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Writing An Action Sequence |
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This is a short tutorial on writing action sequences. Please remember that these are merely guidelines, but to really grasp the essence of an action sequence, you must remember a few things
Anyway, those are the two basic rules to follow. From then on, it’s just fine-tuning. Style Everyone’s writing style is different, and an action sequence will vary from one author to another. Your personal writing style will be the major factor in how you depict the events that happen in a fight. Personally, my writing style is darker, and more detailed, where a few paragraphs may depict only one or two minutes. Your writing style should flow into your action sequence. Do not jump from Spongebob Squarepants slapstick into Rambo gun-toting violence. Flow As with any good story, events flow into each other, and should climax at certain intervals to ‘build the moment’. Also you should not overuse too much ‘jaw dropping’ imagery, as; all in all, it will become repetitive and henceforth lose the desired effect. Use discretion, and absorb your reader by making the action come alive by building up the tension, and climaxing with an intense chain of events. Do not drag on a fight, especially a one-on-one situation. In real life, a fight is usually settled by a few well-placed blows; or critical injuries from weapons. Depending on the nature of the characters in your story, some may have more endurance than others, but on a whole, too much ‘superman’ heroics make the characters seem invincible, and the fight loses its meaning. Keep the action and visualisations in touch with your writing style and if you think you’ve gone overboard, read it over to yourself - picturing the events exactly as you have written them down. Most importantly: Does it flow? Do you feel that it is understandable and exciting? Is it too much? Is it too little? Ask yourself these questions before you begin to edit. Remember the only way to really feel if the fight is coming along well is to practice writing them. Characters In any fight, there must be the combatants. Usually, it is two or more people with opposing views, beliefs (e.g. good vs. evil,) or a competition of some sort. When the characters are fleshed out during your story, you must always keep in mind your character’s personality as they fight. For instance, Harry is a very temperamental young man. His fighting style may be more ‘spur of the moment’ aggressive spell casting - whereas, Hermione is an intelligent witch, one who may use her intellect to outwit her opponents. She will most likely use counter-offensive spell casting, knowing which spells to use to eventually come out on top. This is one technique: using the character’s insight and personality to depict their fighting style. Another more advanced technique is using the unexpected to give your character’s fighting style a twist, adding excitement by simply not doing the obvious. E.g. Luna Lovegood seems a bit spaced out- imagine if when she gets into a duel she is a completely different person and uses illusions and subterfuge to completely baffle and then efficiently dispatch of her opponent? As a reader, the first impression may be “Wow! She could do that?” Or maybe, she becomes a focused witch warrior and uses dangerous spells, giving her a darker side behind her ‘airiness’. It may seem farfetched, but because her character is so strange, any sort of fighting technique you wish to give her may fit in perfectly. However, not all characters are so easily manipulated. Voldemort will not use a tripping jinx, neither a tickling hex. Do not overdo the character deviations, and also keep in mind your character’s skill level. Making Colin Creevey as skilled as Ron Weasley doesn’t make any sense. Intensity First of all, before any fighting begins, there should be a reason behind it. Depending on the severity of the situation, dialogue must be used to depict the character’s level of intent. If Ron and Draco are fighting because Draco insulted Hermione, Ron would be the aggressor, while Draco will be more relaxed about it, it is more of a game to him.
That may be a typical response. Do not overdo the situation:
Not appropriate. It is out of context and way over the top for the reason behind the fight: Draco insulting Hermione. The level of intensity should always reflect on the situation, and the characters’ emotions should also impact the reader. The reason for the fight should be clearly understood, unless ambiguity is being used to represent an ambush of some sort. In a life or death duel, talk is minimal, but every word that comes out of the combatant’s mouths must be strong, and said with purpose. “I’ll kill you” is very cliché, and used more as a threat. Even so, putting it in the fight can be extremely useful, but should only be used when it signifies a complete lack of control on the hero’s part or a boastful comment on the villain’s part. Over usage makes it worthless. When you get a ‘feel’ for the writing of an action sequence, a few words will make the fight seem all the more intense, and a simple comment can twist the entire balance of power to the speaker’s favour. Also, a great one liner could make the whole sequence ‘cool’ or if spoken by the villain can strike true fear into the reader. Once again, it will come with practice. Perspective Maybe this is the hardest part of writing an action sequence: perspective. Who is the main epicentre that everything revolves about? In Order of the Phoenix, the battle between the Order and Death eaters in the ministry of magic is depicted through the eyes of Harry, who at the time is not well experienced in duelling. Therefore, his knowledge of the spells and their effects are not as detailed. However, let’s say that the fight was being watched or related by Dumbledore’s perspective. Now, as a writer, you will have to be very detailed about what spell is being used, how the person countered it, what difficulties were there, how easily was the fight ended, if the opponent strong enough to give the other a run for his money, etc... It is a knack of knowing when and where to put in detail that brings the fight alive. To make things easier, say a muggle was looking on at a wizard duel. He would have absolutely no clue what is going on, other than what he sees and hears. The shouts of “Expelliarmus!” and “Avada Kedavra” will mean nothing to him until he sees the effects. If your main character is say a first year, he will be in a sense of awe and wonder, and most likely very frightened. Everything should be amplified to the point where he/ she feels helpless, and maybe desperate to get out of the way. If the perspective is based around a seasoned wizard, in that same exact fight, the atmosphere would change: he/she would try to keep his head on, and their determination and experience will be evident in his movements and actions, the fight will have a more ‘balanced’ feel to it. Making a first year see the climax of good vs. evil should not come across as ‘just another fight.’ It should be terrifying, and your descriptions should represent that as far as your imagination can take you. Spell casting Spell casting in the Harry Potter universe has been depicted as simply using wands to direct magic curses, jinxes and charms in the pointed direction. To use these effectively, the books must be like second nature to you, the fan fiction author. I won’t list all the spells I know JKR used and have invented, but what makes fan fiction interesting is making up new stuff. Even though your imagination is limitless, try to keep the new ideas and spells in touch with the world she has created. Going way past the scope of the particular limitations JKR has set is a turn off. If in your fic Harry suddenly runs down the road and begins to fly- that’s a turn off. If you want him to fly, come up with a plot that eventually shows how he has achieved this. Now, for spell casting it is not imperative, but please be original in the use of your spells. JKR has a tried and tested formula but be inventive and make it come alive in your own manner. Use different spells other than the obvious ones like the Stunning spell, the Expelliarmus spell (even though they are duelling fundamentals) and the unforgivable curses. Even if you do use them, use them sparingly, and use the killing spells with a conviction of hatred and utter malevolence. Using it nonchalantly doesn’t make sense, because the nature of the spell is supposed to be deeper than that. A good fight will have the twists and turns of the unexpected. Using the wrong spell is a good way of showing that nothing is set in stone. There will be mistakes, there will be miniscule openings for the killer blow, and there will be great combinations of spell casting and just pure grit and guts. What makes the fight good is making the reader cheer on your hero, and utterly despise your villain. But what makes a fight great, is the prospect that anything could happen. And the outcome will only be realised when the climax is complete, and your reader can breather once again. Suck them into the world, and then you have succeeded in writing a good battle.
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