Why Your Story Conflict Isn’t Working (And How to Fix It)
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Why Your Story Conflict Isn’t Working (And How to Fix It)
Conflict is one of those aspects of writing that has caused more than its fair share of writer frustrations.
Like many writers, I’ve spent countless hours creating conflict in my novels. I’ve thrown exciting obstacles in my protagonists paths, I’ve developed sinister antagonists to thwart my heroes, I’ve devised cruel ways to put my characters through mental anguish — and my beta readers still told me, “This book needs more conflict.”
Because despite what we “know” about conflict as writers, the concept isn’t so cut and dry.
It’s not just about the obstacles in the path, or the bad guy with the evil plan, or the mental anguish of the hero. It’s not the plot or the character arc, even though we often talk about it like it is.
It’s a tapestry woven from multiple aspects of writing that work together to create a feeling that victory will not come easily to the characters, and it leaves readers dying to know what the protagonist is going to do about it.
Over the years, I’ve pinpointed the three most common reasons writers stumble over conflict. https://thewritelife.com/author/janice-hardy/