What’s the difference between conflict and tension? And why is knowing so important in writing? Because they are so very different. Although they are intimately connected – you really can’t have one without the other – they come from different places. Understanding – and utilizing both in the correct ways – can shoot a boring book into the stratosphere. We just have to figure out how they both work.
So, first a quick explanation:
What is conflict?
Conflict is the setup of a book. It’s the human nature tangles of arguments, struggles, battles, skirmishes, clashes, quarrels, tiffs, wrangles, spats, disputes! Why? Because we humans are so darned good at it!
In real life, we at least pretend to avoid conflict and we try for peace, again and again.
Which is the right thing to do in real life.
But books are different. The stories we tell MUST have conflict. Maybe, just maybe, it’s because we need to see struggles between others to learn to deal with problems ourselves.
So, in the movie, Up (Pixar, 2009, animated, Ed Asner starred), Carl has just lost his beloved wife. Her dream was for them to go to Paradise Falls. Carl decides to go on his own. His conflicts abound, from taking on an unexpected passenger, to finding a megalomanic explorer who is willing to kill to prove a theory.
That’s conflict. It’s a set of plot points that take us from the beginning of the story, where Carl doesn’t know how to accomplish his goal, to the end where he is forced to make a choice.
But it’s NOT tension.
In fact, the entire story could be told in a paragraph (like I just did) if it weren’t for the tension. Tension is absolutely essential to storytelling. Not always life-or-death conflict, mind you. But certainly something that is interesting to watch.
Tension is how the conflict is laid out, with each step along the way raising the temperature. Each step sets up the next episode of conflict. And the final step is a big explosive confrontation between your protagonist and his nemesis – whether internal or external – which leads us to a satisfying ending.
Tension. Conflict. Problems.
Interesting!
Another example is Misery by Stephen King. Paul Sheldon, a well-known writer, is injured in an accident in a remote area of Colorado and is rescued by a woman – Annie – who is his biggest fan. She nurses him back to health with the pain killer, Novril, but at one point:
He discovered three things almost simultaneously, about ten days after having emerged from the dark cloud. The first was that Annie Wilkes had a great deal of Novril (she had, in fact, a great many drugs of all kinds). The second was that he was hooked on Novril. The third was that Annie Wilkes was dangerously crazy.
Oh my gosh! King is really brilliant, even if you don’t read horror. He knows so well how to keep an audience engaged from the first to the very last word. By this time, I’m so worried about Paul Sheldon, I can’t wait to see what happens next. Even when it completely creeps me out!
The conflict is that Annie wants Paul to resurrect the protagonist of his books. She’ll do whatever it takes. But Paul is being held prisoner and, even though he almost escapes, she crushes his ankles and forces him to write the story the way she wants. Paul’s only goal is to get away from the crazy woman. Tension grows as we watch, piece by piece, as Annie nurses him, keeping him comfortable, and making him feel safe. But each sentence and paragraph unveils her mental illness. She gives him too many drugs too often. She makes demands. She finally plans to kill him. But Paul is able to get away.
Tension is what carries this tale.
Layer upon layer of tension drives the conflict, as the conflict directs the path the story goes. We set up the conflict – Annie’s goal against Paul’s goal – and tension provides the “push” to the next conflict. Go back to the quote. Paul first tells us the conflict in this short scene. Annie is giving him drugs and he’s hooked on them. Then, even though it’s not in this quote, we know he’s in danger. The door opens and Annie comes in with a tray. On it are the pills Paul knows he’ll be forced to take, both because she will make him and because he’s craving them. He has no real choice but to do what she wants.
That sets up the next conflict. His goal is to get away and he has to figure out a way to do it. Of course, she’s standing in the way, with each action she takes amping up the tension. He’s caught in a trap. And his life is on the line.
Tension is essential.
Tension is absolutely necessary (did I beat that horse enough?)
Tension comes from both inside and outside your protagonist:
Internal – what drives him or her
External – what happens to him or her
There are also two basic levels of tension:
Global – as in the actual set-up of your story
Scene by scene – as in what happens in each scene
Tension is not about car wrecks and sword fights. It’s about things that happen to your characters and how they react to them.
Tension is not boring!
Think about how you can build tension in your story. Wrap it around the internal goals and motivations and conflicts of your characters. Think about how they will react in different situations. Build tension so that readers will keep turning those pages!
How do you express tension?
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About Sarah (Sally)
Sarah (Sally) Hamer, B.S., MLA, is a lover of books, a teacher of writers, and a believer in a good story. Most of all, she is eternally fascinated by people and how they 'tick'. She’s passionate about helping people tell their own stories and has won awards at both local and national levels, including two Golden Heart finals.
