Yes, NaNoWriMos, sometimes things need to get physical. Sometimes characters need to physically assault one another, regardless of the genre of your book. Physical altercations amp up the drama, the threat level (hey, I could bleed here), and provide much needed umph when we've had too many pages of dialogue. Remember, any good fight scene is like a good sex scene: let the reader fill in as many blanks as possible. It's easy to overwrite both. No one needs a two page nanosecond by nanosecond recap of one fist coming into contact with another character's jaw. Maybe your big fight scene doesn't move past one character snapping a pencil in two when he/she sees a rival. That works, too. Physicality makes those characters' emotions real.
Fighting isn't your protagonist's style? No one said your MC had to be in on the action, did they?
10 comments:
I'd rather write a fight scene than sex scene. Which is curious since I'm a pacifist and not a prude.
Same here. Sex scenes are hard to pull off without them sounding so silly.
I had my main character start throwing books at another character a few days ago. I had no idea she was so physical when she was mad, but it works perfectly with her character and it was a lot of fun to write. I think she's going to have to bloody someone's nose at some point. I suspect she's got a pretty good right hook. :)
Yeah, I've had a couple of scenes so far where I've started into the sex and left the rest to the imagination. Big fight scene yet to come...thanks for the 'physicality' post.
I don't suppose there's a shirtless pic in that series.
K.C. - That's the stuff.
Alan - The imagination is your friend.
Natalie - Somehow, I knew you would ask...
Good reminder about the fight scene and overwriting! I always need a good fight in every book I write, but sometimes I worry it's more to keep my attention than the reader's. I do love a good fight! ;)
I have a fight scene planned for further down the track so thanks for the great advice.
It always amazes me how a great battle scene in a book is not more than a page or two and in the movie version it takes up 1/3 of the movie.
Katey - hey, if you can't keep your own attention...
Danielle - Goody. You're really cruising on your Nano book.
Jamie - I'm with you. When I reread Fellowship of the Ring, I wondered where all the fighting went (I mean, the movie was all about swordplay)
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