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I agree that it's springing it on the reader a bit, but done properly it can be a powerful tool. An example would be a story about WWII told by a veteran. The main text of the story contains the ...
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#3: Attribution notice added
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/25147 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision
I agree that it's springing it on the reader a bit, but done properly it can be a powerful tool. An example would be a story about WWII told by a veteran. The main text of the story contains the events that happened, in the past, told in past tense - as a story like this often would be. When the epilogue comes and the veteran is talking about missing his brothers, or that there are so few of them left, or something like that, the switch can be extremely powerful emotionally. If it drives the narrative, an emotional response, or benefits the scope of the story, then definitely go for it - just make sure you do it right! :)