The Different Types of Conflict in a Novel (and How to Use Them)
Last updated: September 2026
By Gabrielle Dorval, founder of Inkbound
Most guides on this topic list six or seven categories that end up overlapping anyway: character vs. society, vs. nature, vs. fate, vs. technology. In practice, four families cover most of what a novel actually needs, and they combine far better than they separate.
External Conflict: When the Obstacle Comes From Outside
This is the most visible form: an antagonist, a disaster, a quest to complete. The character has to act against something that exists independently of them, the way Jean Valjean spends all of Les Misérables pursued by Inspector Javert. This is often the conflict that structures the main plot, but it almost never carries a story on its own.
Internal Conflict: The Character's Battle With Themselves
A doubt, a fear, a contradiction between what the character wants and what they need. This conflict plays out inside, usually alongside the external one, and it's typically what gives a story its emotional depth: it's the guilt that eats at Raskolnikov long after the murder in Crime and Punishment, more than the murder itself. A character who fights a dragon without ever questioning himself stays flat.
Relational Conflict: When Two Characters Clash
Two wills pulling against each other, neither one really "the villain": Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice are the textbook case, the tension coming from their own respective pride rather than any outside danger. This type works especially well between allies or people close to each other, since the tension comes from the relationship itself.
Societal Conflict: When the Character Faces a System
An unjust law, an oppressive tradition, an institution the character can't fight alone, the way Winston Smith stands against the Party in 1984. This conflict goes beyond the individual scale and often gives a novel a broader resonance, especially in dystopias or historical fiction.
Why Combining Several Conflicts Works Better Than One
A novel that leans on external conflict alone runs out of steam fast. Layer an internal conflict onto an external one, and every action scene gains a second layer of meaning: the character isn't just fighting the enemy, they're fighting themselves too. That layering is what separates a memorable plot from a plain string of obstacles.
Keeping Track of Your Conflicts While You Write
On a long novel, it's easy to lose track of a secondary conflict introduced in chapter five and never resolved by chapter thirty. Linking each character sheet to their arc and relationships, the way Inkbound's Codex does, makes it easy to see at a glance which conflicts are still open and which have already found their resolution.
Happy writing!
Frequently asked questions
Does every scene need a conflict?
Not necessarily a major one, but a scene with no tension at all, even minor, risks slowing the novel's pace.
How many different conflicts should a novel contain?
There's no fixed number, but most effective novels combine at least one external and one internal conflict, sometimes with a secondary relational conflict on top.
Does a conflict always need to resolve by the end?
No, some conflicts, internal ones especially, can stay partially open if that serves the character's truth, but the reader needs at least some form of resolution or noticeable change.