Backstory Trimmer
Decide what history the reader needs and when.
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Help me control backstory. Draft chapter or scene containing backstory: [PASTE_TEXT]. The main story question at this point: [STORY_QUESTION]. Where the reader should feel most tension: [TENSION_POINT]. Mark every backstory sentence and sort each into: needed now, needed later, not needed. For each 'needed now' give a way to deliver it in action or dialogue instead of narration. For 'needed later' suggest a scene where it fits better. Produce a revised version of the passage cut to at most 70 percent of the original length without losing clarity. Provide a backstory budget for the whole manuscript: a list of five facts to reveal and the chapter where each lands for maximum effect. Explain your choices in plain language. Add a step that identifies backstory that is really world information and might be better woven into setting details. Provide examples of three techniques for delivering history: an object, a disagreement between characters, and a half-remembered rumour. Include a final check that the trimmed passage still answers the questions a reader will have in the next scene.
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