See you next time

That's all for this lesson!

An action sequence in science-fantasy is often heightened with technology and magic, and strange settings or threats. But at its core, it follows the same rollercoaster of triumph and despair that all good action follows, to keep the audience uncertain about who's going to be ultimately victorious.

It's fast-paced, full of strong visuals, moves between moments of tension and moments of relief, and ends on an emotional or passionate note to drive home the intensity of the scene.

If you're interested in writing action more generally, you might want to check out Narrative Basics Lesson 2: Action, which is a whole lesson about different types of action, making action meaningful, and how to sequence action.

Next time you see some action—whether in real life, a movie, or somewhere else—try to describe or write it out, similar to what you did in this lesson. Then, have a go at turning it into a science-fantasy action scene, by adding in elements of technology and/or magic, otherworldly settings, or mysterious threats.

All stories have action, because the characters need to do things—take action—in order for the plot to move forward.

The next time you read a book, pick out an action sequence. Is it a heart-pounding rollercoaster like the passages used in this lesson? Or is it calmer, maybe even boring? How might you turn a boring action sequence into something more exciting?

Phoenix is a novel by S .F. Said, with amazing illustrations by Dave McKean.

Lucky thinks he’s an ordinary Human boy… until he starts dreaming that the stars are singing to him, and he wakes up to find an uncontrollable power rising inside him. Lucky is forced to leave his home planet—Phoenix— on the run and in search of his father, who he hopes can give him answers.

The galaxy’s at war, there are deadly enemies among both Aliens and Humans, Lucky befriends an Alien starship crew and an Alien warrior girl who’s got neon needles in her hair… Oh, and he needs to find a way to save the galaxy. No big deal!

Where did the inspiration images come from?

These two images are both by Mirco Paganessi, for the tabletop role-playing game Numenera (Monte Cook Games). You may recognise the name from Lesson 4—Numenera is a science-fantasy game, so no wonder the illustrations are perfect inspiration images for this course!

This image is an illustration by Vlad Bolotov—we used another illustration of his back in Lesson 2.

See you next time :-)

Science fantasy worldbuilding in Phoenix 6: Lasers, camera, action!