Seven Secrets of Strong Conflict
In Classic Dramatic structure there are three types of conflict:
Man against nature (External) Example: the movie Twister - the tornado
Man against man (External) Example: the movie the Fugitive - Kimball vs Gerard
Man against himself (Internal) Example: the movie Liar, Liar - struggle to tell the truth
External Conflict:
This conflict arises from the characters' wants or desires for an external goal. Ideally, this goal should be in direct opposition to another character(s)' goal(s). If you can see it, touch it, taste it, hear it or smell it - that means it's external.
Internal Conflict:
Internal conflict is the character's own emotional roadblocks; it's what keeps the characters from learning their life lesson. Internal conflict is emotional conflict.
How to Develop Conflict:
The writer must lay a foundation for conflict, by creating believable goals for the characters, by deeply-rooting the characters' motivations and by nurturing the conflict to the inevitable crisis or climax.
Each step the characters take towards their goals should place them in greater jeopardy. Escalate the events in your story, introduce obstacles - each more difficult than the last.
Resolution of Conflict
How your character resolves the conflict should have the biggest emotional impact on your reader, of anything in your book. The resolution is the big payoff for which your readers have been waiting. Require the character to grow or sacrifice. To take a risk.
The external conflict usually reveals or causes the black moment, but it is the character's internal growth which will resolve the big black moment.
SEVEN SECRETS OF STRONG CONFLICT
Secret #1: The best books often combine at least two of the three types of conflict.
Secret #2: Each character must risk something they hold dear.
Secret #3: Multi-layered conflict creates more worry for the reader and gives a story depth.
Secret #4: Deeply-rooted motivation sets the stage for strong conflict.
Secret #5: The conflict must be strong enough to sustain the reader's interest throughout the story.
Secret #6: Strong conflict also has a sense of urgency.
Secret #7: One of the keys to strong conflict is the ability to have the internal and external conflicts interdependent upon each other.
Bibliography/Reference books:
GMC: Goal, Motivation, and Conflict, The Building Blocks of Good Fiction by Debra Dixon, Gryphon Books for Writers. ISBN#: 0-9654371-0-8
Techniques of The Selling Writer by Dwight V. Swain, University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN#: 0-8061-1191-7.
Copyright 1999 Meredith March