#671

How to Write a Fight Scene (Rebloggable Version)

Admin Note: This post is a rebloggable copy of our page on fight scenes. The page is being phased out, so from now on all updates will be made on this post and not on the page. 

Among the typically difficult scenes writers face in their stories, the fight scene definitely ranks high on the list. Below you will find several resources with tips for writing a good fight scene.

Action with a Side of Zombies: One of our articles focused specifically on writing action scenes. Bonus:  the examples all include zombies.

ArchetypesAndAllusions: An article on the three main types of fighters and their various approaches to kickin’ ass (or not).

TheCreativePenn.com: Alan Baxter, speculative fiction author, gives some great advice on characterization, setting, martial style, and cliches. 

StoryHack.com: A PDF that takes you through writing a fight scene step by step by Randy Ingermanson, compiled by Bryce Beattie.

MarilynnByerly.com: An extremely good guide to writing fight scenes. This guide includes tips on character viewpoint, mapping the fight, and tricks for writing each type of fight. 

Shelfari.com: This site is an interview with famed fantasy author R.A. Salvatore on how to write great fight scenes.

TheBusinessOfWriting: C. Patrick Schulze gives some good, solid advice on identifying and writing your fight scene.

EzineArticles.com: Marq McAlister explains how to make a fight scene pack some serious punch. This article is good for fine-tuning.

Martin Turner: Focusing specifically on sword-fighting scenes, Martin Turner writes in great detail on every conceivable detail of this type of time-honored fight scene. 

SeriousPixie.com: Susan tells you about the three types of fight scene writers and explains how to fix the problems that arise for each type.

David Alan Lucus: This multi-part guide gives advice in exhaustive detail on how to write an awesome fight scene.

NightFoot: This Tumblr post offers some great tips for writing fight scenes.

These links provide advice specifically for writing battle scenes:

Gerri Blanc: eHow’s article on battle scenes is a basic step-by-step list for you. It’s a good introduction to writing battle scenes.

StormTheCastle.com: This article takes you through an in-depth guide on how to write battle scenes for fantasy stories.

Rhonda Leigh Jones: Jones lists some dos and don’ts of writing battle scenes.

Other resources:

List of Martial Arts: Looking for a fighting style? Find it here!

List of Weapons: Every type of weapon you can think of is listed here.

List of Military Tactics: From troop movements to siege warfare, this list has got you covered.

Asylum.com: A few examples of awesome battle tactics from history.

BadassOfTheWeek.com: Get some inspiration for awesome fight scenes and fighting characters from this compendium of badassitude.

Thearmedgentleman: Austin has offered to share his knowledge on weaponry with any writers who have questions. Thanks, Austin! 

We hope this helps! If you have another link or a tip for how to write fight/battle scenes, hit up our ask box and let us know!

"She wrote the damn book! He didn't have to die!"

Oh honey.

You don’t understand how this works, do you?

A light for those who need it in times of darkness.

I got my major fandoms in here holding a beacon of light for anyone who needs it in times of sadness and despair  I wish I had a chance to fit a few more fandoms in.

To write a book is more than write your words on a sheet of paper. In every book you can find a story of a person. Don’t laugh about them, ‘cause one day it can be your own story.

Fourth Wall Bakery: The Beginning

“Welcome to Fourth Wall Bakery, where we bust down the walls of reality to make every culinary dream come true, how can I help you today?”

I am proud of that slogan, and will still bask in a small glow of pride if someone remembers my name because of it. It was the beginning of what would come to be a very interesting start to my writing career. Surprisingly enough, the job I created that slogan for, and the business that I was a part of for a few years thereafter, had nothing to do with my long time ambition of becoming a published author. It was made for a bakery, the realized dream of one of my best friends, and I had no idea I would ever come to be part of the staff when I created. Come to think of it, I don’t think I had any sort of decent clue as to what those few words would come to mean for my future. Or that, in a way, they would actually come to create it.

