As I might have mentioned in previous writing articles...I really am a fan of having my stories come full circle at some point in time. Usually, this takes place in the beginning of the story, and then at the very end. But not always. Sometimes you can create an entirely different flavor for some of your previous scenes and interactions, and even redefine the meaning that other characters and hardships that you focused somewhere (anywhere, really) within your fiction. And an effective way to do that is through the clever use of ‘callbacks’.

Now, while there are many times that I purposely plan these things out way ahead of time, sometimes they work even better when they’re a bit more spontaneous. Whichever works best for your writing, that’s up to you decide while practicing your skills and challenging yourself when the opportunity presents itself...but it can have a major impact on your story either way. So I recommend trying both methods and figuring out which one works best for you. Or, at the very least, when to use one method or the other. Consider it literary exercise for the creative mind.

I love to have fun with my characters, and I enjoy creating scenes where they seem to be having fun with each other. A ‘callback’ is like taking these scenes of character and story development in an earlier part of the story, and then mirroring that particular moment at a later point in the story. It doesn’t have to be something from the beginning of your story, and it doesn’t have to wait until the end or the climax before you call back to it. Nor does it have to be an incredibly significant event for it to be worthy of the effort. It merely has to be understood and displayed as a part of the story’s progression. It’s like...building blocks, laying down the foundation for what’s to come later, but being a little bit sneaky about it. Hehehe...you can build the most magnificent skyscraper on the city skyline...but nobody really thinks about important it was to lay those early foundations in the ground to make sure that the thing won’t fall over the second it gets hit by a heavy wind. So being sneaky doesn’t have to be all hamfisted and weird, it just has to be somewhat clever.

For example, I was once watching this vampire movie called “30 Days Of Night”...and early on, the film made sure to show and focus on this machine with all of these incredibly sharp, rapidly spinning blades...and then they just went back to the rest of the story. Hehehe, well...OBVIOUSLY, somebody is going to get pushed into that thing and get totally shredded to pieces! Everybody is expecting it, so why even bother to hide the fact that they’re going to call back to bladed death machine? I mean, you can have fun with it, sure. Nothing wrong with that. But you won’t be fooling anybody, so don’t even try to trick yourself into thinking that you can. It’s technically a callback, but it’s a bit of a lazy one.

Hmmm...a cool example of this would be from the movie “Real Steel” from 2011. There are actually a bunch of effective callbacks in the movie, from certain scenes and actions, to simple lines of dialogue. (And if you’ve never seen it before, I highly recommend it! SO underrated!)

This one is fairly simple, but extremely effective. Makes me smile and laugh every time! I love it!

So, the short version of the story is an estranged father and son are forced to spend the Summer together, while the father has a great amount of skill with operating fighting robots, and a horrible gambling problem that keeps him broke as he loses one match after another. The son finds an old abandoned robot in a trash heap and wants to rebuild him and teach him to fight. So, if you look at this scene below, you’ll notice that the robot hasn’t really learned much yet and has no real ‘moves’ to speak of. All it can do is shadow and mimic the movements of its user. As long as it can see the boy, it can copycat his motions to a tee, and not much else.

So here we have the boy trying to get it to learn how to move in the ring, and while listening to some music, just as he’s getting frustrated...they have this really fun and sweet bonding moment where things begin to work in his favor. And...he’s a kid, so of COURSE he’s going to play with it like a brand new toy!

(Just hit the ‘Play On Youtube’ link! They’re being….difficult.)

The thing is, this could have been left alone and would have existed as a really cool scene in the movie, where a boy and his robot pal discover a certain connection and a kinship for one another. It would have been great.

However, how much more of a bonus would your story have if you called back to it a little bit later?

As the movie goes forward, and ‘Atom’ the robot begins winning fights, the boy develops an unshakable faith in him and his abilities (Notice how the robot went from an ‘it’ to a ‘him’ in the way I describe him now?), and the father begins to bond with his son. Bringing us to this moment below.

