Memory for traumatic events and their most distressing moments (hotspots) are typically examined in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) using retrospective memory reports for the index trauma. Effects of PTSD symptoms on memory for new (post-trauma) events and their hotspots have received less attention. Here we used a prospective, experimental design to address this question. Participants completed measures of PTSD symptoms, were exposed to either an emotional (N = 54) or a neutral (N = 44) simulated event, reported hotspots, and rated them on memory characteristics. After a 1-year delay, participants once again reported hotspots and rated their memory characteristics. PTSD symptoms obtained before the event predicted emotional intensity, bodily reaction, and distress associated with hotspots from the event after a 1-year delay, irrespective of event type. This suggests that memory for events in general and not just memory of the index trauma is affected by PTSD symptoms.