Peter de Vries, novelist and satirist, said, "Every novel should have a beginning, a muddle, and an end." The muddle is the conflict. It’s what drives the plot and turns a recitation of facts into a story. Conflict arises when forces or desires are in opposition. It can be man against man, man against nature, man against himself, or man against God, with all kinds of variations. The purpose of fiction is to arouse the reader’s emotions. This requires conflict. The reader must care. Put a character the reader likes or cares about in a bad situation and it will create interest. The great writers know this. Elmore Leonard said, “Aim for the heart.” William Faulkner (Nobel prize acceptance speech) said, “The only thing worth writing about, worth the agony and the sweat, is the heart in conflict with itself.” Conflict may also be called the problem, thwarted desire, opposition, or similar names. Without it, the story will be boring. Without conflict, there is no story. C...

From the New Yorker I saw this cartoon from the New Yorker and it reminded me of an underlying theme in so many of the panels I attended at the recent Left Coast Crime conference. LCC is more reader-oriented rather than craft-oriented, but even in the panels targeting readers, there were writing tips hidden amongst the panelists’ responses. One repeating theme was conflict. Without conflict, there’s no story, so creating conflict is obviously any author’s challenge. For example, the first panel I attended was called Couples Solving Crimes , and the second was Guns and Roses: Romantic Elements in Crime Fiction . In the first panel, the couples involved weren’t necessarily working as partners, which one might have expected in a mystery crime panel. Instead, they were often partners off the job, or had jobs that brought them together. But each panelist did mention that having dual protagonists, or a protagonist and a sidekick, was a way to increase the conflicts in the books. You ca...

February is the month of Valentines and romance. In keeping with our KISS theme (keep it short and simple), here is a short list of malignant memes about love that are perpetuated through modern storytelling. 1. My love will heal you syndrome. Love cannot cure dysfunctional behavior. You can love someone through their recovery, but the journey is theirs to undertake. If the character is severely dysfunctional and verbally, physically, or emotionally abusive, your hero/heroine should run, not marry them. 2. The Eeyore syndrome, or “Thanks for noticing me.” Your hero/heroine’s self-worth should not be based on who pays attention to them. Let’s model heroes and heroines with intact self-esteem: no more doormats. 3. The Jessica Rabbit Syndrome Your heroine does not have to have large breasts and wear stiletto heels to be sexy. Your hero does not have to have six-pack abs and a seven figure bank account. Sexy is confidence, humor, and a good character. Those ...

I used to waste a lot of time on my first draft. I agonized over each sentence. I filled it full of stuff I would later cut or alter. Revision layers took forever to complete, especially repetitive words. My first drafts are now skeletons. I gradually add muscle and skin and dress the bones in the revision layers. I start with a conflict outline and a timeline (which I generally mess up somehow anyway and have to go back and fix). When I sit down to write a scene, I start with: Date, Time, Location, (Type of ) Conflict # _____ Dick needs to convince Jane to do something. Date, Time, Location, (Type of) Conflict # _____ Jane is caught snooping around Dick's office. For me, scenes are visual. I see the characters moving around the room or characters talking to one another. My first draft consists of dialogue and choreography with a tiny of hint of description. It looks a bit like a screenplay. Dick (insert tag) “ ....” Jane (insert tag) “...” Dick enters (describe ...

Several television shows I enjoy reached a point where they decided to split up their cast and follow them separately. It doesn’t always work well. In the cop show Castle , they used the detour then put the cast back together. In the musical high school Glee , they are still trying to hang onto the old cast and follow a new cast and the show suffers for it. The same is true of a book that follows two separate plot threads. A parallel plot generally tells two stories of equal importance, moving from one to the other and back again as opposed to a subplot. It is hard to get caught up in one plot when the writer keeps the verbal camera moving between two separate story lines, especially if they don’t connect. The potential for plot holes is enormous. If you choose a parallel plot, ask yourself these questions: 1. Who do you want the reader to care about? Splitting the focus between two protagonists weakens the reader’s attachment to them. Every time you move the verbal camera...