A teacher of memoir, beginning and advanced creative fiction writing, and screenwriting at Louisiana State University in Shreveport for over twenty years, she also teaches online for Margie Lawson at www.margielawson.com and for the No Stress Writing Academy at https://www.worldanvil.com/w/classes-deleyna/a/no-stress-writing-academy. Sally is a free-lance editor and book coach, with many of her students and clients becoming successful, award-winning authors.
Thank you, Sally, for a straightforward delineation between conflict and tension - crucial understanding for ... all walks of life, in truth, not just writers.
Although my main characters in World Beyond the Song (WBTS) ride their own arcs of tension stemming from motivations and wounds, they all are neatly/messily(?) wrapped around external conflicts of alien first contact, government secrets, new world habitation, and yadda yadda.
It's weaving the internal and external conflicts among internal and external tensions that makes writing so doggone fun for me ... among other things, of course.
Sally thank you for this explanation. I wish I had this earlier in my writing career. It took forever for me to get the difference between conflict and tension. Figuring that out was the key for me to be able to write engaging stories.
One of the things I need to do in my WIP to build tension is make my main character seem less self-assured. If Paul knew he could escape, there wouldn't be any tension. This is how characterization plays into it. Doing this is not as easy as it sounds though. Because, he has to feel capable at some points or his attempt to do things wouldn't be believable. The key is to get the reader to believe they may not succeed.
You might to try giving him harder and harder obstacles to overcome. Tension is like climbing a mountain, with steps getting harder. But don't forget the rest periods between. They give the character -- and the audience-- a chance to breathe and think.
That way, you can have Paul conquer some challenges and fail at others as he goes.
Good article. When I think about tension, I think about fear and uncertainty. Fears for a character's safety, fears for what might happen next. These are usually defined or intimated beforehand for the reader's benefit. Maybe the main character is aware of the specific risks (their internal tension), or maybe only the antagonist knows (your reader's tension). Either way, it elevates the scene.
Whether it's the long story (main plot) or the short stories (sub-plots), conflict and tension go hand-in-hand to draw readers into exploring every nook and cranny. In my novels, with ensemble casts and personalized sub-plots, I try to infuse individual scenes with unexpected elements, from choice of characters to small twists, to keep readers engaged. You can elevate any scene's conflict and tension just by the choices you make.
You lay out the problem I'm experiencing as I edit my children's mystery novel. Thank you for your insight into a crucial element of a mystery.
I'm so glad it is helping you, Beth. I know how it helped me in the last story I wrote -- it's almost like magic to raise the bar.
Thanks for the comment!
Thank you, Sally, for a straightforward delineation between conflict and tension - crucial understanding for ... all walks of life, in truth, not just writers.
Although my main characters in World Beyond the Song (WBTS) ride their own arcs of tension stemming from motivations and wounds, they all are neatly/messily(?) wrapped around external conflicts of alien first contact, government secrets, new world habitation, and yadda yadda.
It's weaving the internal and external conflicts among internal and external tensions that makes writing so doggone fun for me ... among other things, of course.
Thank you for a great explanation!
Jennifer
Writing should be fun, Jennifer! And you're so right -- understanding how life works through our writing is such a blessing!
Thanks!
Sally thank you for this explanation. I wish I had this earlier in my writing career. It took forever for me to get the difference between conflict and tension. Figuring that out was the key for me to be able to write engaging stories.
And, they are engaging! Honestly, I think wrapping our head around tension is one of the hardest parts of writing.
Thanks, Lynette!
One of the things I need to do in my WIP to build tension is make my main character seem less self-assured. If Paul knew he could escape, there wouldn't be any tension. This is how characterization plays into it. Doing this is not as easy as it sounds though. Because, he has to feel capable at some points or his attempt to do things wouldn't be believable. The key is to get the reader to believe they may not succeed.
You might to try giving him harder and harder obstacles to overcome. Tension is like climbing a mountain, with steps getting harder. But don't forget the rest periods between. They give the character -- and the audience-- a chance to breathe and think.
That way, you can have Paul conquer some challenges and fail at others as he goes.
Thanks!
Good article. When I think about tension, I think about fear and uncertainty. Fears for a character's safety, fears for what might happen next. These are usually defined or intimated beforehand for the reader's benefit. Maybe the main character is aware of the specific risks (their internal tension), or maybe only the antagonist knows (your reader's tension). Either way, it elevates the scene.
Whether it's the long story (main plot) or the short stories (sub-plots), conflict and tension go hand-in-hand to draw readers into exploring every nook and cranny. In my novels, with ensemble casts and personalized sub-plots, I try to infuse individual scenes with unexpected elements, from choice of characters to small twists, to keep readers engaged. You can elevate any scene's conflict and tension just by the choices you make.
All good points, Jerold. And lots of good information.
Thanks for the comment!