If you want to know about writing action scenes, who better to ask than an author of action-packed YA stories for boys. I’m excited to welcome S.J. Kincaid. Her YA dystopian novel Insignia (Harpercollins) is due out July 10. My son and I can’t wait to read it!
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Thanks for letting me guest post, Stina!
Okay, the truth is, I dread writing action scenes. Given the sheer number of action scenes I included in INSIGNIA, this assertion may strike those who have read the story as odd, but it's true. As my manuscripts approach those moments I need to have violent clashes, I always feel a terrible reluctance to proceed, like I'm about to head to the dentist or attack a sink overflowing with dishes.
I dread writing them because the best action scenes must be set up a long time before the action actually takes place, and there are a lot more considerations to keep in mind than just the technical aspects of throwing punches, or the coolness of giant explosions.
I'm going to focus here on an action scene I think is absolutely awesome: the climactic fight between Bigwig and General Woundwort in the middle of the final battle of WATERSHIP DOWN, by Richard Adams. There are some awesome moments in the battle between other characters, but I'm just going to zoom in on these two.
BASICS:
Any writers querying agents have probably read the conventional wisdom: "Never start a novel with a fight scene." Why is this? Because we don't know the characters, we don't know the antagonists, we don't know the stakes, so we're not sure why we care about this fight. This same line of reasoning explains why we do care when we encounter fight scenes: because we know the protagonist, we know the antagonist, we know the stakes. With that said, let me go into why the fight sequence of Watership Down is awesome.
BIGWIG, THE GOOD GUY:
By the time of this battle scene, the reader is firmly attached to Bigwig. He starts off as an off-and-on antagonistic character to Hazel (the main character), and Fiver (his brother), but they've formed a solid bond of trust by now, and through that bond, we’ve bonded with Bigwig. Bigwig's immense size and strength render him a critical source of support for Hazel, who is now chief rabbit of the new warren, Watership Down. He's also exhibited his humanity (er, rabbit-anity?) on several occasions, most notably when rescuing a tortured rabbit, Blackavar, from the grasp of General Woundwort, and when befriending the seagull, Kehaar. We want Bigwig to live, and we’ve seen enough deaths of other rabbits to realize it is not a given that he’ll survive.
GENERAL WOUNDWORT, THE ENEMY:
From the moment of General Woundwort's introduction, it's clear he's the largest, most frightening rabbit in existence. He's the leader of an almost fascist network of warrens, he survived on his own in the wild (unheard of), his sheer size is staggering, and even the closest thing the Watership Down rabbits have to a WMD (the seagull Kehaar), is batted contemptuously aside by this fearsome rabbit. By the time Bigwig and General Woundwort are ready for their huge brawl, we've learned to fear this rabbit through the other rabbits who know of him. This is a worthy enemy for Bigwig.
Part 2 of the post will continue on Wednesday.
Do you enjoy writing action scenes?
47 comments:
Sometimes I dread writing them too because without the emotion behind the scene and a reason to care action scenes can be kinda boring.
I really love all the writing tips you give. I'm not at all good at writing action scenes, but this should help!
I like writing them, but definitely need to work on my craft in terms of using the right physical movements, etc. I can get carried away, and during edits I'll see something and think, "Wait a minute--he can't smash the lantern into the guy's face here--that other dude is holding his arm back. Darn." Looking forward to part two :)
This is a fantastic interview and wonderful post for tips. Thank you!!
Thanks for the tips. Can't wait for part 2 and I'm adding Insignia to my list of books for my daughter and I to read.
Can't wait for part 2. I dread them. I can see them clearly in my head, but putting typing them out can be painful. Thanks and can't wait to read your book. Sounds great.
Hi, SJ! Great interview! I do enjoy writing action scenes. I see everything in my head, and it feels as if the words just rush out onto the page. That said, they are usually terrible in their first draft form. :D But better a page full of terrible writing to revise than a blank page!
Hi there! *waves*
Okay, you had me at that Watership Down example--one of my absolute favorite books of all time!! Looking forward to part two! :D
I'll ditto, Laura, here. I struggle, at times, with balancing that emotional value during scenes like this. As you said, there has to be a build-up, something that strings the reader along for a while, before the action scene takes place. Looking forward to part 2. :)
Since I write romance, my "action" is mostly emotional. I'm always afraid I'd get the logistics/dynamics wrong for a knock-down drag-out action scene. But that doesn't mean I'm not tempted to try. Hmmm....
Action scenes are difficult and none of my books rely on them.
Love Watership Down. One of my most favorite books in the world.
I love writing actions scenes, and my books tend to have a lot of them. I love staging big, elaborate scenes with lots of moving parts, and then trying to piece them into a coherent, emotionally-grounded presentation. I totally agree with you--there have to be stakes, and the readers have to care. Otherwise, it'll be terribly flat. Random confession: Watership Down is a movie I saw in the theater when I was a child. It absolutely terrified me. Nightmares for weeks. And to this day, I have been unable to watch the movie again. Oddly, though, I've never read the book. Maybe it would help me overcome my lingering terror of those rabbits and what they were facing (while teaching me about good actions scenes). Looking forward to the second half of this guest post!
