Getting Sweaty with Your Clothes On: How to Write Action Scenes
By S.L. Armstrong

No matter what genre you write, eventually, you’ll find yourself staring down the barrel of an action scene. Maybe it’s a fight, maybe a chase scene, or maybe it’s just the race to get to the airport before the character’s one true love leaves them forever. Whatever the reason for it, the action scene is a fast-paced way to jump the tension level up in your story, and is a valuable tool to have in your writer’s toolbag. So, what I want to do is offer up a few tips on writing a thrilling and compelling action sequence.

The first way to create a sense of action and motion in your writing is to stick to short, direct sentences. Now is not the time for lengthy descriptions, weighty dialogue, or internal monologues. By using a series of short, almost choppy, statements, you create the illusion of speed. Consider the way sports commentators call a play-by-play:

“Adams passes to Barnett. Back to Adams. Back to Barnett. Barnett sets up the kick. A beautiful block by Carruthers! But Barnett picks it up. Back to Adams. Barnett. Adams. Adams with the kick. GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!”

Now read the same scene written with more elaborate sentences:

“Adams passes the ball to Barnett, who passes it back to Adams. Now Adams passes to Barnett again. Barnett pauses for a moment and stares down the goalie. He’s taking his shot on the goal, but Carruthers, the goalie, leaps in the ball’s path and knocks it away! Barnett chases the ball down and regains control. Now, he passes it to Adams again, but Adams quickly returns the pass to Barnett. Once more, Barnett kicks the ball to Adams. Now it’s Adams lining up for a shot on the goal. He kicks, and the ball slips past Carruthers and into the net!”

Both scenes describe the exact same series of actions, but how much more tedious was the second set than the first? It feels like a much more sedate game. Similarly, the length of your sentences helps to set the pace of your scene. At the same time, though, make sure you include some slightly longer moments that allow your reader to catch their breath, especially if the action continues for more than a few paragraphs. Otherwise, your reader could get too overwhelmed by everything that’s happening and completely lose the thread of the scene.

A second way to ratchet up the tension in your action scene is through the use of dynamic verbs. This would be one of the few good times to lean a little on your thesaurus. Move beyond the standard action verbs into truly active verbs. Look at these two sentences:

GOOD: John McClane ran into the street and jumped onto the hood of the car.
BETTER: John McClane raced into the street and threw himself onto the hood of the car.

As above, the two statements are saying the same thing, but the second uses more visually dynamic verbs. John’s need to catch that car feels more palpable, more visceral, simply because of the choice of words. A six-year-old on a playground runs and jumps; using strong, active verbs ensures that the reader assigns much greater importance to John’s mission than that. On the other hand, you don’t want to delve too deeply into your thesaurus, or too often, or else the constant barrage of flowery verbs can wear down your reader’s patience:

TOO MUCH: John McClane galloped into the street and catapulted onto the hood of the car.

Finally, if you’re having difficulty describing the action sequence unfolding in your mind, don’t be afraid to get out of your chair and act it out! Sometimes, the best way to work out the dynamics of a scene is to physically act them out yourself, and then write that down. Pay attention to the way your body reacts to certain movements. It could be that the way you see it mentally just isn’t the way a body is capable of actually moving!

Keep these tips in mind, and in no time, your action scenes will keep your reader furiously turning the page, anxious for what happens next!

Where you can find S.L. Armstrong:
Website: http://www.slarmstrong.net/
Twitter: @_slarmstrong
Publisher: http://www.stormmoonpress.com/

I’m sorry to say Amazon decided to block the second book in my Mackenzie Twins series, Tempestuous Revelation, this evening. Honestly, I’m surprised this didn’t happen sooner considering that they blocked the first book in the series some time ago. For some reason, the second book somehow escaped their notice until recently.

So for the foreseeable future, any and all stories I pen involving Dom and Mason (including the two already published) will no longer be sold at Amazon. You’ll have to visit one of the other online retailers who don’t censor the titles they sell. I’m most sorry about the inconvenience any of you readers will face when trying to purchase these titles. However, there are direct buy-links available on each story’s webpage here on my website. I hope that helps at least a bit.

My proof copy of Love Hurts (a new anthology that includes a bunch of my short fiction) arrived in the mail today! It’s isn’t available for sale yet, but I bet it’ll be listed on Amazon within the week.

I have brand new covers for Furtive Liaison and Precious Ache.

     

 

 In the coming week, you should see these photos replace the old ones on all the various retail sites.

Believe it or not, the end of the year is upon us. I can hardly believe 2010 is almost over. This year has been both a great and terrible adventure for me. At the top of my great list is being able to weave stories to entertain myself and all of you who spend your hard-earned money to buy my tales. I hope to get back to writing full time as soon as possible.

Below you’ll find a list of the things I accomplished in the last twelve months, as well as what I’d like to do in 2011.

Books released in 2010:

Ebooks:

Reckless Heart
Pool Boy Seduction
After Sunset
Screwed
Tempestuous Revelation
Inestimable Blessings

Paperbacks:

Daywalker Legacy
Falling into Sin
Pyromancer revised and re-released with Lethe Press
Reckless
Inestimable Blessings
Hunger
Reckless Passion

Goals for 2011:

Chicken Ranch series (books 2 and 3)
Mackenzie Brothers series (book 3)
3 stand alone novellas
and
5 short stories

2009 year in review

2008 year in review

I’m no longer sure where I came by this post, but I found it amusing.

You Might Be A Writer if . . .

