How to Create Synergy in a Split-Time Storyline
Whether you call them slip-, dual- or split-time novels (like Shawn Spencer from Psych, “I’ve heard it both ways”), this novel structure caught our attention several years ago and remains fantastically popular with readers—and with authors. Tackling this novel framework can not only open layers within the story, but it can simply be a lot of fun to write.
Let’s start with the basics… A split-time novel presents a cohesive story across two time periods. And, though it’s not a prerequisite of the form, one storyline is often placed within a contemporary context. I find, and I suspect I’m not alone, that it’s this interplay between then and now which intrigues us. It invites us, both as readers and writers, to explore history while pushing us to question its consequences and implications in our own lives. When done well, a split-time story creates a powerful individual and collective bridge to the past which propels us someplace new, creating intrigue and tension as the two storylines circle and influence each other.
Then there’s the value proposition—who doesn’t want two stories for the price of one? But wait, the math gets better. Within the split-time format, writers can offer so much more than two individual tales of adventure or self-discovery. In these novels, the past doesn’t merely lecture the present nor simply offer readers what “came before.” It speaks into the further as it magically listens to the future at the same time. The two timelines exchange energy both on the surface and deep within the novel’s meta-currents—and that’s what keeps this structure fresh and appealing.
In composing such a narrative it’s important to remember three things:
1. Resist the temptation to write each storyline in isolation.
This is appealing because you want each timeline’s protagonist to hold a unique voice and not get muddied in your head or on the page by the second timeline’s main character. However, you are writing one novel and creating one arc of tension.
Each character-step and plot-development, regardless of the timeline in which it exists, must capitalize on what came before it within its own story and the other timeline. They are not individual tales that can be written alone then set within your novel’s overarching framework. They weave and blend to take readers on a singular remarkable ride.
(6 Tips for Maximizing the Effect of Rotating POV.)
So you must write the entire novel, building the events and tension, as the reader will ultimately experience them.
2. Several points of connection must exist between your two time periods.
While a character in each may be searching for something unique to and for them, you must create several points of contact between the two storylines that effectively call the reader’s attention back and forth—a characteristic or a personality trait, a fear or an internal driver, a relationship that the characters may or may not be aware of… These elements can be subtle or overt, and I recommend a mix of both.
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3. And last—but perhaps most important—one timeline must serve the other.
Each story/timeline is vital to the final novel and each can command an equal page count, but everything in both timelines (because it is true for everything within a novel as a whole) must be created for and to serve the main character’s journey—the singular main character.
Even when creating a dynamic group cast, everything must be presented, viewed, and explored, through the lens and perspective of a single character. This is how emotional resonance is formed.
Check out Katherine Reay’s The Berlin Letters here:
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So there are my big three!
While I write character-driven novels, I freely admit to loving this structural device. It’s been an exciting format for me, as it has allowed me to create a more compelling and dynamic experience for readers than I could have penned utilizing only my protagonist’s everyday world and viewpoint. I hope you find these tips helpful and that this short introduction entices you to give split-time narration a try. Happy Writing!