Cut the flashbacks? Because really, anything that CAN BE relayed through dialogue or action or just a few lines of description, SHOULD BE. Flashbacks are the last resort (in writing). Use them sparingly, if at all.
I know I had books that feature flashbacks confuse the hell out of me. (Might have been related to the fact the authors of those books weren't very good, though. Burnt Shadows by Kamilla Shamsie had a flashback upon flashback upon flashback, and I was never confused. You could get and read that book to see how the author did it, but Kamilla Shamsie is god and I doubt most writers could replicate how well she handled all the flashbacking.)
edited 1st Jan '12 4:30:26 AM by fanty
Rabid Fujoshi
If it's something as small as a sentence it should be phrased as just a memory, anyway. Usually when there's a significant amount of flashback material it gets it's own chapter.
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Grin and bear it
When I'm dealing with flashbacks, I just make whatever is the flashback in italics. That way, it's distinguishable from the present day stuff.
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I'm writing a bit where it switches between scenes separated by ten years. I'm having trouble writing transitions.
Specifically, there's a sentence spoken by a character ten years in the past, then there's a full scene in the present. Afterwards, there is a full scene in the past in flashback- at a different location than the first sentence. Then, another flashback scene in the past implied to be a few days after the previous scene in the past. Then back to present. This beginning bit is mostly for exposition, but it gets really confusing. I also really want to avoid "Then she had another flashback about something else."
edited 1st Jan '12 12:14:18 AM by butlerdidit