Any formula for large scale battle writing? Hi Everybody, am very new, just started on the forum I’m having problems writing large scale Napoleonic Naval Action battles. No problem with small 1v1 but large 20 ships aside types, the writing grinds down to a yawn. The battles can become complex so more like a world build rather than a straight fight scene if that makes sense? I’m well read on the era and funny enough most fiction author’s like Pat O’Brian or C.S Forester shy away from big conflicts. Any suggestions much appreciated Norfolk
Draft. Put in on the page. Organise. And again. And again. Until you achieve 'sense.' Then make it attractive to the eye. Then re-arrange scenes. Send it away. And re-consider. Re-draft. Sulk a while. Make another almost final draft, all the while thinking 'how could I have been so foolish?' See original draft thinking, well actually, it's not so very different. Publish sea battle aged 82.
I don't have a legit formula, but I've read lots of epic warfare stories and I have somewhat of an understanding of how to make it work. One key strategy that I've noticed authors employ is to give their readers a sympathetic point of view. Someone needs to care about the outcome of the battle. More importantly, we need to see them care. When done properly they will provide the emotional stakes. So if you've zoomed out to show us all the glorious destruction taking place, remember to zoom back in—preferably on a character we're invested in—to give us someone to root for.
I'm not sure about Napoleonic era stuff, but just some advice from me would be don't hold back if you think something is too violent or gory, if someone suffers an injury depict it the way you believe or know it would be. Like, considering the era, people would lose limbs or suffer horrendous injuries with the kind of weapons of the time as I understand--especially if like explosives or cannonry is involved--so go into it. Make it clear, war is Hell. Lol um, placing my nihilism aside, welcome to rebel headquarters bro
You don't have to show every single engagement of the battle to sale the scale of it, just focus on your POV character and mention what is it that he sees and hears, I finished reading "With the old breed" a few weeks ago (WWII memoir) and even though the POV is completely focused on the author he sells the scale by mentioning how even if he is not in combat at that moment he can still hear the sound of gunshots. A different option would be to change POV somewhat regularly and show fractions of the battle from different perspectives, I mentioned that I just finished reading a WWII memoir and I'm reading another one, in this case is Band Of Brothers, since the book was made by a guy that spoke with several veterans from the same company he regularly changes POV, even outside of battle. Even though both my examples come from land battles, I don't think naval battles would be all that different, maybe you can track down a memoir from a WWII battleship crew member.
I'd say that you should make it about one or a few people, not the battle or fleets. Tell us their experiences. Perhaps they (and the reader) are surprised by things that have already happened elsewhere on the battlefield, which won't happen if you take an omniscient view. I'd also recommend reading some of Cornwell's Sharpe books if you haven't already - many/most deal with large scale battles from the time. Most are on land, but Sharpe's Trafalgar is exactly what it sounds like.
I only get confused by large scene battles. It just doesn't work well in books. Maybe you can use an image instead?
Sure it does. But who is your narrator? And who is your audience? A foot soldier would not have knowledge of what's happening on a larger scale but they may hear snippets of information and through those the reader will be able to see the whole picture. A general sitting in his office and moving tiny figures on a table, planning strategies and directing armies on a map will have a view of the whole battlefield but how are you going to narrate that? Are you going to do it minute by minute? Or, are you going to go with the omni narrator who knows everything and provides detailed explanations on what's happening and why? Tom Clancy's books often describe large scale battlefields in tiny detail. You don't have to go the worldbuilding way in order to describe a complex battle at all. Personal drama is much more interesting than a big event concerning people we don't care about. Unless you manage to make that big event interesting on it's own, as in Tom Clancy's books where the reader gets so eager to see how the situation is going to unfold. Are your battles interesting enough? Military buffs will gladly read a detailed description about the movements of each army even in the most mundane battle but most of the general readership won't have the patience to read that. Just a few things to consider
Establish clear separate arenas(North West Flank,Central Force,Reinforcements,Seige Points,etc) Alternate between the places you write about by writing interesting enough developments that may change the tide of battle in one front and then switch to another area. This generates suspense. Also be careful to foreshadow any two arenas intersecting so the reader isn't confused. There's a World War One channel called The Great War that shows every event of the war and jumps from area to area seamlessly. I'd reccomend you watch that. Of course the battles of World War One are different from Napoleonic ones but his flow is something you should definitely try to replicate.
Your question is too wide. 1. How to do the storyline of a battle? 2. How to tell about a battle? 3. POV and a battle? 4. Battle as a local storyworld? 5. Battle as a part of a bigger story? 6. Showing reader the battle? 7. Historical info about tactics, strategy, logistics, seamanship... in that scale? 8. Command vs. common men? 9. Managing writing itself? 10. Something else? If you think very well what it is that you want to ask, that thinking might show some part of the answer. After that it is easier to ask the rest. (One formula for large scale battle writing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ender%27s_Game https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ender%27s_Game_(series) )
