How does each choice reinforce their characterization?.Why does the character make the choices that they make in the fight?.Use fights as a way to explore your character(s) and provide more insight on the following: Rule #2: Fight Scenes Should Improve Characterizationīecause reading a fight scene can get boring quickly, it’s important that you focus on more than the bare-knuckle action. This can be how the fight moves the story forward. You can also explore the mental fallout after a fight. You don’t always have to discuss the physical aftermath. If the fight caused some type of transition in your story, keep it in.Īnd remember: Not all transitions are physical. Can you still make sense of what happened? Now, read the scene before and the scene after. Here’s the easiest way to find out if your fight scene moves the story: Delete it. Say “no” to gratuitous fight scenes that only show off fancy moves or writing skills. The very first rule for fight writing (and writing any scene in general) is to ensure that it moves the story forward. Rule #1: Fight Scenes Should Move the Story Forward Below, we’ll discuss the best strategies for creating fight scenes with bite. That’s a lot more difficult than getting it fed to you visually.īut never fear-if you’re aiming to write a fight scene that’s capable of captivating your reader’s attention, this guide will help. The audience must participate in constructing the fight scene from your clues and seeing it play out in their mind’s eye.
In contrast, reading a fight scene requires the audience to activate their imagination.
HOW TO DESCRIBE THE SOUND OF A GUNSHOT IN A STORY MOVIE
A movie allows the audience to take a passive stance and have the action wash over them. That’s because fight scenes can be boring to read. In practice, writing a realistic fight scene for your novel is one of the hardest things you’ll ever do. It turns out that everything can go wrong. What can go wrong when writing a high-stakes, intense confrontation between two or more characters? You know what’s dangerous? Writing a fight scene.