The best fight scene advice I can give you is: Violence is fast.
People, who have been in an accident, don't say "It happened so fast!" for no reason.
When you're describing a fight, do not make paragraphs. Like already said, battles are supposed to be well-paced.
One of the most important aspects of writing is the language. The words you use can make a huge difference. When writing a fight scene, you should always go for the strongest verbs.
For example:
She punched him hard in the gut.
This doesn't sound bad, but as you might notice the adjective "hard" carries the weight of the action. There is nothing wrong with that, but the vocabulary is pretty simple and gets boring to read over time.
Instead, we could try something like this:
She slammed a fist into his gut.
This version is more catchy and gives the action an aggressive touch.
Also, try to cut out articles and conjunctions. By doing this, the subject and verb are closer, which makes the scene faster.
The finished sentence could then look like this:
She tried to throw a punch at his face. He dodged aside, twisted, ramming his elbow into her ribcage.
That was some basic stuff, regarding the wording. Now I have some more general stuff for you:
In a fight, you don't really think. A skilled fighter doesn't remember techniques. They just trained them to be the first response.
I'm going to talk about adrenaline some more later, but what I can tell now is, that it makes you stupid, as the body is on full survival mode.
Cut the description of the surroundings. If your character is in a fight, they won't give a fuck about the thick curtains of ivy on the walls, or what kind of stone the floor is made off.
This kind of description should be done before the actual fight starts.
On the other hand, you should hone in hard on your character's body. This not only includes the awareness of pain or of being hit, but also the movement and coordination of their muscles and how they are working together.
You can also include their breathing or potential exhaustion.
And lastly, the five rules of fighting:
1. Never move back in a straight line. Always move side to side
2. Never set long enough for your opponet to think about what to do
3. Redirect. Never take your opponent's energy head on.
4. Fight your opponent as he fights you. Take his confidence away from his weapons.
5. Place your opponent where you want him. Discover his habits by testing his reactions under pressure.
YOU ARE READING
Fightclub - A writer's guide to fighting, pain and injury
ActionIf you want action in your story, you write a fight scene. But how does that work again? And how the hell do I describe pain and an injury? How much does this hurt? Is that even realistic? If you've been asking yourself those questions and more, you...