* You have a hole in the seat of your pajamas and the postman knows . . . but you don’t.
* Romance means finding a way to keep two people apart for at least 10 chapters.
* Herring is always red.
* If you remember to take the trash out, it’s never the right day.
* Character describes an ongoing multiple-personality disorder and not your personal ethics.
* The bookstore cashier knows your full name and phone number by heart, but you have to show ID at the grocery store.
* Internal Conflict has nothing to do with your parents and doesn’t mean you need a shrink.
* External Conflict, once discovered, makes you giddy with excitement.
* Standing on a scale makes you wonder if Olympic Swimming might have been a better career choice.
* Criticism is something you hope for before publication, and try to ignore after publication.
* Feedback doesn’t mean you’re holding the microphone wrong, but can be just as painful.
* Bad memories are a gold mine.
* Dialogue is the manifestation of all the voices jabbering in your head.
* Font has nothing to do with knowledge, but makes you feel technically stupid.
* A Galley isn’t a place to eat on the high seas, but proof you actually sold a book.
* A Hero is a guy you continually try to flaw.
* A Heroine is the gal you keep making miserable.
* Air, water and food are second to chocolate, caffeine, and a really good pen.
* The last conversation you had was with an imaginary person.
* A Hook has nothing to do with fishing, and everything to do with sleep deprivation.
* A Style Guide is not a measure of how good you look, but how much you don’t know.
* A muse is not one word.
* Plot isn’t where the body is buried, but how they died.
* Tone has nothing, and everything, to do with your voice.
* Pacing isn’t a nervous habit
* A script isn’t what Aunt Sally gets filled at the pharmacy, but your blood, sweat, and tears.
* Narrative gives you nightmares about William Shatner
* Outline is not evidence of what size underwear you’re wearing.
* A partial might actually help you earn the money to pay your dental bill.
* Point-of-View really has nothing to do with what you think, but which head you’re in.
* You can’t remember what you last ate, but the empty plate still isn’t washed.
* Proof is easier to plant, than it is to do.
* Setting has absolutely nothing to do with how many you expect for dinner.
* You suddenly break off conversation and start scribbling on anything handy.
* Voice is something you have to discover–no matter how long you’ve been able to speak.
* Blocks are not the foundation of fifty stories.
* Bed and breakfast describes your office space.
* Compliments about your style don’t address the last of the clean laundry you’re currently wearing.

To mark the one year birthday of my Chicken Ranch series, I thought I would share a deleted scene with you guys. This was supposed to be the opening prologue, but it was a little too info-dumpy. This is unedited, since it never made it that far, so please forgive any boo-boos. Otherwise…Enjoy!

Deleted prologue from Chicken Ranch: Hunger

Declan Mayo shivered in the dimming light of evening. Although it was warm, he felt chilled to the bone. Huddling against the unyielding back of a park bench, his mind spun with the implications of what it meant to be homeless.

The day had started out much like every other had since he’d graduated high school the previous June. He’d gotten up, and taken a shower. After breakfast, he dragged his tired ass outside to mow the lawn so his father wouldn’t shit a brick when he came home from work. All the while, with the scorching July sun beating down on his shoulders and the self-propelled lawn mower vibrating under his palms, Declan made plans for the future. In three weeks, he would finally leave for college and he couldn’t wait. The fear of a single misstep around his old man, and suffering the subsequent consequences, was beginning to wear on him.

His father hadn’t always been such a hard ass. Declan had more good memories than bad about his childhood. However, following the death of Declan’s mom the year before, Abe Mayo had grown cold and distant. More often than not, he was drunk or well on his way to intoxicated.

For Declan, it like living with a stranger. He walked on eggshells, waiting for his father to blow up in response to any one of many perceived wrongs that had never bothered the man before. Bidding his time and dreaming of the freedom he would have at college was the only thing that kept Declan’s mouth shut and his demeanor respectful. Since he was depending on his father to pay his tuition, Declan knew better than to piss him off.

All that came to a head when his father came home from work and riffled through Declan’s things in search of a fresh set of batteries for the remote control. Declan came inside to find his father sitting in the recliner facing the door with a beer in one hand and a handful of Declan’s dirty magazines in the other.

The screaming match that followed caused their nearest neighbors to call the police. A cruiser pulled up just as Declan was leaving. His cheek stung with the evidence of his father’s disapproval. With his father’s accusations ringing in his ears, Declan slipped off the property and walked toward town. He didn’t know where he was going or what he would do, but he couldn’t stay home. His father had made his feelings on homosexuality quite clear.

Declan clutched to the backpack containing everything he owned. A blast of wind ruffled his hair and sent a shiver down his spine. His gaze darted around the abandoned park, seeking answers he wasn’t likely to find in the curve of a solid oak tree or the sway of a deserted playground. Shadows closed in on him; the rapidly dwindling light made them appear larger and menacing.

Thunder rumbled, followed by a bright flash of light across the inky night sky. Fat beads of rain tumbled from above, splattering Declan with tear drops as clammy as the ones spilling down his cheeks.

What am I supposed to do now?

Novels are supposed to reach out and grab your attention within a seconds. Author Claire Thompson has generously shared some of her favorite opening lines, as well as a ton of others (including two of mine :)). Swing by Claire’s blog and share your favorite.

http://clairethompsonauthor.blogspot.com/2010/04/it-was-dark-and-stormy-night.html

Reckless Heart, book four in the Reckless series, has found a home with Loose id. I only just finished filling out the paperwork, so this is brand new information. There’s no word on release dates yet, but I’ll let you know the minute that changes.

For those who have been patiently waiting for news on the last book in the Reckless series, I finally have an update and good news for you all. The manuscript is finished and submitted to my editor. It’s much longer than the other stories, coming in at about 40k.

While I’m thrilled to have completed Milo and Cam’s story, I’m a little sad to see the series come to an end. I’ve really enjoyed writing about all the guys in the Reckless universe.