Writing action scenes sounds like an art unto itself. I like the idea of moments happening with other characters during the battle too, pivotal things that the battle might inspire to happen.
I am off to search for my copy of Watership Down - I've not read it in ages so need to re-read this again! Thank you! take care
x
Great tips and yeah totally agree, you need the build up or it just strikes the reader as pointless. Although I will take writing them to going to the dentist anyday...haha
Action scenes are my thing. I love making each one different. That's the real challenge. I do not care for cookie cutter fight scenes. Looking for ward to Kincaid's release this summer!
excellent, educational post! love, love watership down, mom read to us as kids =)
you inspired a better query hook! thanks! looking forward to pt 2
This is so true. For me, writing action, especially fights, has always been pretty easy, but it's the build-up, the what makes the reader care about the outcome, that's hard.
Anything with "Kickass" in the title is a must read for me.
It is interesting how good character development drives so many components of a book.
I never really thought about it before, but you're so right: I have to care about the people fighting in order to care about the fight. Great post! Can't wait for part 2!
Insignia sounds great! I do like writing action scenes maybe because I don't do enough of it - my characters spend too much time in their heads! And i LOVE Watership Down! Looking forward to Part 2!
I do love action scenes! They are challenging, but so much fun to write! Thanks for the breakdown.
Writing a YA with a male pov right now, and the action scenes can be brutal. It's hard to strike a balance: when to stage the altercation, how to start it, how to end it. And then of course, the final conflict must be the most action packed. So it's been taking me a lot longer than paranormal romances, which practically write themselves by comparison. ;)
Thanks for the tips!
Bookmarking this one, and I am most DEFINITELY buying that book!! In fact, I want it now! :-)
Great post! I don't mind writing action scenes if I've spent the appropriate amount of time leading up to them...but they are a bit like sex scenes for me. I spend most of my time making sure they are not boring or overdone :-)
Thank you both! Can't wait until Wednesday!
I really enjoy writing action scenes, but I do find you need to break them up a bit or it gets to be a bit too much. Can't wait to read more.
great post! I can see how you'd be nervous approaching a fight scene. I'm always nervous approaching the "affection" scenes in my romances for the same reason. There's got to be investment in these characters for the feelings to work.
Great stuff! Thanks for sharing~ :o) <3
Watership Down is one of my all time favorites. Can't wait to see the action scene broken down.
Becca @ The Bookshelf Muse
My WIP doesn't have a fight scene - well, verbal, but yea...But the book on deck, fight scenes. Great advice.
It's hard to do action scenes without acting them out. Once I get past the feeling like an idiot (or enlisting my sons), it's not so bad.
Hi Stina! Oh my God, I love your blog! I'm going to be here forever reading all the stuff you've posted! Thank you thank you! :)
AWESOME advice and insight! I see what you mean about them. I love action scenes, but it's almost like I have to get a different mindset to write them than the rest of the book that aren't actiony. I can't write all lalalala and then fade into action mind in the same second. It's weird...Great guest post!
This was _good_. Thanks for the insight!
The best advice I've ever gotten on writing actions scenes was from James Alan Gardner. Go to his website and download his writing advice NOW
http://www.thinkage.ca/~jim/advice.html
The part on action is crucial, but you can find useful advice throughout.
Super post! I just got an agent critique back and although she liked what I sent her, she suggested a first chapter that introduced the characters before they got into a dangerous situation. For the exact reason you said...your reader needs to know the characters before they have to worry or care about what happens to them. Congratulations on the new book!
I enjoy reading and writing action scenes. For me the hardest part is digging into the emotions of the characters, although when I get those right, it gives the action even more impact. Funny how it works that way :)
Hi SJ and Stina! Great post and I'm excited to read part 2. No, I'm never very excited about writing action scenes and I don't feel I'm good at them, so I need to soak up your wisdom.
Great blog, Stina!! I, too, hate writing battle scenes, I always fear that if I don't act out a scene I'm going to miss something and draw the reader out of the story. And, of course, even acting out the scene isn't going to show or tell us were doing it right. There's only luck and hope that we can pull it off. And as time goes along, they even become more complicated than the last ones.
No, I hate writing action scenes! In fact, I don't even like reading them. I seem to get lost and end up skipping over them. But I know they're important, so it's definitely worth making them the best they can be. I think that part about enough rabbits having died previously that you know this could end in death for the good guy is important - it definitely makes a scene more gripping!
I haven't written one yet, but I love reading a well written one. The worst is reading a choppy, disjointed action scene. Seeing what goes into the process of getting it right is interesting!
I love writing action scenes. Considering that I often write about knights and adventures, I better like action!
Rushing off to reread Watership Down right away.
Great post. I can't wait for part 2.
Action, fight, and battle scenes are great but tough to get all the action in there but not overdo it.
I worried a ton before I wrote my first one, but afterward I was proud of what I achieved and then all the others weren't so intimidating. Great topic! :)
Thanks again, Stina-- and thanks to everyone who commented! Actually, just writing this post made me want to read Watership Down again, myself!
Awesome post! I'm off to read part two and find my copy of Watership Down. I loved that novel and now I want to reread it. ; )
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