When writing an action filled adventure story, it is important to clearly define your character’s goals from page one. For example, your character may set out to destroy a certain ring of power or find a lost artifact.

Adventure stories follow your character’s voyage or quest and that feels like the driving force of the entire story. Thus, it will lean more toward plot than character driven, but you must have full and clearly defined character arc. Just because your characters are going to destroy the one ring or discover the Arc of the Covenant, doesn’t mean that he or she isn’t embarking on their own journey of internal change.

Adventure stories have an expected quest and an unexpected journey. Often, in adventure stories, your characters will set out with a defined goal and may even reach his or her expected destination only to find out that this isn’t then end. For example, Frodo arrives in Rivendell having safely brought the ring to the Elves, only to find out that it cannot stay there. Someone must take it to be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom.

Everything shifts, even your character’s goals. This allows you to deepen their internal journey and continue to push your character toward his or her internal change.