Emily, a girl who I had known since early childhood, had come upon a bit of luck. Recently graduating from culinary school, she had been fortunate enough to come into contact with a retiring business owner who had a building in Harvard Square. The old woman used to own a restaurant. It was what they called ‘A mom and pop joint’ where every regular was known by name and every order was practically memorized. It was a beloved place, but the woman who started it all was nearing her 90’Th birthday, and had decided that that year was going to mark the start of her lifelong dream of traveling the world. Emily’s mother had been one of those usual customers. She hated the thought of letting a building with such personal history go to waste. So she worked out a deal with the owner, convinced her to sell, and gave the place to her daughter. Emily had just graduated and was wondering how to start out in the culinary world with a bang. She got her opportunity.

Meanwhile, I was a struggling English Major who needed a job that paid better than minimum wage with hours I could handle without collapsing. At the time, I had two part-time jobs and had been forced to cut my classes from five to two in order to pay the bills. It meant my college education would take a lot longer than I thought it would, and the bills would be around longer than I wanted. I was living with my older sister Lily, and together we made just enough to get by, with a little help from some very supportive parents. But getting by wasn’t enough anymore. I needed to get ahead, and come the end of that school year I was desperate for anything that might do the trick.

Emily had mentioned her good fortune once before, and I was there when the old owner of the building signed over the deed. Emily and I went out to lunch afterwards to celebrate. It was then that she told me of a small dilemma she had been stressing over since she knew the building was going to come into her possession. 

She had her menu, and she had the image of what she wanted in her mind. She just had no idea how to go about getting news out to the general public. Oh she had fliers and posters and pamphlets ready to be sent out. There was just one thing that she felt was missing. A name that would stand out on the street, and a catchy slogan that would stay with people long after they had walked out the door. That day she had been completely frustrated with her lack of creativity on the subject and jokingly offered me a hundred dollars if I could make up one for her. I had jokingly responded with the line at the top of the page.

I hadn’t expected her to like it. In fact, I expected her to scoff, laugh a little, and throw a rolled napkin at my head. It was not a serious suggestion. The name and catchphrase had been created years ago when I had been writing a story with a main character that was actually loosely based on Emily herself. This main character of mine owned a bakery, and that was what his employees answered the phones with. That was actually all I had managed to write down, and the idea was scrapped very quickly due to loss of interest and ideas. It was ironic that I had found use for it outside of that fictional world that never made it to full growth, and I figured Emily might get a kick out of the humor of the situation. Then she could calm down long enough to come up with something that would suit her business. I never thought she would take me seriously.

But, then, she stopped every single movement. She looked at me intensely, eyes more focused than I had ever seen them, before beaming as brightly as any star. I had to fight the urge to look away. Partly because it would have been rude, but also because I was curious. What had I said to cause such a sudden reaction? A second later I got my answer. She proclaimed an absolute love for the idea and promised to immediately put it on her advertisement merchandise. I walked away confused and a hundred dollars richer. How silly of me to think that that was the end of it.

She didn’t talk to me about her new place until a couple of months later. During that time, she had scoured the entire city looking for people to hire, remodel, and get the building into working order. I wouldn’t know until years later, but many of the applicants sent in never even got close to being a part of Emily’s vision. There was always something about them she didn’t like. Most of the time, she said they weren’t a very big believer. They were too practical in everything they did. While that was good for one or two employees, the majority of them had to be able to dream outside the box. It made sense. Baking had become a major art form, and practical wasn’t exactly in demand these days. It figured Emily would want some of the more creative individuals at her beck and call. Though, I had a hard time believing that she couldn’t find a decent portion of the creative population in Boston. I thought she may have been a bit too picky for her own good. She responded by telling me that the type of believers she needed were in short supply. I smiled and agreed for her benefit.

Fourth Wall Bakery opened up another two months later. In the end, Emily had chosen only the people she had known all her life, and a couple of people she was taking a chance on, to be a part of her living dream. Two more bakers named Nicole and Ellie, a financial adviser named Charlie, manager Chris, assistant manager William, and secretary Jewel. All that was needed before business really began, Emily said the night before the opening day, was a delivery boy. I, who had been one of the people invited to the good luck party, simply laughed and asked if she had anyone in mind. She smiled, handed me a drink, and sometime between the congratulations and good nights, I had somehow agreed to be this 'delivery boy’ she had in mind. I may have minded at the time, but later on I realized it wasn’t so bad. The pay was good, I knew the people, and the city was one I adored. What could possibly go wrong?

