Along with physical description, clear, sharp action scenes have become a bit of a lost art in the manuscripts that cross my desk. So many writers are more focused on their characters’ snappy banter than showing characters moving seamlessly through the physical world.

Precise action will turn a vaguely confusing jumble into a gripping scene. In this post, I have eight tips that will have you writing gripping action scenes in no time.

Much like my post on physical description, I’m going to start with a clunky and confusing action sequence and gradually smooth it out using my pointers. (Also, I made this passage up, no authors harmed in the making of this post):