Are you a beginning writer or have you been working on your craft for a bit? Are you trying to develop a story, but it seems to be falling flat and you can’t figure out why? Maybe you need conflict. Here’s why.
Conflict Drives the Plot
Most of us don’t like conflict, especially confrontation. We’d rather stick to our own thoughts or actions and just live life without any pressure. However, life isn’t all rosy and peaches and cream. We have struggles, unexpected circumstances and/or consequences, stresses, and a myriad of things that just cause bumps in the road. If this is so in real life, then your story needs this, too.
Conflict keeps the reader engaged. It’s the motivation that drives the plot and keep our readers turning to the next page, which is ultimately what a writer wants. Conflicts can be as simple as finding yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time or as complicated as being falsely accused of doing something with no alibi or with no possible way of escape. A good story needs those key page-turning moments to get the reader asking, “What’s could possibly be next?”
Conflict Helps with Character Development
A good character needs to grow from the beginning of the story to the end. Conflict helps characters grow. But here’s the fun thing about character development. A conflict can either mature your character, or make him or her regress.
We all react differently to situations. Your characters need this, too. One character may grow from a challenge. Another may turn back to bad habits that needed to be changed. Conflict is the motivator that makes our characters either likeable or unlikable, depending on how we want the reader to perceive them.
Conflict Keeps You Creative
How many times in life have you had something happen and you didn’t know how to solve the problem? I don’t know about you, but it happens more often than I’d like to admit. That’s where prayer comes in for me so God can bring about a resolution.
Conflict in your writing may cause interesting situations that need a creative solution. I find this necessary in mystery stories. I know a certain struggle needs to happen to trigger some outcome, but I don’t always know how to “solve” it for the reader. In these instances, I pray, step away from the story, and let the idea sit in the back of my mind. Before I know it, a creative idea pops up that I hadn’t considered. These inventive concepts add to the story in a major way because it gives us a fresh approach to problem solving instead the old, worn out solutions we find in many stories.
Need something to revitalize a story? Try adding some conflict. You may be surprised how a little twist in your story might be the change you need.
How have you used conflict to move your story along?
Catherine L. Osornio has written inspirational articles for a women’s ministry newsletter, over 200 leveled reader stories for a school’s reading program, fiction and nonfiction articles for Clubhouse and Clubhouse Jr. magazines, The Declaration of Independence from A to Z, Thunder Comes a Rumblin’, Mosquitoes Infect!, plus various work-for-hire projects. Her new hi-lo book, Danger on Martin Mountain, will be released in the fall of 2025.A former elementary school librarian, Catherine is passionate about sharing the love of reading. She enjoys cartooning, illustration, and reading kids’ books. Email her at CLOsornio@verizon.net or visit her at www.catherineosornio.com.
Unsplash Photo Credits: Bob Brewer, Anthony Tran, Daniel Öberg, and AbsolutVision.
All very true. We don’t like creating conflict–but it’s absolutely necessary for our plots!
Yes, conflict is necessary!! Great post.
I’ve heard it said what we hate in real life (conflict), we love in stories. My first reaction was, nope. I don’t want conflict, even in the stories I read! But then I was gifted with a novel where the conflict was gentle and the characters were pretty much perfect. I enjoyed it at first because I had just read a trilogy with a tremendous amount of conflict and this light and gentle novel soothed my spirit. But I also thought things like, “really? That’s not realistic!” And, “It must be nice to be so perfect!”
The light went on. I got it. We DO need conflict in our stories! And imperfect characters who need to be shaped and molded by it.
Of course, we write for kids, so our conflict needs to be carefully handled. And I have to admit, it’s kinda fun to think up trouble for my characters with an interesting and unexpected way of getting them out of it! Especially when I write for the older crowd (middle grade & YA.)