on Writers Helping Writers:

Facts are facts: writers throw a lot of rocks at characters. Enemies. Obstacles. Maybe a rabid zombie or two. And we aren’t nice about it, spacing out each projectile, no. We like to line up our canons and see just how many hits a character can take…all in the name of character arc growth.

Whether it’s marriage problems, a car breakdown, or a killer taunting our character by choosing victims they know, at a certain point, our character is going to blow up. And when they do, they’ll set aside rational thought and act. Luckily for us, this almost always turns out bad for them, but good for the story because poor judgment, rash decisions, and risks usually generate conflict.

When characters become volatile, it doesn’t matter if they have a good reason or not, only the mistakes and missteps that often follow. But what does ‘acting on emotion’ look like—is it all road rage and smashed windows? Heck no!