Loves stories are primarily about two characters who meet, are attracted, face a set of challenges, and overcome those challenges to live happily ever after. They have friends who are thrilled for them and foes who are not so thrilled. Do you really need an antagonist? Yes, if you want the tension to be truly heightened. Do you really need an evil lord or a psychotic killer to keep them apart?  No, there are alternatives. If someone in your lovers’ story world is dead set on keeping them apart and actively working against them, the potential for breakup conflict is higher. Your job as a romance writer is to instill doubt in the reader that your love interests will end up together. Here are a few types of antagonists to consider: 1) Disapproving parent/s or family members. 2) Disapproving best friend who rejects the new partner’s “otherness”, or resents the fact that his/her friend is now too busy to spend time with him/her, or the lover is changing to p...

Battle scenes make epic computer-generated graphic scenes in movies. They can devour a great deal of screen time. The same theory should not be applied to a book. Don’t insert a battle to increase the page count or because you think the script calls for it. Whether you write a court battle, a paranormal melee, or a gang encounter with police, make certain your battle scene serves a purpose. When a battle is fought, it should result in change. One side should lose or gain: 1) Information. 2) Weapons. 3) Access. 4) Prisoner. 5) Critical team member. 6) Strategic position. 7) Ally. 8) Enemy. 9) Cohesion as a team. 10) Division as a team. Writing the details of a battle covers more pages in a book than seconds on film and it is easy to lose the reader with the choreography. The further you move the verbal camera  from the protagonist, the less the reader cares. He is more inclined to skim past the choreography to get to the point...

You embark on a new story story idea, but the plot does not involve an evil lord, an opposing army, or a big scary monster to serve as an antagonist. You worry that you shall have to plug one in because structure calls for it. Here’s the good news: You don’t necessarily have to.  Certain genres do have certain requirements: A Thriller has a looming threat to someone or the entire planet. There must be someone who is opposed to the protagonist removing that threat. A Horror story must have some sort of horrible thing that threatens one or many. Encounters with this entity are essential. A Murder Mystery must have a killer. However, the mystery formula is a sleuth dismissing suspects until the finds the correct suspect. It is not typically Moriarty versus Sherlock. A Romance must have people opposed to the lovers’ relationship. So how do you provide obstacles without a big, bad villain? The answer is by layering conflict. There are four types of resis...

This post first ran on Thursday, May 16, 2013 In previous posts, we discussed choosing a central question and a story skeleton, also known as genre. We have bent and twisted a premise many different ways. What happens next? That depends on whether you are a pantser or a planner. Developing a conflict outline can keep you from getting mired in the middle. If you are allergic to outlining, you can wait until the end of the rough draft to examine each scene and identify the type of conflict it addresses. The four layer method I use is simply a new way of looking at conflict in the story. It ensures that every scene is earning its page time and is placed in an order that has logical “cause and effect.” First chapters are easy for most writers. The inciting event occurs. The protagonist makes an important decision or takes an irrevocable action. The antagonist knows of this decision/action and is prepared to oppose him. Then the writer loses momentum or doesn't know wher...

We have developed forty conflict ideas and layered the first half of the story. Let’s finish the process. We left off at turning point 2. Now the hero must come up with the correct solution to the problem, the one he resisted at first: blow the meteor up. Internal Conflict 6 : Dick finds Sally packing her bags.      Dick says, "Don’t leave. I love you. I’ve always loved you."       She replies, "Then why are you ruining things?"             Should he tell? Is it better for her to know or not know that their days are numbered? Antagonist 7 : Dick confronts Ted.       "You had something to do with this."      "You’ll never prove it and in a few days it won’t matter anyway." External 7 : They are back to the drawing board - all seems lost. They enter countdown mode.  Internal Conflict 7 : Sally tells Dick that she received a call from Ted and that h...

