What are some things to note when writing a war story?

The key to writing a good war story is that it should focus on internal changes within the protagonist, rather than just the external brutality of war. In other words, your story needs to be about a person, not just a battle.

Consider some famous war movies like Forrest Gump, Enemy at the Gates, or American Sniper. Each of these movies centers around a person's life, not just the violence that happens during war. We watch the protagonist go through change. 

Here are some general tips as you begin: 

• Choose what war your story will be set in. Don't just pick a random one and don't underestimate the differences between the wars that you pick. The kind of story you would tell about the Vietnam War is going to be very different than the kind of story you would tell about WWII or the War of 1812. The setting, the characters, the stakes, and the language are all going to change based on what war you pick. 


• Decide what your character wants. The best dramatic writing occurs when a character is actively trying to achieve something. This could be an external goal like "saving those villagers." Or it could be something internal and harder to judge like "I want to be my own person." 


• When you start describing what is happening around your protagonist (the setting, the action, etc.) it is usually more effective to describe your protagonist’s reaction to something, rather than just describing the thing itself. If your protagonist’s best friend is being killed, don’t just describe the murder. Describe the protagonist watching the murder. (If you've ever seen the horror movie Sinister, there are some great examples of this idea.) 


• Finally, remember to have profluence. It’s sometimes easy in war stories to get caught up in bloody descriptions or battles. But remember that audiences can get bored even with war scenes. We want the story to keep moving forward.