Starting in the Middle: In Medias Res

Explain the effects of opening a narrative in the middle of the action and filling in the past later.

In medias res is Latin for 'into the middle of things. ' A story using it opens at a dramatic point and supplies earlier events later through dialogue, memory, or flashback. Homer's Odyssey begins years after the fall of Troy, with Odysseus still trying to get home; much of his earlier journey is told later, in his own voice, at a feast. The technique hooks readers with immediate conflict, creates questions that drive them forward (how did it come to this?) , and controls when crucial information is revealed.

Consider an original opening: 'By the time the ferry sank, Lena had already decided not to tell anyone what she had seen on the upper deck. ' The reader is dropped into a crisis and handed a secret, so every later scene from the past is read as a clue. When retelling such a story, distinguish the order of telling (discourse) from the order of events (story); the gap between them is a deliberate design choice.

• 1In medias res means beginning in the middle of action.
• 2Earlier events are supplied later.
• 3It creates questions and controls revelation.
• 4Separate the order of telling from the order of events.