Readers want backstory information on characters and events. Having the right amount of backstory is tough, especially when you have so much great material to choose from. So, how much backstory should you include AND how do you effectively add it to the story?

Backstory helps create complexity in your characters. [Like an iceberg], ninety percent of any given character … lies beneath the surface. —Megan Burkhart

First, Let’s Look at the Pros and Cons of Backstory.

Not all details you have will be relevant to a story. Think of backstory like an iceberg: 90% lies beneath the surface. Too much backstory, the berg rises until more of it is above the water, than below. That is called an “info dump” and will slow the reader down as they read. Too little backstory and our characters appear flat, boring. It could also confuse your readers because they lack important information relevant to the story.

Characters are the driving force in a story. They propel [the reader] into adventure. . . . Don’t bog the story down with unneeded backstory. Your story is happening now, not back then. Great backstory weaves itself in subtly. — Megan Burkhart

How to know if you have too much backstory?

• Your readers notice. Backstory needs to be seamless, expertly woven into the story.
• Readers skip it. Readers only need enough information to fill in the gaps of the story. They don’t want or need a history lesson.
• It slows or even stops the momentum of the story.
• There is more backstory than the current story.

A Simple list of Dos and Don’ts

• Keep backstory brief in the first chapter
• Dribble, don’t drop backstory
• Use various options to introduce backstory
• Use action, discourse, flashbacks
• Make the forward story more compelling than the backstory
• Avoid info dumps.

1. Keep it Brief. In the first chapter, you need to create momentum and backstory will stop the progress dead in in tracks. The reader doesn’t care about all the backstory details until you’ve established empathy for and curiosity about your characters.

Too much backstory too early can halt the main plot.

2. Avoid Info Dumps. Dribble in backstory, drop-by-drop. Break up the backstory or flashback element and weave it into multiple scenes for greater impact.

Consider writing out the entire backstory of a character, then breaking it into chunks to be added folded into your story over multiple chapters.

3. Adding or Introducing Backstory. Utilize varying ways to add backstory: introspection, dialogue, narrative and action.

Always consider the best way to introduce important backstory. Dialog may be stronger in one scene, while action is better in another. What has the most impact without slowing the story.

4. Actions based on past experiences. Does your character repeatedly check the front door lock as they recall a traumatic experience with a home invasion?

One simple action can reveal so much about a character’s strength, weakness, emotional trauma, etc.

5. Using dialog (conversations / arguments) to reveal backstory. Dialog amps up the conflict more effectively than a slap. Example: “Luke, I am your father?”

6. What is the lie your character believes. This is a crucial element to the Character Arc and make irrational actions believable. Characters respond to the story based on certain core beliefs and assumptions. A traumatic experience can shape a person’s belief that all big dogs are dangerous, until additional life-experiences oppose this belief and cause the character to change, for example, by meeting several lovely, gentle big dogs.

If you want a character to adopt a particular conviction, creating the right past experience is critical.

7. Backstory should never be more compelling than the forward story. The backstory creates the character’s worldview, their belief system, and the mistaken belief [the lie] which will change as they experience their journey. But the past isn’t the story, or it should be told in real time.

The Story Circle:
The mistaken belief [the lie] which will change as the character experiences their journey.

8. Consider flashbacks for a longer backstory incident which relates to the forward narrative. Some writers avoid flashbacks, others use them to great effect.

9. Remove any details which do not affect the narrative or aren’t needed to understand the story or your protagonist’s motivation and beliefs. Remember, not everything in a character’s past life applies to the main plot. If there is no dog in your story, you don’t need to have the protagonist mention he hates them unless this is the reason for the fight with his dog-loving girlfriend.

10. Do relate backstory naturally, avoiding contrived reveals. Do Not write scenes where one character explains something that the other character already knows for the sole purpose of disclosing this information to the reader.

“Remember when we were attacked by that bear, and it tore your arm off?” The reader might be thinking, “Oh, so that’s how that arm came off!” and then, “Wait a minute, that other character should definitely know that without being reminded.”

Two characters talking about stuff they clearly already know is an awkward way to deliver backstory, so avoid it when possible.

Backstory is important

Backstory can help define your characters in a way readers can relate to. It is an important element to your story but not more important than the story. If you learn how use backstory effectively, you’ll end up with well-rounded characters and a compelling story readers want.

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References:

—CHARACTER BACKSTORY: HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?, Megan Burkhart, a professional writing student at Taylor University, Accessed May 16, 2022

— 12 Dos and Don’ts of Revealing Critical Backstory in a Novel, Writer’s Digest, Accessed May 16, 2022

Featured image: by SebastianSchellbachKragh / Pixabay.com