CONFLICT: THE FUEL OF YOUR STORY.
A novel runs on conflict. The entire book has a core conflict lock between protagonist and antagonist. They either want the same thing, which is clear conflict since only one can get it; or they want different things, but in trying to get those things, they come into conflict. The thing each wants, must be a concrete, external object. It must be very clear when one or the other gets that thing.
There also must be conflict in every scene. Thus, each scene has its own conflict lock. The protagonist and antagonist of each scene does not necessarily have to be the book’s protagonist and antagonist.
What exactly is Conflict?
A serious disagreement or argument. A prolonged armed struggle. An incompatibility between two opinions, principles or interests. As a verb it means to be incompatible or at variance, clash.
Try to have conflict at two levels in every scene. What this means if your cops are chasing the bad guys (conflict), they are also arguing with each other (conflict layered on top of conflict).
Your Basic Story Dynamic:
The Protagonist (the character who owns the story) struggles with . . .The Antagonist (the character who if removed will cause the conflict and story to collapse) because both must achieve their concrete, specific . . .Goals (the external, concrete things they are each trying desperately to get, not necessarily the same thing).
The Protagonist:
Must be someone the reader wants to identify and spend time with: smart, funny, kind, skilled, interesting, different. Consider giving your protagonist an anomaly. What this means is they have something in their character that doesn’t seem to ‘fit’ who they appear to be. Russell Crowe in LA Confidential is, in essence, a thug cop used as muscle. No one thinks he’s very smart. But from the very beginning of the movie, he goes out of his way to protect women in peril, even when he has no vested interested. Why? That why is a hook that keeps you into following his character. This anomaly gets explained eventually.
Must seem real; flawed, layered, blind spot. Blind spot is covered under character. The protagonist’s blind spot can be fatal flaw, but at least brings about the moment of crisis.
Must be in trouble, usually not random.
Must be introduced as soon as possible, first is preferred.
Must have strong, believable motivation for pursuing her external and specific goal.
We often empathize with a reluctant protagonist.
We must see the spark of redemption in a negative protagonist very quickly.
The protagonist, as she is at the beginning of the book, would fail if thrust into the climactic scene.
Drives the story.
You have one for one main story line.
Does not have to be the hero/heroine or even good. In Pulitzer Prize Winning, LONESOME DOVE, we all love Augustus McCrae (Gus). Hell, I named my dog after him. But Woodraw McCall (Call), is the protagonist. He moves the action of the book, literally, as he pressed the cattle north. Also, he is present in the beginning of the book and standing there are the end.
If your protagonist fails, this tells you what is at stake.
Is the person on stage in the climactic scene, defeating the . . .
The Antagonist
Must be someone the reader respects (fears): smart, funny, kind, skilled, interesting, different.
Must seem real; flawed, layered, blind spot.
Must be in trouble. People tend to forget the antagonist has problems too. Usually, the protagonist.
Must be introduced as soon as possible, even if by proxy. This one drives people crazy. But you can’t have an antagonist that suddenly pops in for the climactic scene. Often, the reader meets your antagonist, but has no clue that’s their role. Or, you introduce a proxy of the antagonist, or a minion of the antagonist. Either one introduces the antagonist.
Must have strong, believable motivation for pursuing her external and specific goal. We might not agree with what they are doing, but at least it makes sense to us, given who the antagonist is as a character.
You have one antagonist. And the antagonist drives the plot initially because they introduce the problem.
You must do the antagonist’s plan and it should be very good. This is the fun part of writing. You get to be a bad guy.
If you remove your antagonist, the plot collapses. You don’t have a story, because you don’t have a problem.
Should be a single person so the conflict is personal. People always ask if nature, or society or something else can be the antagonist.
Is the person on stage in the climactic scene, fighting the protagonist because . . .
Their Goals Conflict:
The reader must believe both will lose everything if they don’t defeat the other.
Their goals are difficult to achieve because of external barriers, primarily each other.
Their goals are layered, usually in three ways . . .
Goal Layers:
External: The concrete object or event the character needs.
Internal: The identity/value the character is trying to achieve via pursuing the external goal.
Relationship/communal: The connections the character wants to gain or destroy while in pursuit of the external goal.
People want to achieve their goals because of their . . .
Motivation:
The reason your character needs his or her goal.
Everyone has an agenda.
Every character has a primary motivator; Victor Frankl’s ‘One Thing’.
Some motivations stem from key events in a character’s life.
The reader must believe that your characters believe all will be lost if they don’t achieve their goal.
Motivations, like goals, come in layers that are peeled away as the story escalates in conflict and the character is under more and more pressure.
The motivational layers are all present in the beginning of the story, but the character is often not conscious of the layers.
Thus the motivation and goals shift as the story goes on and we peel away layers. . .
Layers
The example is JT Wilder from DON’T LOOK DOWN.
What do you want? (Wilder: Laid and paid.)
What do you really want? (Wilder: Relationship)
No, what do you REALLY want? (Wilder: Relationship with community)
The Central Story Question:
Will the protagonist defeat the antagonist and achieve her goal?
When the reader asks that question, the story begins.
When the reader gets the answer, the story is over.
DON’T LOOK DOWN: Will Lucy defeat Nash and save herself and her family?
AGNES AND THE HITMAN: Will Agnes defeat Brenda and keep Two Rivers?
Related posts:
Comment
I had to save this to my computer. You just gave the secret from a good book to a great book. This article was very helpful. Hopefully I have this in my WIP. THANKS AGAIN.
Comment
I have a question now that i reread that. So you say it should be one person so it is personal. Now if the gods are being treated as one person, and killing his sister, does that make it personal and interesting? Do I actually have to write about the gods, you hear about them, see the problems they caused throughout the story, but i don’t have a single scene where it is just the antagonist by themselves?
Comment
Your analysis may be flawed, as Guy Pearce’s character was the protagonist in LA Confidential. Would’ve won Best Picture had Titanic not come out the same year….
Comment
Actually if you think Guy Pearce was the protagonist, you don’t understand who a protagonist is.
Comment
he was the character the story was about, if you missed that, watch the movie again.
Comment
James Ellroy’s novel, “LA Confidential,” actually has three cop protagonists whose stories intertwine. Bud, the character Russell Crowe played, is one of the three. (Guy Pearce and Kevin Spacey played the other two cop protagonists.) In the film, Bud’s story is more developed because it’s more “cinematic.” The book has the luxury of a lot of internal conflict for Exley, Guy Pearce’s character. In the film, Bud is much more developed than Exley, so yes, he would be the protagonist in the film. The three cops in the novel are supposed to be three sides of one character.
Comment
I don’t see it that way. Sorry.
Comment
Someone essentially help to make seriously articles I would state. This is the very first time I frequented your web page and thus far? I surprised with the research you made to create this particular publish extraordinary. Fantastic job!