Conflict Triple Threat!

or using three levels of conflict to create unforgettable stories

Every memorable narrative, at its core, is built on conflict. To clarify, I don’t mean big over the top arguments or a really bad guy doing really bad things – I’m talking about all those opposing forces that create tension, show your reader/viewer the stakes, and present potential for growth and transformation.

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Regardless if you’re writing your family history narrative, a memoir, or good ‘ole fiction, conflict is what drives a story narrative forward. It’s what pulls us in and makes us hang on until the end.

But, it’s important to know, not all conflict is created equal.

Since I opened this article stating what conflict isn’t, let’s take a second to discuss what conflict is.

The most captivating stories—the ones readers can't put down, viewers can’t turn off and both can't stop thinking about long after the story has ended, have masterfully weaved together three distinct layers of conflict: External, Internal, and Existential.