We have come up with ten basic ideas for all four layers of conflict. You may find you need to add more scenes to fill in the gaps in the story. You may change your mind about elements of the plot. The point is to have a series of prompts that keeps you working through your rough draft. You can tweak and enrich the draft during the revision layers. Things will come to you as you write that you didn’t think of before. Your characters will come alive and may change the trajectory of your story. That’s expected. What’s important is to avoid getting stuck in the muddy middle. Let’s layer the forty scene ideas we've developed in the most logical order. Internal Conflict 1 : Dick and Sally make plans to go on a long-awaited vacation. He gets a call. External Conflict 1 : Dick learns a meteor will strike.  Antagonist Conflict 1 : Ted learns there is a meteor headed toward earth. Finally, the world can be destroyed and he doesn’t have to lift a finger. All he has to do is sit b...

Internal Conflict scenes introduce and explore the personal dilemma your protagonist struggles with. The verbal camera is focused with a tight spotlight beaming on the protagonist in the background. Use these scenes to reveal the protagonist’s back-story and show him dealing with his guilt, pain, or need which leads up to - and is resolved by - his point of change. These conflicts test the protagonist’s character and faith. They make him question who he is and what he does. These are the emotional complications or ties that bind that complicate the overall story problem.  If the love interest has equal weight, you can explore her personal dilemma and point of change in these scenes as well. Internal conflict scenes can be flashbacks, dreams, and revelations of back-story through memories or an encounter with a friend or foe. You can show him exhibiting one type of behavior in the beginning and a complete reversal of behavior at the end to show the point of change. These scene...

We've discussed external conflict scenes and antagonist conflict scenes. The third layer explores interpersonal conflicts which test the protagonist’s friendships, loyalties, and will to continue. Your verbal camera is focused on stage left. Interpersonal conflict scenes can involve the friends and foes interacting with the protagonist, love interest, antagonist, or each other. Friends and foes can be used in any combination of scenes that fit with your story line. There will be both positive and negative interchanges with these characters. This layer addresses subplots and side stories which should culminate before the climax, with everyone lined up and revealed to be on which side of the fight. Subplots should circle back to and intersect the external story problem. If they don’t, you should consider cutting them. Secondary characters should have an agenda and stakes. Their personal goals may be at odds with the protagonist’s or  antagonist’s goal. Their situ...

Two authors talk about the “scene and sequel” method of writing— Elizabeth Lyons in A Writer’s Guide to Fiction and Jack Bickham in Scene and Structure . These techniques are a bit different from what we normally think of. A simple definition for scene is “ACTION” or “CONFLICT.” A scene is a segment of story action, written moment-by-moment, without summary, presented onstage in the story “now.” It is not something that goes on inside a character’s head. It is physical. It could be put on the stage and acted out. Another word for it might be a “happening” and it advances the plot. The pattern of a scene (happening) is:  • Statement of goal • Introduction and development of conflict • Failure of the character to reach his goal, a tactical disaster. The Goal . A scene begins with the character walking into a situation with a clear-cut, specific goal, which appears immediately attainable. This is will move him one big step closer to attaining his major story goal.  •...

Antagonist Conflict scenes introduce us to the antagonist or antagonistic forces. This is your verbal camera focused on stage right. These scenes test the protagonist’s and antagonist’s knowledge, ingenuity, and strength. They are battles of will and wit. These scenes zero in on the conflict between the two opposing characters. Other characters may be present, but the focus is on the direct confrontation between the antagonist and protagonist or the antagonist himself. If you follow only the protagonist’s POV, these scenes are where the lead alien and the hero face off, the serial killer taunts the investigator, the brothers fight over the woman, the scientists clash over the best way to thwart the meteor, or the knight and the infidel cross swords. If the verbal camera follows the antagonist, or these scenes are written from his point of view, they show him actively pursuing his goal, reveal his personal dilemma, and expose his character flaw and secret weapon. They sho...