By Abbie Harris

This is a narrative technique which is often used inLiterature, film and other narratives. It is when events are portrayed out of chronological order or other ways which the narrative the direct pattern of the events featured. e.g. parallel distinctive plot lines, when someone is dreaming or when a story is being narrated outside the main plot line.

Disrupted NarrativeDisjointed NarrativeNon-Sequential Narrative

This is where parts of the narrative are lost or misrepresented in order to create mystery, convenience or other reasons. Films which have used this include The Butterfly Effect and Donnie Darko and is usually involves the causality of time traveling scenario.

This is where elements of the story turn out to be unreliable, untrue or a layered over by important changes. This doesn't however require out of sequence elements even though it can have them. It usually involves an ironic twist, lie, reversal or reveal ending however it can be complicated. This causes jumps in the narrative from the perspective of the character(s), audience or both.

This is where the story is told in a different sequence which it would have originally happened usually without a major change in view point or perspective. This is usually used for creating dramatic emphasis, to build suspense or reveal information which was previously withheld. This is done through the use of shuffling, reversing, flashbacks or a recount in a narrative.

Ergodic NarrativeBranching NarrativeMulti-Linear Narrative

This involves layers of a story within a story and cannot be experienced in a linear format. It be done in ways such as using internal and external references.

The storyline branches depending on which "path" or "route" the character has taken throughout narrative. These narrative paths are usually determined by the choices the character has made at various points throughout the narrative, including dialogue choices and moral decisions, which can alter the storyline and lead to multiple endings.

Some narratives will take this approach further and encourage the audience to view all the endings in order to fully understand the overarching narrative. For example, various endings might give differing perspectives, with the plot elements that may not make sense in one ending making sense in another ending.

This is mainly applies to the game industry.

This is where there are multiple storylines or aspects of the same story link together or run parallel to each other for the purpose of complimenting or exposing of narrative threads. Examples of films which use this narrative include Crash and Pulp Fiction.