Becca Puglisi of the Writers Helping Writers blog continues her blog tour with a stop at C.S. Lakin’s site, bringing another view of conflict. In this article, she examines how to use inner conflict in concert with outward obstacles to further a character arc.
“It’s not surprising that the internal pieces are the hardest to nail down,” Puglisi writes. “These are subtle, and very often, they’re actively being hidden or suppressed by the character. But the inner motivation becomes obvious when you start looking for their missing human need.”
Human needs are the qualities we need to develop in order to be fulfilled. This may be something as broad as a search for meaning in life, or something specific, such as a moral need to be more truthful. “When any of these needs are unmet, subliminal warning bells start going off. And the bigger that unmet need grows, the more motivated the character will become to fill the void,” Puglisi explains. “The drive to regain a missing human need will often become their inner motivation—the reason they’re pursuing the outer story goal.”
Once you understand what’s missing from your character, it should become easier to explore your character arc and fill in events that challenge your character’s weakness. What goals will they pursue? What external obstacles arise because of their need?
Puglisi also offers tips for figuring out your character’s internal conflict. She recommends you consider opposing desires, fears, confused feelings, challenges to their core beliefs or values, or some other kind of indecision or self-doubt. “These are places where they’re always fighting with themselves—or places they consistently avoid or deny,” Puglisi explains. “Identifying those areas can help you narrow the field of possibilities for your character’s main source of internal conflict. Then it’s a matter of finding the perfect one to fit your character and their story.”
