Like life, there’s no lack of conflict in fiction. But we actually enjoy it when we read about it. Yet writers sometimes make things too easy for their characters—having them breeze through the plot without any difficulty. And that’s boring. If there are no obstacles to overcome, the reader won’t have any emotional stake in the story and wouldn’t have any incentive to keep reading.
Having your characters struggle is good. It not only adds to your plot but makes your characters more relatable.
Look at most comic book characters. They have amazing powers and abilities, save the day, but they still have problems. Besides the constant threat of supervillains. They get dumped. Some struggle financially or with addictions. And, in the case of secret identities, they deal with the fallout of lying to their loved ones. The people behind the capes have the same battles that we face.
A perfect example is our favorite genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist—Tony Stark, or better known as Iron Man. He starts out arrogant and self-centered. And even after he changes, he’s still a former alcoholic. And he’s still insanely popular.
“Conflict makes your story what it is.”
Let me repeat that. A character that was literally created as a challenge to make a hero that no one should like, then force them to, is one of the most iconic comic characters in history. All because we see the man behind the suit and the problems he faces every day.
Struggles equal relatability. If a character has problems, it humanizes them. Period.
From a plot standpoint, adversity adds excitement to your book. Will the hero win? Will they find love? Or will they fail and lose everything? If your protagonist doesn’t have any obstacles, it takes away that emotional investment the reader has put into your book.
Imagine if Frodo destroyed The Ring with ease. If he had just walked into Mordor (pun intended). Not only would you cut an epic trilogy down to probably one book, but it wouldn’t be epic anymore. It would be a story about a Hobbit who went on a long hike and threw away a ring. There would be no Nazgûl, no orc armies, and no betrayal from Saruman. Pretty boring, right?
Conflict makes your story what it is. It brings excitement to the table. And it shows your characters in a different light and helps readers connect with them.
So have your characters bleed. Make them stumble and fall. Then have them get back up again. Because nothing is more human than that.
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