The boy helps Atom learn how to loosen up and movie, and the father teaches his son a couple of moves so he can learn how to box like he did. And when they get their first big professional fight in front of a giant audience...they need a gimmick to hype up the crowd and get them on Atom’s side. So you’ve got the robot knowing how toge and weave, and a dancing boy who now knows a little bit about boxing himself. All of these elements come together in a badass introduction the immediately gets the people cheering and on Atom’s side. They’ve both evolved significantly since that first scene, and combined both levels of character development to create something truly special here. The callback? Wildly successful!

By putting this callback in the story, you’ve accomplished a lot more than you may think you have. Either scene can probably stand on its own, but when you mirror the two scenes against one another...you change the effect and the impact that both scenes have on your project. Like I said, that first scene could have existed as a fun moment in a cool movie. And the second scene, by itself, could have made for a grin worthy surprises to suddenly see them come out dancing in front of the crowd, even without any build up to it. But as a callback...you instantly create a sense of history and connection. The first scene has now become a starting point for future events, and the second scene now has its own origin story, explaining where all of that came from. It adds another layer of depth to your writing that readers can ‘feel’ as they’re bearing witness to it. And we all know that layers are a good thing, right? Right! Hehehe!

There’s a brief sense of nostalgia that comes along with it. Or perhaps it could be used for comedic effect. And sometimes it can be a part of a burn that is used in your story to point out a certain hypocrisy. It has quite a number of applications if needed as a part of your storytelling. For example...I have a series called “Untouchable” where the callback was meant to express a moment of pain and unfairness between a twenty three year old, Eric, and an underage teen. Earlier on in the series, Eric accidentally loses his driver’s license and has to go and apply for another one. Unfortunately, I speak from experience when I say that this can be one of the most frustrating experiences you’re ever likely to have on this planet. Because you’re trying to get a new ID, and the first thing they ask you is to let them see your ID! Hehehe, ummm...if I had an ID, I wouldn’t need an ID. Which isn’t an answer for them because they’re like, it’s hard to prove who you are without an ID. Yeah...tell me about it.

However, in a future chapter, when he is fighting the shared feelings he has with this teenager...there are a ton excuses being tossed around as to why this shouldn’t happen and why they shouldn’t be together...one of which is that he has no idea what he’s doing and he can’t really process the matter of being in a relationship at his age because he’s never had one before. To which the boy shoots back at him with, “Oh, I get it. How can I get an ID unless I already have an ID.” Or something to that effect. I’m paraphrasing. But the idea is the same. The story is using a callback to an earlier moment, and it is now using that moment as a point of reference to connected to a progressive part of the story later on. Similar, but different. For anyone who was paying attention to the fun and playful vibe of their earlier interaction will see those words in a different context and will see how they relate to one another. You see where the comment came from, and you see how it’s applicable here. That’s how callbacks work.

They can be challenging when it comes to using them effectively, but they’re far from being difficult to adopt into your writing style if you ever find a use for them. They work considerably well when you change the context or the emotion wrapped around them. From anger to sadness, from despair to silliness and joy, or from heartbreak to romance. This is another technique that I’ve used in plenty of my stories as well. I like to call back to past events or lines of dialogue for readers to think about and say, “Hey! I remember that!” I like the idea that my characters have this sense of history that connects them and creates a fully fleshed out collection of shared memories and events that binds them together. Even if it’s just a short story, it can be just as effective. Use them to give your audience the same opportunity to be a part of that connection in the same way that your characters are. You’ll be surprised how well it works when you add them in at just the right time. Consider it an added piece of flair.

Take it to heart. And if you haven’t tried it out, I suggest giving it a shot. Another movie you might want to watch is the animated “Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse”. Now, that movie has a ton of callbacks in it (almost TOO many), and they are all expertly done by the end of the movie. That is a masterclass in how to do it right. If my explanation here doesn’t make any sense...maybe that movie will help. Hehehe!

Alright folks! I send you back to your keyboards to start writing again! There are always a million ways to approach the art of crafting a story of your very own. Why not try them all, right? Enjoy! And stay beautiful!