I ran this workshop at Capclave 2018, but somehow never found the chance to get the workshop published online. Well, it’s now available on Slideshare.net, plus I have it embedded above.
Here’s my description for the workshop:
Does your story come to a screeching halt every time there’s a fight scene? Do readers think your fight scenes are…tedious…instead of exciting? How realistic should your fight be? Discover how real people react to violence, and how you can use this information to make your conflict more believable. Learn how to craft fight scenes that engage your readers, advance your plot, and reveal character.
It’s really almost two workshops in one. It’s a two-hour class with the first hour oriented around educating participants about violence, adrenaline, and a high-level view of how violence works. The first part is interactive, with opportunities for participants to decide how they should act in several real-life situations.
Having learned some things about violence in the first half, the second half of the workshop focuses on a logical framework for crafting fight scenes. It also includes tips and exercises for amping up the excitement level of a fight scene and is accompanied by one writing exercise and one interactive exercise.
It’s an ambitious workshop covering a pretty broad area, but it was also well-received by my audience. I hope others find it useful.
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