In medias res is a Latin phrase that literally translates as “in the middle of things.” In fiction, it describes the technique of beginning a story by dropping the reader in the midst of the action.
Beginning a story (or novel, or chapter) in the middle of action can generate the momentum a reader needs to stay engrossed. When we launch in medias res, the conflict can already be at a high pitch, so our reader has something to worry about right away.
I believe "flashforward" is the term you are looking for. There is no special term for narratives that begin with a flashforward. There is a term for a story told in reverse order from the end to the beginning, and that is "reverse chronology", but that is not what you're asking.
The Latin term in medias res literally means 'in the midst of things' and describes a story that skips exposition and starts with events already underway.
Narrative arc, also called a “story arc,” a “dramatic arc,” or just an “arc,” is a literary term for the path a story follows. It provides a backbone by providing a clear beginning, middle, and end of the story.
What is story sequence? Story sequence is the order in which events take place in a narrative. In simplest terms, sequencing a story means identifying the main narrative components — the beginning, middle, and end—as a first step towards retelling the events of the story in logical order.
In a circular narrative, the story ends where it began. Although the starting and ending points are the same, the character(s) undergo a transformation, affected by the story's events.
Denouement is the point in a story in which the conflict is resolved. Borrowed from French, the word derives from Latin and literally means “untie the knot,” which refers to the narrative entanglements the author has woven through the first four stages of plot development.
The Middle, also known as the Rising Action, includes the events that lead up to the climax. These are events that usually complicate the problem or make it worse. These events build excitement and interest.
“In medias res” is a Latin phrase that means “in the middle of things.” In writing, this is used to describe a story that begins right in the middle of the plot or action. For example, in a fantasy, the story might open with the dragon chasing the main characters.
❖ Usually the order of events is: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. A series of events that builds from the beginning of the story. Rising action is where the author builds interest and tension in the story.
The types of climaxes
There are three main types of climaxes: crisis, catharsis, and revelation.
Exposition: who the story is about and the stakes that make their narrative important. Inciting incident: a catalyst that forces the character to act. Rising action: the building of suspense following the catalyst.
This is called the EXPOSITION. It is the background information on the characters and setting explained at the beginning of the story. The EXPOSITION will often have information about events that happened before the story began. The EXPOSITION is often the very first part of the PLOT.
After the climax, comes the falling action, because the main incident just occurred. At the end of the falling action, the viewer has arrived at the resolution/denouement, ending the movie.
Put as simply as possible, the inciting incident is an event that occurs, in relation to your protagonist, near to the beginning of your story, which sets that story moving in a different direction. The word 'inciting' is used because the event which occurs incites your protagonist towards a new course of action.
The Episodic plot structure is made up of a series of chapters or stories linked together by the same character, place, or theme but held apart by their individual plot, purpose, and subtext.
The conflict between the interactor's freedom of choice (or agency) and the author's control over the storyworld. In extremes this means that if the author has a total control, the interactor has no agency, or if the author has no control, the storyworld is just a simulation.
A story within a story, also referred to as an embedded narrative, is a literary device in which a character within a story becomes the narrator of a second story (within the first one). Multiple layers of stories within stories are sometimes called nested stories.
The middle is the part where the story starts to move towards the climax. That's the segment of a narrative, also referred to as the development, that gives the reader the sense of the inevitable conclusion.
The plot used in fictions can be differentiated into four types: linear, episodic, parallel, and flashback. The most common plot employed in short stories is the linear plot. Some short stories, though quite rarely, also use flashback plot.
Though writers can use many different techniques to create exposition, it comes in two main forms: direct and indirect exposition.
In other words, exposition is used when the author introduces the setting, characters and conflict of the story. Foreshadowing often occurs during exposition as a means of hinting at what will happen later on in the story.