Conflict
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Conflict is the central tension or struggle that drives a story forward. It may be an obstacle, an opposing force, or difficult problem a storyteller must deal with, respond to, or overcome. A story without conflict is simply recounting a sequence of events. While it’s still a story – we tell each other stories all the time that lack conflict – it will struggle to maintain an audience’s interest. When there is tension, we want to know what happens next.
In personal storytelling, conflict doesn’t need to be extreme to be effective. It might be a medical diagnosis, a financial hardship, a fragile relationship. The conflict might also be internal, such as doubt about our future, struggling with competing desires, or having to make a difficult decision. Oftentimes, a personal story will contain both elements: an external circumstance that is connected to an internal reckoning.
Conflicts may resolve neatly, but that’s not always the case. Real life frequently involves conflicts that are only partially settled. By being honest about that complexity, personal stories will feel more truthful and more relatable to an audience, as they have most likely faced similarly unresolved conflicts.
A personal story may focus on one central conflict, or there may be a number of conflicts in play that create layers of complexity to the characters’ actions and motivations. Such stories can be powerful in how they portray the messiness of life, but if there is too much going on in one story the audience may be confused as to the overarching message the story is meant to convey.
Examples
“The lump was small, my doctor said, probably nothing, but ‘probably’ became the word I couldn’t stop turning over in my head for the six weeks between that appointment and the biopsy results.”
“I wanted the promotion more than I’d wanted anything in years, and I also knew, quietly, that taking it meant admitting I’d stopped wanting the life I’d built to raise my kids close to home.”
“Staying meant honoring the promise I’d made to my father before he died. Leaving meant finally honoring the promise I’d made to myself. I couldn’t keep both.”
“We never actually fixed things between us before she passed. I used to think that made our story a failure, but I’ve come to believe some conflicts just stay open, and that’s allowed to be part of the story too.”
“The company was downsizing, and everyone knew layoffs were coming, but the real conflict wasn’t whether I’d keep my job – it was whether I even wanted to keep pretending I still cared about it.”
these resources will make it more impactful!
The Essential Literary Techniques
The Essential Literary Elements
The Essential Literary Devices
Ten Fundamental Story Blocks