Writing - Action Scenes

Recently, a person that I role play with (yes, I am addicted to role playing) mentioned that she was horrible at writing action scenes, specifically those with fighting and battles.
I do quite well at writing action scenes, and she asked me how I do it. So, naturally, this prompted a blog post.
I am not sure how many of you are into writing, and specifically fiction writing (the place where you will find the most creative action scenes), but maybe this will help some passerby or spark some interest in some of you here.
Just a note, these ideas I mention here are just that: my ideas that work for me. There is no guaranteeing that any of them will work for you. We are all different and have different styles and ways of doing things, so if my ideas don't work for you, perhaps they will help you find your own style that works for you.
Don't limit your creativity to someone else's ideas! Broaden your perspective!

1. Grab the popcorn
Before I write a scene, I usually plug in some action music from a movie soundtrack (my favorites are Lord of the Rings soundtrack and The Chronicles of Narnia soundtrack). I think it is referred to as "setting the mood" in the author.

2. Grab the remote
I go through the basics as I get closer to writing the fight scene.
What has led up to this point - this conflict?
How do things look? What sounds are there? How does my character act and react? I create the sounds, the sights, the smells, the basic feelings of my character. Usually, when writing an fighting scene, I don't get much into my character's head and emotions. But I do get physical: what pain, strain, and stress is his body experiencing? What does he see, hear, and smell?
Sometimes, usually at the very beginning of an action scene, I will touch on the very raw emotions of my character. Is he desperate? Is he filled with rage, hate, and blood lust, or fear and confusion? Why is he fighting? What are his very basic feelings and thoughts on the matter?

3. Play the movie
Now for the action to happen. How do I make it work?? I pretend I'm watching a movie... Seriously!
I play my actions scenes in my head, in my imagination, like a movie. I sit down in my Imagination Studio and watch the scene on my huge screen... I close my eyes, or stare off into space, and envision the action in my head, then I transcribe what I see into the written language.
Questions to ask if you are one of those people who have a difficult time envisioning stuff like this: What has happened to cause this conflict? What kind of action would you expect as a result, if this were a movie? What sort of action would elicit a reaction from you in a movie and why? What unexpected things can happen? How does the bad guy think and act? How does the good guy think and act? What can you expect from them? What can happen to cause them pain? What will the characters do to avoid pain and stay alive? What will happen to make the audience cringe, or put them on the edge of their seat?
One thing you must remember when in action, weather in movies, in writing, or in real life: you and/or the characters don't think when in action. You are just doing. The characters are just doing. Everything is happening fast and there is no time to think, only act. There is no time to take in a lot of detail. There is no time to think about how you feel.
This can be a bit tricky, since it is writing and not visuals. The trick with writing is to keep constant suspense and give only the necessary details that keep the action rolling, such as the burn of pain, the thrust of a knife, the gleam of a claw, the giant eye of the bloodthirsty beast, the shock of a punch in the jaw.

Here is an example of a mild action scene, a small excerpt from my soon-to-be-published novel, The Dragon's Son:

  Keegan jolted awake out of a sound sleep, feeling a tiny buzz of electricity shiver down his spine, shaking him.

A dark feeling began creeping up his spine, making him instinctively grab the hilt of his sword: something dangerous was lurking nearby. He could feel its presence.

He sat up silently and tried to adjust his eyes to the darkness. Clouds were in the sky and they concealed the twin moons and the many stars that normally lit the night sky.

I created the setting for the scene. You know basically the time and the place, and you understand the eerie feeling that Keegan has.

A twig snapped and caused Keegan to jump to his feet in one swift movement. He stood still and tried to listen for any other inkling of movement. The hair on the back of his neck began to stand on end, making him loosen his sword in its scabbard.

He gently nudged the still sleeping Saul with his boot. Saul groaned and rolled over then was silent again. Keegan rolled his eyes and kicked Saul in the leg.

Saul groaned and slowly started to sit up “Keegan is something wrong?” He asked groggily.

“Shhhhh!” Keegan whispered.

Saul seemed to blink the sleep away and, seeing that Keegan was disturbed, he slowly and quietly began to stand up.

I am creating the mood and attempting to build suspense, along with the "edgy" feeling.

A low, unearthly growl in the darkness caused both men to freeze, Keegan standing and Saul in a half sitting position.

Suddenly, a tall shadow leapt out from the darkness and lunged for Keegan with a vicious snarl.

Saul quickly rolled out of the way and Keegan jumped off to the side.

The hot, painful twinge of claws breaking through his skin shot up Keegan’s left arm as he jumped away, and he swung his sword blindly at the attacking shadow as he fell to the ground, landing on his back...

Action and harsh conflict always happen suddenly. Spend a little time building suspense and then slam in the action! Envision it as one of those moments in a movie where you jump in your seat because of the sudden and unexpected attack. Of course, you wont get that reaction with the written word, but just envision it and write it out.
Now, after building some more suspense and intrigue by giving a description of the monster attacking them, I move on with the action:

...The beast crouched slightly, curling its clawed fingers, then it roared and lunged for Keegan, aiming its claws for his throat and torso.
Keegan rolled out of the way and jumped to his feet, swinging his sword at the monster.
His sword struck the beast across its rib cage, slicing through unbelievably thick flesh and opening only a small wound in the large monster.
The creature roared in anger and jumped away from Keegan just as the moon light disappeared behind the clouds and plunged everything back into darkness.
Keegan rushed blindly for a nearby tree, hearing the heavy footfalls of the beast as it came after him. He quickly ducked behind the tree, preparing to swing his sword for the beast again.
His boot suddenly caught in a protruding root of the tree as he shifted his position and his foot twisted. His ankle snapped, and pain jolted up his leg. He cried out as he fell to his knees, his ankle unable to bear his weight any longer.
Instantly, Saul jumped over Keegan just as the monster came around the tree with a vicious snarl. The monster looked somewhat surprised by Saul’s sudden appearance, but it recovered quickly enough to dodge Saul’s sword thrust at its abdomen. It grasped Saul by the shoulders, digging its claws into Saul’s muscles, making the tall man buckle under the intense pain, then it flung Saul aside as if he were but a sack of potatoes.

I noted some of the small movements and details, like the curling of the monster's clawed fingers, but not so many that it would slow the action down. Only enough to give the reader the idea of what things look like and to keep the dangerous mood going. The main thing to consider when adding detail to action scenes is to make sure it adds to the action, instead of taking away from it. You MUST have some detail in action scenes, or things will go way to fast and seem rushed. But you want to make sure that your details keep the action going - that they roll with the punches.

A great picture of fast action with some detail:
.. vicious snarls, lips drawn back, teeth exposed, water spraying into the air...

I must admit, the action scene that I used above is not my best nor my favorite action scene from my book because it is not my most active and exciting. I have much, much better ones in other parts of my novel. However, I chose to use it because it fit the present need better than any of my other scenes. So, all that to say: don't judge my novel by the above excerpt. *wink, smile*
If you would like to read some better action scenes, some of them without monsters and bloodshed, then please take a look at my collection of short stories. There are some really good scenes in there!
Of Dragons, Scoundrels, & 8 Year Olds.

Pictures for this post were found on Google