PHAuthors don't always arrange a narrative in the order events actually happen.
A story can begin near the ending, return to the past, jump forward, or reveal earlier events gradually.
This technique is known as nonlinear narration.
Changing the order can control when readers receive important information.
The same sequence of events can feel completely different depending on how it is presented.
Readers may know the outcome before discovering how it happened—or understand an earlier scene differently after learning something later.
The structure of a literary work can therefore become part of its storytelling rather than merely a container for the plot.
© Purdue Online Writing Lab
A story can begin near the ending, return to the past, jump forward, or reveal earlier events gradually.
This technique is known as nonlinear narration.
Changing the order can control when readers receive important information.
The same sequence of events can feel completely different depending on how it is presented.
Readers may know the outcome before discovering how it happened—or understand an earlier scene differently after learning something later.
The structure of a literary work can therefore become part of its storytelling rather than merely a container for the plot.
© Purdue Online Writing Lab