In real life, conflict is something you probably want to
avoid, but in fiction writing, the more conflict the better. New writers often hear, “conflict is
story.” But why is it so important? And how can you achieve conflict that feels
decisive rather than angsty?
Most people don’t read a whole story if they already know
how it is going to end. It’s like when
you go to a baseball game and the score is so uneven by the seventh inning that
half the crowd, having had their fill of nachos and soda, decides to leave. But have you ever noticed that that never
happens in little league? The parents
are so emotionally invested in the players that no matter if their kid fell
down during his last three at bats, they are going to stay. Who knows?
This bat, he might hit a home run.
You can do the same thing by getting the reader emotionally invested in
your characters. Help them to connect
with your hero by making him feel like a real person, emotional scars and
all. Then when you put that character up
against impossible odds, or give him a moral choice with no easy answers, the
reader vicariously faces that situation too.
And who knows? He might think of
a genius way out of it. This is why we
love a good underdog story.
To focus the conflict, give the character a goal, then let
plot events and other characters stand in her way. The character can even stumble over her own
internal flaws. Have her be able to say,
“I could get what I want, if only I wasn’t so
proud/stubborn/scared/lazy/broken.” Then,
instead of saying it, use plot events to show the reader how this is true. The trick is to have the goal matter. If the character were to fail and there would
be no significant consequences, then the conflict becomes watery, and the
reader ceases to care whether or not she succeeds. That doesn't mean you have to put the
character’s life on the line every time, or that your character has to save the
entire world. As long as the stakes
truly matter to your character, they could be something as small as earning bragging
rights, salvaging a friendship or maintaining the moral high ground.
Everything in your story –
including character, plot, setting and dialogue – gets tied together with conflict. Learn how to keep these elements moving
together to create a cohesive whole in Creative Writing: Beginner’s Fiction, a
five-session class that focuses on structuring scenes for emotional impact. Class starts on March 16, so sign up soon by
calling (817) 272-2581 or register here.