A word to the wise. Never ask that question when you’re not prepared for the answers you’ll receive. Sometimes the results are a lot stranger than any story you could ever concoct yourself.

"All My Friends Are Dead,"

an autobiography by Merlin Emrys.

Dedicated to Dr. John Watson

Preface by The Doctor.

Epilogue by Dean Winchester.

hush little laptop dont you cry. Mommy’s gonna find you some more wifi.

“You cannot solve a problem with the same mind that created it.”

— Albert Einstein (via fearlessnotreckless)

Let's use APOSTROPHES correctly :D

So, as the title shows, it’s time we have a little lesson on apostrophes in general. We could all use it ;)

(Sorry about the LONG post. Whenever I put it under “Read More” the article no longer appears.)

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Rule 1

Use the apostrophe with contractions. The apostrophe is always placed at the spot where the letter(s) has been removed.

Examples: don’t, isn’t  You’re right.  She’s a great teacher.

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Rule 2

Use the apostrophe to show possession. Place the apostrophe before the s to show singular possession.

Examples: one boy’s hat one woman’s hat  one actress’s hat  one child’s hat  Ms. Chang’s house

NOTE: Although names ending in s or an s sound are not required to have the second sadded in possessive form, it is preferred.

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Examples: Mr. Jones’s golf clubs Texas’s weather  Ms. Straus’s daughter Jose Sanchez’s artwork  Dr. Hastings’s appointment (name is Hastings) Mrs. Lees’s books (name is Lees)

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Rule 3

Use the apostrophe where the noun that should follow is implied.

Example: This was his father’s, not his, jacket.

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Rule 4

To show plural possession, make the noun plural first. Then immediately use the apostrophe.

Examples: two boys’ hats two women’s hats  two actresses’ hats two children’s hats  the Changs’ house the Joneses’ golf clubs  the Strauses’ daughter the Sanchezes’ artwork  the Hastingses’ appointment  the Leeses’ books

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Rule 5

Do not use an apostrophe for the plural of a name.

Examples: We visited the Sanchezes in Los Angeles. The Changs have two cats and a dog.

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Rule 6

With a singular compound noun, show possession with ’s at the end of the word.

Example: my mother-in-law’s hat

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Rule 7

If the compound noun is plural, form the plural first and then use the apostrophe.

Example:  my two brothers-in-law’s hats

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Rule 8

Use the apostrophe and s after the second name only if two people possess the same item.

Examples: Cesar and Maribel’s home is constructed of redwood. Cesar’s and Maribel’s job contracts will be renewed next year. Indicates separate ownership. Cesar and Maribel’s job contracts will be renewed next year. Indicates joint ownership of more than one contract.

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Rule 9

Never use an apostrophe with possessive pronouns: his, hers, its, theirs, ours, yours, whose. They already show possession so they do not require an apostrophe.

Correct: This book is hers, not yours.

Incorrect: Sincerely your’s.

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Rule 10

The only time an apostrophe is used for it’s is when it is a contraction for it is or it has.

Examples: It’s a nice day. It’s your right to refuse the invitation. It’s been great getting to know you.

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Rule 11

The plurals for capital letters and numbers used as nouns are not formed with apostrophes.

Examples: She consulted with three M.D.s. BUT She went to three M.D.s’ offices. The apostrophe is needed here to show plural possessive. She learned her ABCs. the 1990s not the 1990’s the ’90s or the mid-’70s not the ‘90’s or the mid-‘70’s She learned her times tables for 6s and 7s.

Exception: Use apostrophes with capital letters and numbers when the meaning would be unclear otherwise.

Examples: Please dot your i’s. You don’t mean is. Ted couldn’t distinguish between his 6’s and 0’s.  You need to use the apostrophe to indicate the plural of zero or it will look like the word Os. To be consistent within a sentence, you would also use the apostrophe to indicate the plural of6’s.

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Rule 12

Use the possessive case in front of a gerund (-ing word).

Examples: Alex’s skating was a joy to behold. This does not stop Joan’s inspecting of our facilities next Thursday.

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Rule 13

If the gerund has a pronoun in front of it, use the possessive form of that pronoun.

Examples: I appreciate your inviting me to dinner. I appreciated his working with me to resolve the conflict.

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SOURCE (CLICK HERE)

-H