Conflict

For the longest time, it seemed that characters in epic fantasy were either entirely good or entirely bad, with no room whatsoever for ambiguity. Well, it was fantasy, after all. In the real world, of course, very few of us are one or the other. For those of us paradoxically craving more reality in our fantasy, craving more ambiguity, the arrival of authors like Glen Cook, George R. R. Martin, Steven Erikson, Joe Abercrombie, and Tad Williams et al has been glorious.  Now we have characters to whose contradictory moods and motives we can relate!

It’s been said that there are three types of dramatic conflict: Man vs. Man, Man vs. the Environment, and Man vs. Self.  A really good yarn will have all three. An example of Man vs. Man would be the old western shoot out, the samurai battle, or the jousting tournament. A character struggling against an avalanche, a blizzard or a wildfire would be Man vs. the Environment. To me, the most interesting struggle has always been Man vs. Self. From Oedipus to Hamlet, and from Sydney Carton to Tyrion Lannister, Man vs. Self gives us all a scenario we can easily recognize and with which we can all empathize.

I hope and believe you’ll find every kind of struggle and conflict in Immortal Treachery, and I’d love to chat about your questions or observations.