example, a character was abused by their parents before the story began. The abuse they endured in their childhood shaped who they are and still affects different aspects of their life. Although it might not be related to the central conflict, the abuse affects the choices they make and how the story unfolds.
Regardless of how important the character’s backstory is, you shouldn’t reveal everything to the audience. You just need to give your readers enough information so they get an idea of what their background was like. The purpose of a backstory is to ensure a character existed before the first chapter.
Why Backstory Can Be Boring
A common mistake many writers make is revealing too much information. This is called info-dumping, and it usually happens when you pause the story to give background information. When readers encounter a long explanation, especially at the beginning of the story, it slows down the pacing and makes the story feel like a history lesson.
A backstory feels boring because there is no conflict. Conflict is what keeps readers turning the page. It is why there is a story at all. When you stack paragraph after paragraph of background information. You are essentially just putting the story on hold. The plot isn’t moving forward; we are looking at the past. A character backstory should create curiosity, not prevent it.
5 Ways to Reveal Character Backstory
The good news is that you are more than capable of learning how to reveal character backstory. Furthermore, when you do it right, it makes the story more meaningful. A good backstory reveal gives double meaning to events, creates long-lasting impacts, and strengthens the character’s identity.
Here is an effective method to reveal character backstory.
1. Ground Your Ideas in the Present
Before you begin explaining your protagonist’s sob story or the villain’s origin story, maybe let your readers get familiar with the world. A great way to reveal character backstory is to do it after you have established your main cast, the protagonist’s ordinary world, and the central conflict.
Once you let your readers warm up to the story, you can begin with the background information. If you want to take this a notch up, it is to ground the backstory in something that’s happening in that scene. That way, the backstory is paced alongside the narrative instead of slowing it down.
2. Reveal Character Backstory Through Behaviour
Backstory can slow the pacing and quickly turn into an info-dump. However, you don’t have to tell the backstory; you can show it.
There’s a reason why people say, “Action speaks louder than words.” It’s because a simple action can tell us multiple things.
For example, a character who knows how to cover wounds with makeup tells us someone might have hurt them in the past.
It’s a subtle detail that the readers have to interpret. Of course, making room for interpretation carries the risk of misunderstandings.
For example, some readers will interpret it as the character was abused, while others think they’re just really interested in makeup. The most important thing for you to do is write with intention and be consistent with the message you’re sending. This way, you have a good chance of revealing character background through behavior.
3. Use Dialogue to Reveal Character Backstory
Dialogue is a form of characterization, which you can learn more about here. When I say use dialogue to reveal character backstory, I don’t necessarily mean the character has to spell out their past. What I’m getting at is making the characters say something that implies they’ve been living a certain way.
Here are different ways you can do that:
- Reference a shared memory between two characters.
- Mention people from the character’s past.
- Bring up unresolved conflicts.
- Let the character avoid a topic.
- Speak in fragments about a past event.
4. Reveal Only Relevant Information
You only need to reveal relevant information; unless the audience must know this to understand the plot or the characters, don’t reveal it.
Backstory is much more relevant for the writer because it’s information you need to know about the character to write them. By giving unrelated background information, you’re distracting the readers from the plot, which you never want to do.
A great rule of thumb is to ask yourself: Will the audience understand what’s going on in the scene without a character backstory reveal?
If the answer is yes, you keep this hidden. However, if the scene seems flat or weaker without the background reasoning, you give readers the necessary facts.
5. Use Flashback Sparingly
Many writers like to use flashbacks to reveal character backstory. There’s a lot of discussion around whether flashbacks are healthy for your story in the writing community. I won’t tell you to use it or not, but what I’ll advise you to do is to use flashbacks sparingly.
Flashbacks can be powerful when used to reveal something essential to the plot or characters. A tip for using a flashback in your story is to treat it like a memory. Memories are often triggered by something currently happening. If you manage to connect your flashback to the scene you’re writing, it will automatically be more relevant and easier to limit its use.
Writing an Exercise
I like to think of writing as a muscle; it gets stronger when you train it. Here’s a writing exercise to practise how to reveal character backstory.
- Choose a character who has done something they haven’t told anyone.
- Write a short scene in which the character is doing something ordinary, for instance, hiking.
- While writing the scene, let their past leak through in small ways. It can be in action, dialogue, or a memory. Just something that brings them to the past.
- Challenge yourself by avoiding saying it outright. You want to show it, not tell it.
It’s Up to You
The character’s backstory is everything that has happened to the character before the story begins. It’s the story of how the character’s identity was shaped. It can be a powerful tool if revealed correctly.
Many authors have different opinions on how you should incorporate backstory, but how you do it is up to you. There is no right or wrong choice, just different choices.
