One thing I’ve noticed in writing is the flow of things.
When your characters are fighting, it makes sense to end the fight as soon as possible, right. Well, conflict can be a good thing.
When one character tries to get another character do something they don’t want to do, some writers simply have the second character say “F you! I do what I want!” and they walk away. End of fight. That’s kind of boring and counter-productive.
Have a little give and take in the fight. Have the first character be like, “Excuse me? Come back here! I’m not done!” and punch the second character in the face for being a disrespectful little turd.
Now, I’m not saying violence is a good thing, because it never is, but when you’re putting it in a story, it needs more.
Depending on how your characters feel about each other, decide what kind of conflict they should have. Physical? Verbal? Glaring contest? How much do they hate each other? Are they or were they best friends? Do they know each other’s weaknesses? All things to consider when doing a conflict scene.
What are they fighting over? Is it two guys fighting over a girl? Is it two girls fighting over a guy? Is it a guy fighting a girl? Is it two brothers or two sisters? Is it a brother and a sister? Is it a bully in a school? The character’s relationship is one of the key components in the fight.
Also consider whether one character is naturally a fighter and the other is a pacifist. How do your characters avoid the conflict or defend themselves? Is one character weaker or smaller than the other?
Do they have weapons or are they bare-fisted? Is there any biting, slapping, cursing, hair-pulling, punching or kicking?
When doing the scene, consider the Push And Pull strategy. If it is an equal fight, have one character have the upper hand for the first part of the fight and then switch and let the other character get a few punches in. Don’t draw the fight out too much, but don’t end it with an insta-knockout punch either.
Also, have both the characters come away with some injuries. People don’t just pop up from a punch in the face and smile. It hurts both parties if you punch someone in the face, jaw or mouth. The character that started the fight can have just as much blood and scratches as the one who ended it.
This goes for arguments as well. Little kids argue by going, “Nuh uh!” “Ya huh!”, “You shut up!” “No! You shut up!”, or “Your mom is (insert stupid mom joke here)”. Those are immature and stupid. You can add them if you feel like your characters are that immature, but usually arguments with adults tend to end up with a lot of cussing, which now that I think about it, isn’t all that better. Don’t let either one of your characters give in right away. Your characters are entitled to their own opinions and thoughts. Let them fight for them. If one of your characters is reasonable, have their argument style reflect them. Don’t have them change their behavior for a silly argument unless it is about something that means a great deal to them. It’s actually more interesting for a quieter, more stoic character to suddenly become enflamed about something than for a fiery character to throw punches just because someone said they were ugly. The most entertaining fighters are the Sass-mouths. They use their wit and charm to insult or talk their way out of a conflict. It’s way better than a character screaming, “Why ya big paluka! I outta…”
There’s tons more to consider, and I’m no combat or fight expert. These are just some things I thought I’d mention. If anyone has anything they want to add or contradict, feel free to comment. Discussing the subject as well as research are very important.
