Kent at [log in to unmask] will take care of it. DC "Charli.M.Weir-1" wrote: > How do i get off of the PWA-L Mailing list???? > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "deborah a. chester" <[log in to unmask]> > Date: Monday, February 16, 2004 9:46 am > Subject: Re: [PWA-L] Combat! > > > The amount of detail depends on the stakes in the combat scene. If > > everything is on the line for the viewpoint character, then naturally > > more detail is expected, because instinctively readers understand that > > length can/should indicate the degree of importance. On the other > > hand,if it's just another slog in the gladiator arena, skim over > > the thing. > > As for the fight scene in Hamlet, the emotion and sacrifice were the > > thing, not every en quarte, parry, and riposte. > > > > Another factor is taste. Just how gruesome do you want to be? I > > landedThe Alien Chronicles book deal because I can write exciting > > actionwithout spilling entrails all over the page. Brutality and > > gore, just > > for the sake of it, is gratuitous and unnecessary. > > > > DC > > > > Kent Graham wrote: > > > > > A member of the historical fiction mail list posed this question > > -- in > > > part -- yesterday. I can think of several responses, ranging from > > > philosophical to technical > > > > > > "If there is anything in our [human] history, that is always > > > present, is combat. Wars, fights, quarrels are > > > something never gone. But how do you describe this > > > kind of violence?" > > > > > > <snip, in which he complains about how few pages Tolkien uses to > > > describe combat, as opposed to how many he uses to describe walking > > > around and climbing mountains> > > > > > > " I think readers want to read about details when it > > > comes to fighting. If I were to write something > > > similar to The last Samurai (which is a movie, I > > > know), I would describe every move, every gesture, > > > every thrust of the sword. I wouldn't do something > > > like Shakespeare in Hamlet: "Hamlet and Laertes > > > fought." > > > > > > What do you think? How much is needed? Is it desirable to > > > describe "...every move, every gesture, > > > every thrust of the sword"? And if so, how do we describe it? > > > > > > Scribite! > > > kent > >