Q: What contributes conflict to your story and characters?
A #1: TENSION with a slice of underlying tension
The Breakout Novelist by Donald #Maass is full of hints and writing exercises that can strip down a conversation to its basics in order to produce great tension.
Maass teaches, “…it is not information itself that nails us to the page—it comes from people, not topics. What (readers) want to know is not whether a debate will settle a point of contention, but whether the debaters will reconcile. Conflict in dialogue can be as polite as poison, or as messy as hatchets.”
For example, an exchange in White Lies by Jane Ann #Krentz begins with, “Let me get this straight,” he said. “You’re a human lie detector and you don’t mind that most people lie?”
With such a topic as liars, how can this contention between the above characters ever be settled? If the woman doesn’t mind that most people lie, is she herself a liar? How do you get to be a human lie detector in the first place?
In Triple Jeopardy, #AnnePerry’s brilliant use of silence during dialogue adds tension, as well as developing her characters.
“And if not?” (Kitteridge)
Daniel, (attorney for Sidney), thought for a moment. “That he assaulted some other young woman, which ties into the Rebecca story.” Then another thought occurred to him, worse than the first. For a moment, it robbed him of speech. The jeopardy to Sidney had suddenly doubled, tripled, in size and threatened everything. His mind raced ahead.
“What is it?” Kitteridge demanded. “Pitt! I’m not a mind reader. What are you thinking? That Sidney is guilty? What if he is?”
Daniel said nothing. His mouth was as dry as sawdust.
“Pitt! Don’t look like that…”
The intense exchange of what-ifs persists as Perry continues to create tension between two individuals. However, Daniel’s silence adds underlying angst and lets us feel Kitteridge’s mounting worry.
“Oh, great heaven!” Kitteridge said slowly, the color draining out of his face. “And they are thinking Cross’s murder happened before Sidney left Washington?”
“That’s just it… It’s too close to say…yet.”
A #2: PERSONALITY with a side of tension
During a conversation between Amos Decker, the hero in David #Baldacci’s “Walk The Wire“
and his FBI colleague, Alex Jamison, we learn more about their personalities by showing their reactions to new information.
Tension is increased by the unease of both characters’ anticipation to the unknown.
“We don’t have a lot to go on.” [Jamison]
“We usually don’t.” [Decker]
“And we don’t know that what happened to Cramer is tied to his “ticking time bomb” comment.”
“No, we don’t. But we will figure it out.”
“I wish I were as confident as you.”
A few lines later…
“I’m not sure, but I’m trusting my gut.” [Decker] headed to the door.
“Decker, promise me you’re not going back out,” she said imploringly.
“I’m going to slide the bureau up against my door, and sleep with one eye open and my gun in my hand.”
Frustration is added by the contrast in personalities with danger lurking at their doors, which adds more tension to an already dangerous situation.
A #3: Go ahead, take a bite from real life’s plate
I’m a semi-pro observer.
I listen to conversations, and scrutinize details of people’s faces. I’m a horrid artist, but in my mind, I create composite drawings, sometime caricatures, or slight etchings of details of a tiny area of wrinkles on someone’s hand, face, or forehead, especially when they’re planning, or remembering. I write down, or memorize cute sayings, and feel the ill taste of nasty words, then I create fictional characters by combining what I’ve observed. And yes, I may take the mouth of the above mule and add that trait to someone in my story.
Recommended book: Conflict & Suspense by James Scott Bell
I’d enjoying hearing from you and how you add tension to your story.
Until next month, an impromptu Irish blessing, (even though I’ve no ancestors from the Emerald Island):
Take the high road to sculpt a tempting world, which your readers devour, yet never want to leave.