Are your conflicts important and interesting? It is no secret
that conflict drives stories. The conflict may be clear and
specific (a meteor is going to destroy the planet!) or
understated and perhaps not even overtly discussed (Ed feels
like a failure). Whatever the case, conflict is at the core of
any story. Something should be or absolutely needs to be
resolved, and dealing with that conflict is what the story is
about. Because of the central conflict, a number of smaller
conflicts emerge. Here are some central points to consider when
approaching conflict in a story: Why does it matter? What about
the conflict in the story makes it important, both to the
characters and to the reader? When the meteor is approaching
earth, there’s a pretty good reason to try to resolve the
conflict. Death is on the line. A planet in peril is a major
conflict.. But most story conflicts aren’t quite that easily
identified with. For example, if you write about a forty-year
old man who is committed to losing fifty pounds and run